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New Zealand kept their unbeaten ODI run alive, inflicting a rare defeat on England, in a contest which tested their resilience with bat and ball

Andrew McGlashan26-Feb-2018New Zealand are a victory away from equalling their best streak in ODIs of 10 wins on the bounce, and number nine of the current sequence was their most satisfying yet as they overcame a formidable England team in a contest that twisted and turned through 100 overs.West Indies barely offered a fight in the first ODI series of New Zealand’s season and though Pakistan occasionally challenged them, it only really came after the series had been decided. At Seddon Park on Sunday, New Zealand grabbed the early initiative inflicting England’s first defeat in a live bilateral ODI since the India series last January.The sight of Ross Taylor scoring a masterful hundred should come as no surprise – it was his 18th in ODIs, although among his better ones – but around him New Zealand found fresh matchwinners. Tom Latham, who had endured a barren run of ODI form at home since his century against Bangladesh in late 2016, counterpunched when England were on top and most thrillingly Mitchell Santner sealed victory with a late dart. To win without contributions from Martin Guptill or Kane Williamson was a big tick for the home side.”The partnership between Ross and Tom certainly set it up and was deserved of a good finish,” the coach, Mike Hesson, said. “We lost our way a little but the way Santner and even Tim [Southee] came out and were composed at the end was good for us”Under pressure, a lot of times [the middle order] have had to come in and play cameos, be quite selfless. Sunday was quite different, they had to play a substantial innings and the way Tom and Ross set the side up was exceptional”That’s why we play six frontline batsmen, you can’t always rely on your top order to set the platform even though they’ve done it for the majority of the summer. It was nice for the middle order to dominate.”For Latham it was just his second fifty-plus score in 32 ODI innings at home – and nine of his previous 13 knocks in New Zealand had been single-figures – while Santner’s batting has faded, or at least stalled, as his spin bowling had improved.”Tom’s been in good touch the last week or so,” Hesson said. “He got in really good positions yesterday which shows that he’s put the work. We know he’s a quality player. He’s taken the keeping on as well so we’ve asked quite a lot of him. He made a great start in India [last October], struggled a little bit at home and he’s been reminded of that a few times but we know he’s a good player. The more experience he gets in the role the better he’ll get.”Mitch has been doing that in the nets for us for a long time, we know what a good striker he is. He played nicely against these guys at Trent Bridge a while ago and showed his power, so it’s always nice for someone to get us over the line. He’s put a heck of a lot of work into his batting in recent times and nice to see it come off.”The chance of victory was restored by the Taylor-Latham alliance of 178 and capped off by Santner, but in a game of so many subplots New Zealand’s performance with the ball should not be forgotten. Tim Southee and Trent Boult excelled at both ends of the innings – the first 10 overs brought 41 runs, the last 67 – while someone snagged a breakthrough each time England threatened to get away. Hesson, who was a touch more critical of the bowling performance in the middle 30 overs, singled out Colin Munro’s knuckle ball to deceive Joe Root as a key moment.”The ability to keep taking wickets throughout the innings was critical, even though they can bat to 11 you’ve still got to start,” Hesson said. “If we can keep bringing out new guys, you earn yourselves some dots, a reprieve really. The key to any one-day game is to make sure you can still have an attacking option at one end.”We kept chipping away, we didn’t really go bang, bang but we just chipped away when they started to get away from us. I think the wicket of Joe Root was critical for us, to get them five down meant we got five overs of them trying to rebuild a little.”

Pakistan’s coach praised the open appraisals that had taken place after the heavy loss against India which sparked the turnaround against South Africa

Andrew McGlashan in Cardiff10-Jun-2017From the depths of despair after the insipid performance against India, there’s now a far more upbeat mood in the Pakistan camp. They kept their Champions Trophy campaign alive with an incisive display in the field against South Africa, and did enough with the bat to ward off a collapse, and know a position in the semi-finals is in their control. It would be a very handy stepping stone in the long-term project of rebuilding the one-day side.After the dismal opening performance, coach Mickey Arthur spoke about the fear that inhibited Pakistan’s players and nothing has changed his mind that they were “intimidated” by India. But the response has been heartening for him and he praised the open appraisals that had taken place after that match which enabled the turnaround against South Africa.”I looked around the dressing room before that [India] game and we didn’t believe that we could beat them,” Arthur said. “It was such a contrast to the South Africa game were we believed in our skills and ability.”I’m pretty honest and straightforward. We had some honest conversations and the good thing about it is that the players are contributing to that conversation now whereas a year ago they didn’t. They are starting to take responsibility and once that happens it’s a massive psychological barrier they have broken down in the dressing room. I come out of an environment where you have mature conversations all the time and they can’t be sugar-coated, they have to happen for you to move forward. The guys responded fantastically well.”The victory was set up by an attack which found its teeth on a used pitch at Edgbaston – “I was happy they stuck us on a used one,” Arthur said – with Imad Wasim removing AB de Villiers for the first golden duck of his ODI career and Hasan Ali producing one of the balls of the tournament to castle Wayne Parnell. Between them, Hasan and Imad took 5 for 44 off 16 overs. Along with a lively ODI debut from Fakhar Zaman, whose 31 off 23 balls gave Pakistan breathing space to absorb Morne Morkel’s impressive spell, it was an impressive match for a clutch of the youngsters, something which gave Arthur great satisfaction.”To see them perform is the best thing that can happen to any coach,” he said. “Hasan Ali is one of those. If you saw him now and remember him a year ago he’s developed, he’s stronger and fitter, his skills are developing and he will be a fine all-round cricketer. He can field, he can bat, he can bowl. He’s in great shape so I’m very proud of his development. He stands out as one of the beacons; him Babar Azam, Imad Wasim – we have some good young players coming through and we have to keep them believing.”There will also be two more experienced foes up against each other in the Group B match in Cardiff with Arthur pitted against Sri Lanka’s South African-born coach Graham Ford. “Fordy and I have been very close over a long period of time so it’s taking on an old friend. Sri Lanka are very dangerous, they played exceptionally well against India,” Arthur said. “It’s fearless cricket. They hit the ball hard, play outrageous shots. They will be a tough side to beat. We’ll have to be on our game.”Though the focus is firmly on Cardiff and Monday’s match, events thousands of miles away have also given Pakistan another boost. Afghanistan’s victory against West Indies, inspired by Rashid Khan’s 7 for 18, has widened the gap in the race for an automatic World Cup spot. Pakistan hold that position at No. 8 with West Indies’ defeat leaving them further adrift ahead of the September 30 cut-off.”It’s been a focus of ours, we’ve had it over heads for a year and we’ve had some tough one-day series – England away, Australia away, they are tough – so to almost qualify is a huge relief but that doesn’t stop where we want to take the one-day team,” Arthur said. “We have to keep improving all the time, playing with intensity, keep the freshness so we can put a shake on at that World Cup.

Nathan Coulter-Nile is back from injury and is intent on making full use of the opportunity he has been provided with after his Test call-up

Daniel Brettig07-Dec-2015Watch Nathan Coulter-Nile up close and it is not hard to see why Australia’s selectors drafted him into the squad for Hobart. Tall, strong, and athletic, he can hit the ball miles and then hurl it down the wicket at speeds approaching the 145kph mark. He is also an outstanding fielder, rivalling the best of Ryan Harris for covering ground and firing in flat returns from the outfield.Yet his tendency to be injured and his lack of recent cricket have made Coulter-Nile a figure of some curiosity since his first call-up to the Test squad. Coulter-Nile had been a reserve alongside Doug Bollinger during the 2013-14 Ashes summer, but since then his ODI appearances have been sporadic, and he notably missed this year’s World Cup due to hamstring surgery.At 27, Coulter-Nile is aware that his opportunity is now, and he has no intention of simply making up the numbers either in this squad or the Australian bowling attack should he be granted a chance due to the heavy workloads being placed on the likes of Josh Hazlewood and Peter Siddle.”Every Test is an opportunity. I mean, you take five-for in a Test it becomes very hard to drop you,” Coulter-Nile said. “That’s why none of the boys want to give up their spot. You don’t see Sidds going, ‘Oh I’ve got a sore back I’m going to have a rest,’ because you don’t want to give the opportunity to the next bloke. I’m the same. If I get an opportunity I don’t want to just feel like a gap-filler, I want to press my case to play the next Test and the one after that.”The shock of not even being in contention for the World Cup after being around the limited-overs mark for some time had a considerable effect on Coulter-Nile, leaving him to reassess how seriously he took the game and how he prepared for it. That realisation did not prevent further injuries – a hamstring strain in England during the ODIs earlier this year and a shoulder problem that kept him out of action for the early part of the Sheffield Shield season – but it has hardened his outlook.”Not to be even in contention for selection was a tough one, it was a bit of an eye opener,” he said. “It was the time the penny dropped, I needed to sort my body out, sort myself out and I did and then I got injured again. It’s part of the game. If you want to bowl fast and put your body through that you are going to get injured it is just something you have to deal with and get on with I guess.”Adam Voges is Coulter-Nile’s state captain, and a well-placed observer of his abilities. He foresees a role similar to that played by James Pattinson, the other firebrand in the team following the retirement of Mitchell Johnson and now injury to Mitchell Starc.”He can be used primarily as a strike bowler for us, I think,” Voges said. “He bowls good pace – he can touch sort of mid 140kph and get some good shape at that pace as well. In terms of whether he gets a game or not I’m not too sure but I see him and Jimmy Pattinson in a similar vein in terms of good pace and can swing the ball. It’s certainly a good asset to have.”Obviously with his hamstring troubles that we know about, he’s had some issues there. The shoulder he’s coming back from was from a freak accident in a warm up game so that was just really unfortunate but from what I saw from the back end particularly from the last Shield season where he played six games in six weeks and just got better and better the more he played. The resilience was there and I think it’s coming, he’s just been a little bit unfortunate with his injuries.”The fresh intensity Coulter-Nile brought to his playing of the game has had one unfortunate side-effect. A dissent charge after disputing an umpire’s wide call during his return from injury in the Futures League led to a suspension from the one Shield game available to him before this week, and a moment’s pause about his Test prospects. The selectors, however, kept faith with someone who has been in their plans now for several years, reasoning that he had shown enough signs of rhythm in the earlier fixture.”I was playing a 2nd XI game to get back into the shield team and I played it as hard as I could, as aggressively as I could,” Coulter-Nile said. “I stepped over the line, paid the price and I missed a Shield game, it was just very fortunate that I have got the opportunity here. That’s how I play my best cricket and I don’t see myself changing but I definitely will respect the umpire’s decision.”If you’d had it [the injury] for a long time and you haven’t bowled I guess it’s hard, but the injury I had I started bowling two weeks later, so I didn’t miss a lot of bowling. I feel pretty good in that space. I feel like I play cricket 365 days of the year so I don’t feel like I’ve missed a large portion of cricket.”I’ve been bowling a long time, it’s not like I’ve had to build back up or anything, I didn’t start up on half run and build back up, I was straight off the long run and bowling flat out, so it wasn’t really an issue there.”The question of whether Coulter-Nile can put all that ability together and perform on the Test match stage will remain open until he gets his chance, but said he will try not to think about that. “I don’t really get drawn into how I’m going to go, I just go out there and try my best,” he said. “If it comes off, it comes off. If it doesn’t work this time, hopefully it works next time. I don’t get caught up in how it’s going to go, you can’t change that.”In one net session at Bellerive Oval, Coulter-Nile lost little by comparison to the rest of the bowling attack. His talent indicates that he belongs – he awaits the chance to back that up with performance.

Lancashire may be tipped for promotion and Glamorgan to feature in the bottom half of Division Two but it was roles reversed for much of the first day at Colwyn Bay

Paul Edwards at Colwyn Bay01-May-2013
ScorecardMichael Hogan’s three wickets helped fire out Lancashire•Getty Images

The annual consensus about Division Two of the County Championship is that it is composed of four or five teams capable of winning promotion and a similar number who make up the numbers. Glamorgan are frequently placed in the second group and most pre-season tipsters identified Lancashire as an outfit likely to be bidding for a swift return to Division One.Such predictions were made to look rather daft for much of this blissful spring day at Rhos-on-Sea, where the May blossom on the tiered embankment, the smiles on the faces of the club officials and the quality of the bowling more than made up for scoreboard malfunctions and technical glitches.And by the end of May 1, traditionally a socialist holiday, it was the Glamorgan workers who could look back on their labours with just slightly greater pleasure. Having striven hard to bowl Lancashire out for 123, they were handily placed on 110 for 4, a deficit of 13 runs.It is nothing like a winning position, but for Mark Wallace and his players it will do very nicely, despite the late departure of Marcus North, lbw on the front foot to Jimmy Anderson for 22 immediately after he had been switched to the Penrhyn Avenue End of this proud, well-appointed ground. That left Anderson with 3 for 28 from 15 overs, figures to reassure Andy Flower that his spearhead is near his finest fettle. If he hits his straps on Thursday, Glamorgan’s advantage could be slender or nothing at all.”May called to the year to come dancing” wrote the poet and Anglican priest R S Thomas, a resident of the Lleyn peninsula, in Runes, and it was Glamorgan’s bowlers who showed the slickest moves having lost the toss on the first morning of this match.Lancashire’s travails began as early as the second delivery of the day when Paul Horton left a ball from Michael Hogan which clipped his off stump. This misjudgement rather set the tone for an innings conspicuous for its absence of solidity or control. Glamorgan’s bowlers, by contrast, always seemed to know their business: it was to stick to the game’s timeless verities and let any early moisture or movement from a well-grassed pitch confound the batsmen.It worked. The rangy Hogan followed up the wicket of Horton with the scalp of Karl Brown who played a copybook front foot drive but neglected to hit the ball with the bat, something of a weakness, he will probably admit. Luke Procter and Ashwell Prince then added 40 in 15 overs but this brief period of reconstruction was followed by major subsidence as both batsmen fell lbw, Procter to Jim Allenby for 26, Prince to Mike Reed for 19, in the space of seven balls. When Steven Croft slapped a short ball from Reed high but within reach of the leaping Murray Goodwin at midwicket, Lancashire were 66 for 5 and the travelling supporters were well into their pre-prandial grumbling.Things descended from the poor to the abysmal in the hour after lunch as Glen Chapple’s side lost 4 for 7 in 27 balls. Allenby deserves plenty of credit for the delivery which moved off the pitch to claim Katich’s wicket but other batsmen – Cross and Chapple maybe – were complicit in their own downfalls. A last wicket partnership of 20 between Anderson and Simon Kerrigan took the total to 123 but no one was claiming that this was anything like adequate. The attraction then lay in seeing what Anderson et al would make of the same pitch and the same atmospheric conditions.At first they made not too much of them. True, Ben Wright gloved a vicious lifter from Anderson to Cross just after tea and Stewart Walters lost his off stump, but there was never the sense of incipient crisis that had existed in the Lancashire innings. The determined Will Bragg and the more expansive Marcus North had taken the score to 82 before Bragg, aiming to play to leg, was lbw to Simon Kerrigan’s fourth ball. That brought Murray Goodwin to the crease and his battle with Anderson on the second morning may do much to determine the architecture of this engrossing contest.

Greg Chappell, the Australian selector, has forecast the selection of distinct “specialist” squads for tours of Sri Lanka and South Africa.

Daniel Brettig13-May-2011Greg Chappell, the Australian selector, has forecast the selection of distinct “specialist” squads for tours of Sri Lanka and South Africa. The size of the task confronting Australia and its new captain Michael Clarke is placed into context by the fact that this is the first time since 1969-70 that the national side has been asked to make back-to-back overseas Test tours without a significant break or home summer in between.To alleviate the difficulties, Chappell expected a substantial variation in the squads picked for the two series, to help Clarke best adapt his resources to contrasting conditions. As in 1969-70, when the team led by Bill Lawry travelled through India and enjoyed a series victory before venturing to South Africa and being crushed 4-0 in as many Tests, the Australians must make the sharp adjustments from slow subcontinental pitches to fast African tracks. That tour sowed the seeds for Lawry’s eventual sacking as captain, a fate Clarke will be keen to avoid.”If you want to look at it in that light it is [daunting], yes, but if you want to look at it as an opportunity for us to get better, I think it’s a great opportunity,” Chappell told . “There’ll be different challenges on each tour; much like 1969-70 there will be very different conditions on the two parts of the tour so it will be a challenge.”The success of the last Australian tour to South Africa in 2009 may result in a recall for a role-player like the Victorian allrounder Andrew McDonald, who bowled thriftily in partnership with the pace attack during those matches, while in Sri Lanka the spin of Michael Beer, Steve Smith and perhaps Jason Krejza will be employed.”The good news for this generation is they won’t have to go back-to-back from one set of conditions to the other; the Champions League will intervene, so the opportunity will be there to pick specialist groups for the two tours,” said Chappell. “Sri Lanka’s likely to suit spin bowling, South Africa’s likely to suit fast bowling, so the balance of the two groups is likely to be different. It’s an opportunity for experienced players and for budding players to gain some great experience and some great learning about what international cricket is about.”Chappell admitted there were few great players immediately available to the Australian team, and suggested the national selectors would have to make the best of it until a new generation, spearheaded by the likes of the teenaged fast bowler Pat Cummins, was ready for national duty.”If you can find some outstanding matchwinning players, that’s great, but if you haven’t got them available you do the best you can with the combinations you can put together and that’s the challenge for us over the next few years,” said Chappell. “We can see we’ve got some potential champions on the horizon, but it’s going to take time for them to get to the point where they’re going to be ready to play for Australia, so in the meantime you’re looking for the best combinations you can get.”Casting his eye across to India and the coaching role he once held, Chappell said Gary Kirsten’s replacement, the former England coach Duncan Fletcher, was as prepared as anyone could be for the role.”I think it’s an interesting appointment; he’s a very experienced coach, I think he’ll bring a lot to the job,” said Chappell. “Coaching at that level is a challenge in any environment, we know how fanatical India is about the game of cricket with the population and the media population, that brings with it different challenges. Duncan’s been a proven coach and has experienced India from the other side, so if anyone can be ready for it he’ll be as ready as anyone.”

Inzamam-ul-Haq, former captain and Pakistan’s second highest run-scorer in Tests, has offered his services as a full-time batting coach to the national team

Cricinfo staff01-Aug-2010Inzamam-ul-Haq, former captain and Pakistan’s second highest run-scorer in Tests, has offered his services as a full-time batting coach to the national team. Pakistan’s batsmen are struggling on a tour of England, where they were dismissed for 182 in the first innings at Trent Bridge and are 15 for 3 in the second.”The team definitely needs a full-time batting coach and, if any offer is made to me for this position, I will definitely give it serious consideration,” Inzamam told. “They need a batting coach to guide them and it is a responsibility I would look at accepting because Pakistan cricket has given me a lot,” Inzamam told . Pakistan already have in their coaching staff former batsman Ijaz Ahmed, who doubles up as a batting and fielding coach.The Pakistan batsmen also struggled in the two Tests against Australia in England. They lost heavily at Lord’s but managed to draw the series by winning at Headingley after their bowlers dismissed Australia for 88 in the first innings. Their batsmen, however, were unconvincing during the chase of a small target.”The batsmen are not playing with the required technique and temperament,” Inzamam said. “They lack patience and get out after scoring 20 to 30 runs, which is not good enough for Test matches.”Inzamam said the selectors should also consider the retired Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan, who is out of favour at the moment, for the Test side. “Even a good batsman requires a year or so in Test cricket to settle down and play long innings. I would advise the selectors to try out a combination of senior and young players. And they should use Younis and Yousuf.”

Tamim Iqbal is expecting to take his place at the top of the Bangladesh batting order when the first Test at Lord’s despite struggling during the tour of England with an injury to his left wrist that may yet require surgery

Andrew Miller at Lord's25-May-2010Tamim Iqbal is expecting to take his place at the top of the Bangladesh batting order when the first Test at Lord’s gets underway on Thursday, despite struggling during the tour of England with an injury to his left wrist that may yet require surgery at some stage this year.Tamim first sustained the injury while fielding during Bangladesh’s domestic Twenty20 competition in 2009, but the problem flared up again ahead of the recent World Twenty20 in the Caribbean, in which he played only a minor role during their 21-run defeat against Pakistan in St Lucia and missed the defeat to Australia in Barbados.Upon arrival in England, Tamim sat out Bangladesh’s first two fixtures against Surrey and Essex, but showed glimpses of form with scores of 36 and 19 in the team’s nine-wicket defeat against England Lions at Derby last week, and the lure of a Lord’s Test is likely to persuade him to push through the pain barrier.”I’ve pushed myself five percent more than maybe I would have done on other grounds,” Tamim told Cricinfo. “I’m really excited to play at Lord’s in a Test match. It will be a dream come true and I really want to play, because I don’t know when I’ll get another chance.”Tamim conceded that the prospect of surgery had not been entirely ruled out, but given Bangladesh’s hectic schedule, which includes the Asia Cup straight after the Test series, followed by the one-day leg of the England tour in July, finding a three-month window that will allow him sufficient time to recuperate ahead of the World Cup next February is a tricky balancing act.”I went to a specialist yesterday, and he said you’ve got two choices,” Tamim said. “Either you play with taping and hope there won’t be any harm, or you can have surgery that will take three months. We have a very busy schedule so the team management told me to decide, so I am seeing another doctor today [Tuesday], and if he gives me the green signal, then I’ll play the first match, and think about surgery when I am free.Tamim was the stand-out performer for Bangladesh during England’s tour of the country in March, in which he scored a brilliant century in the first ODI in Dhaka, followed by three free-flowing half-centuries in four innings during the Tests. Whether fully fit or otherwise, his presence at the top of the order will provide his side with vital experience in alien bowler-friendly conditions.”Test cricket is most important, so I don’t want to take any chances, but I’m batting okay in the nets and the pain is getting better day by day,” he said. “This is my third tour to England, and last time I played okay. I scored some runs against South Africa and the county teams, so there won’t be any problem adjusting to the wickets. I am an international cricket player, so I need to adjust to every ground and every wicket.”Bangladesh’s preparations for the first Test have been blighted by illness as well as injury, with their captain, Shakib Al Hasan, being forced into quarantine after contracting chicken pox early in the tour. He took a full part in training on Monday and is sure to lead his team out on Thursday morning, but the disruption is not what Bangladesh needed ahead of such a tough assignment.”I think he’s fully recovered now, he’s running around, batting and bowling, and he’ll be there in the first Test to captain our side,” said Tamim. “We were not allowed to go anywhere near him [last week], he was staying alone, and only the guys who’d had chicken pox before were allowed to go and see him. I asked my mother if I’d ever had chicken pox and she said I hadn’t, but then I did a test and it said that I had had, which was funny.”Assuming Bangladesh can overcome their setbacks to field a full-strength side, Tamim hopes that they can build on the encouraging displays that they showed against England earlier in the year. “We know that we are an improving side, we are doing okay in international games, but we are just not winning games,” he said. “We’ve got to prove to the world that we can play in any conditions.”

It was Seattle Orcas’ second win of the season, and lifted them to No. 4; Los Angeles Knight Riders, meanwhile, have now lost six of their seven games

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Jun-2025For the second game in a row in MLC 2025, Shimron Hetmyer took charge of the Seattle Orcas innings at a critical stage and smashed his way through to victory.He did it off the last ball against MI New York just about 24 hours ago even as he cramped up, but didn’t show any signs of discomfort when he did it again. This time, against Los Angeles Knight Riders, who were on top at different stages of the game but came unstuck in the end.The base for Hetmyer had been set by Aaron Jones.After Josh Brown had been sent back for a two-ball duck by Jason Holder in the first over, Jones and Shayan Jahangir put together 119 for the second wicket in 11.1 overs. Jahangir’s contribution was 42 from 29 balls, while Jones scored 73 in 38, a strike rate close to 200.But the innings needed something more if Orcas, after losing their first five games of the season, needed to make it two in two. That came from Hetmyer, who walked out at No. 5 with 77 still needed in just under eight overs.Two fours came off Ali Khan in the 14th over. Tanveer Sangha was then sent for two sixes in the 15th, and 48 from 30 balls looked very gettable for Orcas. There was a little blip as Andre Russell, who had earlier smashed 65 not out from 39 balls, bowled a five-run over, but it was business as usual for Hetmyer after that, as he took two more sixes off Holder in the 17th, and another off Ali Khan in the 18th.Andre Russell smashed 65 not out in 39 balls to lead Los Angeles Knight Riders’ batting charge•Sportzpics for MLC

Still, after Russell had bowled an eight-run 19th over, Hetmyer had a bit left to do. And when the fifth ball of the last over, bowled by Shadley van Schalkwyk, went straight down the ground, it was all done and dusted.Orcas have now risen from the bottom of the six-team table to No. 4, while Knight Riders have taken their place.After being asked to bat, Knight Riders stuttered to 41 for 1 in the powerplay, and then 66 for 3 at the halfway mark, with none of Andre Fletcher (strike rate 113.04), Unmukt Chand (84.61) and Sherfane Rutherford (125.00) able to get a move on.Russell, promoted to No. 3 and having reached 15 from 13, took off at that point. With Saif Badar for company, Russell took 16, 15, 10 and 21 runs off the next four overs, and suddenly Knight Riders were in business.Even after Badar fell for a 21-ball 41, Waqar Salamkheil getting his second wicket of the game, the big-hitting didn’t stop. In fact, the entry of Rovman Powell made it worse for the Orcas bowlers. Russell, not as belligerent as he usually is, ended with 65 from 39 balls with six fours and four sixes, but Powell was another story. All Powell’s four sixes came against medium pace – three off Jasdeep Singh. and one off Ayan Desai. He ended with 43 not out in 21 balls, with two fours to go with four sixes.Orcas didn’t help themselves with a couple of dropped catches, both off Powell, while captain Sikandar Raza’s decision to not bowl himself and leave the last few overs to Jasdeep and Desai didn’t come off. Hetmyer made sure it didn’t matter.