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Cricket has never faced a crisis quite like this. With much of the world still deep in Covid-19 pandemic-induced lockdowns, administrators are facing an unprecedented situation. At some point in the near future, sport will resume but in what form, when and where exactly, no-one knows.On Thursday, the chief executives of the 12 full-member countries along with the ICC management will convene via a conference call to start plotting what a new landscape might look like. Thursday’s meeting is merely the starting point of a process that will remain a work in progress for the foreseeable future.The ICC has said the aim of this virtual meeting – and there really only is one item on the agenda – is to check in on the health of members and how they are coping with the effects of no cricket, as well as collectively work on contingency planning and sort out priorities between the resumption of international bilateral cricket, domestic cricket and global events.Based on conversations with various boards, ESPNcricinfo lists some of the key issues that will rank high on the list of priorities to be addressed on Thursday.

Men’s T20 World Cup

Aaron Finch’s Australia will be among the favourites for the T20 World Cup if it goes ahead•Getty Images

Scheduled for October-November this year, this is the biggest marquee event left in 2020 outside of the IPL. Currently the ICC remains optimistic about the event going ahead in case Australia opens its doors to host the tournament.However, the tournament comprises 16 teams, which means each will need their respective government’s approval. What happens in case one of the participants is denied permission? What would be the quarantine process in individual countries? Will air travel resume completely to allow players to travel to Australia? These will be some of the questions that the chief executives’ committee (CEC) will make note of and it is clearly a complex issue as one of the officials who will be sitting on the call, said.According to one official, the fate of the T20 World Cup is the most important issue for a number of boards outside the biggest few. Those boards rely heavily on revenue distributions from the ICC and a disruption to any event – as PCB chairman Ehsan Mani warned – could have serious financial repercussions for some members. What members might be looking to discuss is a rough idea of a timeline by when a definitive decision on the tournament needs to take place.

ODI Super League

Already this tournament, due to begin in 10 days’ time, has been impacted. Three of the series scheduled as part of the ODI League, which the ICC put in place to provide more context to 50-overs cricket, have been postponed indefinitely, with Pakistan’s series in the Netherlands the latest to be axed. The ODI League serves as a pathway for the 10-team 2023 World Cup, scheduled to be hosted in India. Alongside India, the seven highest-ranked sides in the ODI League as of March 31, 2022 would have qualified directly for the 2023 World Cup, while the bottom five will get a second chance to make the grade through a qualifier.The questions the CEC will need to consider include whether the league should be scrapped, or whether the number of series each team has to play is reworked so the original framework is not completely revamped. “The reason for the ODI League was to bring context and add an element of jeopardy to the qualification for 2023 World Cup,” said one official who will be participating in Thursday’s call. “So ‘is there a way to maintain the integrity of that league?’ is the question that will be asked.”One alternative is that in the absence of a league, all those series go ahead when they can and the shortlist for the 2023 World Cup takes place based on the rankings. However, the official pointed out, countries like England would be at a disadvantage in such a scenario because they are likely to lose out on playing ODI series this summer to accommodate various other events in the calendar.”That is the part of the challenge: you’ve got to decisions that taken into account all of these things but there will so many competing agendas or viewpoints,” the official said.

World Test Championship

India and Australia are the top two sides on the World Test Championship table•Getty Images

The WTC is nearly nine months old with the final is scheduled for July 2021. However, not all teams have played the same number of series. Pakistan head coach Misbah-ul-Haq had suggested recently that the WTC should be put on hold instead of attempting to tinker with the original format where each team is meant to play a total of six series. Not everyone agrees.One chief executive felt that with “nearly 40%” of the WTC already played, suspending was not the best option. “If we have cricket back in July even if it in bio-safe stadiums, behind close doors, I don’t see a need for it [suspending]. But it is a big if.”The ICC, it is believed, will not make a hasty decision on the WTC. One key determining factor will be what percentage of WTC series are lost when bilateral cricket resumes. If it is not a significant chunk, then the ICC will want the nine countries in the Championship to collectively work out windows in the FTP.”Like in the UK, the government is quite keen to restart sport behind closed doors because they believe it is quite good for the morale of the nation,” the official said. “It will start at different places at different times and we’ll ease back into it. That’s when the genuine rescheduling and decision making around the competitions like WTC will start.”

So what might be the outcome?

Don’t expect too much by way of binding decisions from this meeting. In any case, it is the ICC Board rather than the chief executives’ committee that makes decisions final.”There’s going to be discussion around what the restart of cricket looks like, what competitions will have been missed and how we go about trying to see what the next stage is about rescheduling,” Warren Deutrom, Cricket Ireland chief executive, told ESPNcricinfo. “But of course rescheduling is only going to be a relatively relevant discussion when we know more about the point from which we can definitively reschedule.”So I think it’s going to be more around discussing principles: what priorities should there be between bilateral cricket, ICC events, domestic T20 franchise leagues?”

Perhaps, after a fortnight or so when the topic of pitches has dominated the conversation, it was to be expected that an England player might eventually pass comment.Until this point, all the debate about the surfaces in India had been carried out in the media. The England team – and the England team management – have made no negative comment. Indeed, they’re reiterated the party line: the wickets have been challenging and they have been out-played on them by a fine India side.But, after a media conference in which the question was asked, then asked again and then asked in fancy dress, someone finally broke ranks. Jack Leach had a view. And yes, he was suggesting better wickets were required.The only issue – well, an issue for those hoping for a controversy to stoke more eye-catching headlines – was that Leach was talking about pitches in England. Echoing the comments of his captain, Joe Root, who called for “serious improvements” in the standard of county wickets after the third Test, Leach suggested that, if the county game was going to better prepare players for the spin challenge expected in Asia, it could start by preparing ‘better’ wickets.”My thoughts are that the wickets in county cricket in general need to be good surfaces to start with,” Leach said. “Then, if they can break up and bring spin into the game later on, I think that’s a good thing for producing spinners.”They can bowl in the first innings on good wickets. And then, in the second innings when things are starting to happen, they [learn to deal with] the pressure of being the guy who needs to try and bowl the opposition out. That’s the ideal, I think.”If the spinner is playing in a four-man attack with three seamers and a spinner, then I think the role of the spinner becomes more important. But if there’s four or five seamers [in the side], or a couple of batters that also bowl seam, then I think your overs [as a spinner] can really go down; especially on some of the county wickets I’ve played on in the last couple of years.”Leach built his reputation, in part at least, by bowling on wickets at Taunton which were rarely described as ‘good’. While they might provide pretty decent preparation for playing on surfaces such as those seen in Chennai and Ahmedabad in recent days – and they certainly helped Leach catch the selectors’ eyes – they are not the sort of pitches either he or Root have in mind.Dom Bess chats to spin consultant Jeetan Patel•Getty Images

Instead, they mean the sort of surface on which a spinner might be used in the first innings to offer control and variation – Root had suggested the sort of surface where teams routinely score 400 or 500 – and the sort of surface on which they may play an increasing role in the second as the wicket wears. In short, both Leach and Root are calling for surfaces which are better for batting, limit the influence of seamers armed with a Dukes ball and better replicate the conditions traditionally seen at Test level around the world. All of which seems reasonable enough.But quite how these comments are received around the county game remains to be seen. Certainly groundstaff, who might feel a little criticised here, could be forgiven for reacting with a rueful smile. As if their jobs, given the volume of cricket played in England each summer, is not already hard, asking them to prepare Test-quality batting surfaces in the early weeks of the county season is probably unreasonable. If England really want to improve their county surfaces, they will almost certainly have to improve their domestic schedule, and avoid playing the bulk of the season when seamers predominate.In 2021, eight of the 14 rounds of County Championship cricket are scheduled to take place before the end of May (four take place before the end of April) with four more rounds (and the Bob Willis Trophy final) taking place in autumnal September. That leaves just two rounds – eight days of cricket, in other words – scheduled to take place in July or August when surfaces might be expected to provide most assistance to spin bowlers.This was an issue hinted at by England’s newly-appointed spin-bowling coach, Jeetan Patel. But while Patel was happy to allude to the problem, he is also a realist. Just as he found a way to flourish in county cricket, he is adamant young spinners can “upskill” to the point they “can still contribute in April and September.” Related

• Bess and Leach have their work cut out for them in India

• Dom Bess and Jack Leach, a tale of two spinners

• Dom Bess will be 'more than ready' for fourth Test

“There’s probably 20 or 30 options,” Patel said when asked how the development of England’s young spinners could be improved. “You could send spin groups away [on overseas camps], you could play [first-class cricket] in the middle of the year or the end of it.”Ultimately, we want to be playing on the best wickets possible, whether that’s one that does a little bit on day one, flattens out days two and three, and then spins on day four – that’s the ultimate. That would be the ideal and if you spoke to any player or coach in this group here, that’s what they would ask for because that is very close to Test cricket.”We want to build Test cricketers, that’s part of my job, and that’s what I want to see: how is a spinner going to affect a game on days one, two and three but also be a match-winner on day four.”But for me it’s [important to] upskill those [county spinners] so they can still contribute in April and September. That’s the thing we forget: there is an opportunity to contribute as a spinner, whether it’s going at two an over, taking two wickets in the first innings or three in the third or fourth. There are opportunities for spinners in England. At county level, the pitches are either over-prepared or under-prepared. So within that is an opportunity for spinners to succeed.”There’s so many good seamers flying around, as well. And at the end of the day the counties want to win games. Let’s not be too quick to say ‘we have to play a spinner in every XI’ because if we tour New Zealand, then there may not be an opportunity for a spinner to play in a Test match there. We also have to be prepared to pick teams that are going to win games.”Whatever wicket England encounter in Ahmedabad this week, it seems the answer to long-term improvement may lie much closer to home.

Marcus Harris and Joe Burns, who could be playing off for one spot in the Ashes squad, dominated the second day of Australia A’s match against Sussex with an unbroken double-century opening stand.Harris finished unbeaten on 100 with Burns on 88 as they added 203 in 49 overs in reply to Sussex’s 263 all out in which James Pattinson finished with 4 for 60 and Jon Holland 3 for 49.Against a Sussex attack missing a number of first-team regulars, Harris and Burns made largely serene progress with Harris bringing up his century from 142 balls in the penultimate over of the day.Before the tour, Harris had spoken about hoping to be able to pick up his form from the Australian domestic season when he scored more than 1000 Sheffield Shield runs in a summer where he made his Test debut and produced some promising performances. He looked in good touch throughout his stay to enhance his claims to be David Warner’s opening partner for the first Test at Edgbaston.However, for Burns this was also a very significant day as he aims to restate his Ashes credentials. It was his first innings since withdrawing from his Lancashire deal due to chronic fatigue syndrome. He was only cleared to return to action last week then immediately drafted into the Australia A squad and his game looked in good order as he struck 13 boundaries. Along with Harris he is an incumbent Test player and scored 180 in his last outing against Sri Lanka in February.Earlier in the day, Sussex had put up some stubborn resistance to extend their first innings from the overnight 118 for 5. Abi Sakande fell early to Michael Neser but Delray Rawlins and Adam Rouse added 58 for the seventh wicket. Rawlins struck ten fours and a six in his 69 off 103 balls before being trapped lbw for Holland’s first wicket.The Sussex lower order continued to chip in before Holland wrapped the innings up with a brace of wickets. Josh Hazlewood finished wicketless from 19 overs in his first red-ball bowl since the stress fracture of his back in early January which has kept him out of action until this tour.

Jemimah Rodrigues has broken into the top five of the T20I batting rankings, moving up from seventh to fourth after compiling 96 runs during India’s five-nil mauling of West Indies. Her most significant contribution came in the final match, in which she struck a half-century.Following the result, India and West Indies swapped places, with India climbing to fourth after gaining eight points and West Indies dropping to fifth place, after losing ten points. To cap India’s dominance in the rankings, left-arm spinner Radha Yadav climbed from fifth to second after picking seven wickets in the series, just second behind offspinner Deepti Sharma, who took eight wickets to hold on to her fourth place. With legspinner Poonam Yadav ranked five, India are well represented.Fifteen-year old opener Shafali Verma, too, climbed in the rankings, leapfrogging from 87 to 30 after finishing the series as the highest run-getter with a tally of 157, which included two fifties.Meanwhile, Pakistan batter Javeria Khan broke into the top 20 in T20Is after amassing 111 runs in the 3-0 thrashing of Bangladesh at home. But Bangladesh themselves had something to cheer about as fast bowler Jahanara Alam, who took nine wickets in the series, climbed 22 spots to 15th.

Paul Walter hit his fourth LV= Insurance Championship half-century of the season as Essex eked out a painstaking 74-run lead on a sun-baked Chelmsford day when 15 wickets fell.The tall left-hander was the only batsmen to get to grips with a worn pitch on which Gloucestershire were bowled out for a paltry 76 in 28 overs before lunch. Gloucestershire were undone in double-quick time as seamer Jamie Porter marked his 100th first-class appearance with 4 for 32, supported in a blistering opening spell by Sam Cook, who claimed 3 for 27.Division Two leaders Essex started in similar downbeat mode until Walter stepped in. By the close of the first day he had reached 71 not out from 189 balls.Gloucestershire, put in, were soon in trouble. Porter had Miles Hammond and Ben Charlesworth pinned lbw in successive overs. Cook then removed James Beacey and Tom Lace with consecutive balls, Bracey edging an outswinger and Lace misjudging one and losing his off stump.A third wicket in nine balls fell without addition when Chris Dent edged to second slip. He was soon followed by Graeme van Buuren, who left one from Cook that jagged back and removed his off stump.Ryan Higgins adopted an aggressive approach, but lost seventh-wicket partner Ollie Price, who slashed wildly to fourth slip for Porter’s fourth scalp. Simon Harmer took just three overs to wrap up the Gloucestershire innings taking the final three wickets for just two runs. Zafar Khan swept to square leg, Higgins was snaffled at short leg to end a 60-ball 25, and David Payne was bowled pushing forward.The procession of wickets continued at the start of Essex’s reply: it took 30 overs to post their first 50, by which time they were four wickets down.Nick Browne wafted at Payne in the third over while Alastair Cook went seven overs later when trapped in front by Higgins for 15. Tom Westley departed lbw for a 38-ball 2 and Michael Pepper tickled a lifter from Payne.Walter and Josh Rymell steadied the ship for 16 overs before tea, but four balls after the break Zafar turned one sharply and found the edge of Rymell’s bat.Walter had taken 20 balls to get off the mark, but quietly eased Essex into the lead He was joined by Adam Wheater (30 not out) in an unbroken sixth-wicket stand of 75 that threatened to take the game away from the visitors.

Big picture

The series was of significant importance for both teams in their preparations ahead of the T20 World Cup but so far rain has ruled the headlines, ditching all the promises for the series. With two of three games washed out and one game slashed before the series began, Pakistan come into the final match against West Indies 1-0 ahead.Pakistan’s run-scoring has revolved around Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam. They have rejigged their line-up to break the two up, playing Sharjeel Khan as an opener, but the washouts mean they haven’t gathered enough evidence to vindicate the tweak. The middle-order conundrum is deeper than ever with Mohammad Hafeez’s silent bat, misfiring Sohaib Maqsood and inexperienced Azam Khan out with an injury.For a while now, Hafeez has been in the side mainly because of his batting with his bowling being used on an as-and-when-needed basis. However, his four-over spell – at an economy of 1.50 – in the only completed game, earned him the Player-of-the-Match award and has been a big positive for Pakistan. More of that in the final T20I will give Pakistan wider options for the World Cup to be played in the UAE, where pitches are more conducive to spin.

Watch cricket on ESPN+

The West Indies vs Pakistan series is available in the US on ESPN+. Subscribe to ESPN+ and tune in to the match.

West Indies, under Kieron Pollard, were hoping to know most of their first-choice picks by the end of this series but have not learnt much either. Despite restricting Pakistan to 157 in the second T20I, their dangerous batting order failed to display the firepower they are synonymous with. Only Nicholas Pooran made any impression, scoring an unbeaten 62 runs off 33 balls.On Tuesday, Pakistan will be eyeing an away series win, and while winning remains paramount, what they would seek is batters apart from Rizwan and Azam to raise their hands. Before the series, Azam had promised to check the bench strength. In that sense, this game gives both sides yet another opportunity to finetune their respective team combinations.

Form guide

West Indies LWLWW (last five completed T20I, most recent first)
Australia WLLWW

In the spotlight

Chris Gayle scored a match-winning 67 against Australia but against Pakistan, has scored 7, 16 and 1*. In the last 12 months, he is averaging 16.53 with a strike rate of 114.97 with just one half-century in 15 T20Is. His T20 numbers aren’t great either; this year he has played 25 innings and averaged 22.72 at a strike rate of 130.20. The last calendar year where he averaged less than 25 in T20s was in 2010. West Indies will have to see whether he’s strengthening the batting unit or weakening it.Gayle showed he still has the hands for international cricket against Australia, can he repeat it against Pakistan?•AFP

Pakistan’s middle and lower order will be under scrutiny. In the last completed game, they were well set to go past 180 but finished with a middling 157, including just 23 runs in the last four overs despite a fairly long batting line-up. Maqsood’s success has largely been built batting in the top order, but being sent in at No. 7 is reducing his effectiveness. Fakhar Zaman and Hafeez’s numbers keep fluctuating, and the pinch-hitting stocks of Shadab Khan and Hasan Ali dip when transitioning from T20s to T20Is. Can they come together to the best of their potential this time around?

Team news

With their two-first choice openers nursing injuries – Lendl Simmons was injured in the first match and Evin Lewis retired hurt in the second – Gayle could open alongside Andre Fletcher.West Indies (probable): 1 Andre Fletcher, 2 Chris Gayle, 3 Shimron Hetmyer 4 Nicholas Pooran (wk) 5 Kieron Pollard (capt), 6 Andre Russell, 7 Jason Holder, 8 Romario Shepherd, 9 Dwayne Bravo, 10 Hayden Walsh, 11 Akeal HoseinIt’s likely that Haris Rauf remains in the XI after he replaced Shaheen Shah Afridi for the washed-out third match. Azam Khan, however, could make it to the XI if he is cleared by the medical team.Pakistan (probable): 1 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 2 Sharjeel Khan, 3 Babar Azam, (capt) 4 Fakhar Zaman, 5 Mohammad Hafeez, 6 Sohaib Maqsood/Azam Khan, 7 Shadab Khan, 8 Hasan Ali, 9 Mohammad Wasim, 10 Usman Qadir, 11 Haris Rauf

Pitch and conditions

With rain predicted for the week as a whole, there is a chance that the contest may be a shortened one. However, there is a clear window in the day but conditions are expected to be overcast. Win toss, bowl first may be the best bet.

Stats and trivia

• During the second T20I, Rizwan became the most-prolific run-getter in a single calendar year in the format.

Maia Bouchier and Charlie Dean have earned maiden call-ups to the England Women’s squad for next month’s three-match T20I series against New Zealand.The Southern Vipers duo, who played for Southern Brave and London Spirit respectively in the Hundred, are the only additions to the group which defeated India 2-1 in their T20I series in July.Related

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• Edwards and the Vipers connection – how Brave reached the Hundred final

Bouchier, a middle-order batter, scored an unbeaten half-century in her last outing of the Charlotte Edwards Cup T20 competition before scoring 92 runs in seven innings during the Hundred at an average of 30.66 and with a strike rate of 143.75.Allrounder Dean claimed a wicket and scored 22 as part of an England A team which beat New Zealand by four wickets in a 50-over match on Monday, the visitors’ first warm-up match of their tour.Sophia Dunkley continues her breakthrough season, retaining her place in the T20I squad after finishing as the Hundred’s third-highest run-scorer and making Test and ODI fifties during India’s recent tour of England. Danni Wyatt, who scored a series-sealing 89 not out in the final T20I of that tour after being overlooked for the other two legs, was also included in the squad to face New Zealand.Lauren Winfield-Hill and Kate Cross both miss out again, while England have not been tempted to pick 17-year-old allrounder Alice Capsey despite her exploits for Oval Invincibles in their late charge to the Hundred title.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Lisa Keightley, England Women’s head coach, praised the revamped domestic structure in England and Wales for creating a deeper talent pool from which to select international players, beyond those on central contracts with the ECB.”We’re looking at more players than ever before, which is so exciting,” Keightley said. “The fact that so many other players are sticking their hand up and pushing for selection is testament to the progress the domestic structure is allowing the women’s game to make.”We’re seeing improvements across the board, and there were a number of young English players who also shone in The Hundred, which bodes really well for the future. This is another big series for us, and I want the team to continue from where they left off in the series win over India.”The T20I series against New Zealand begins on September 1 at Chelmsford, followed by fixtures at Hove and Taunton with five ODIs after that, for which England are yet to name a squad.Elsewhere, the ECB have confirmed the venues for the remaining women’s domestic finals. The Ageas Bowl will host the play-off and final of the Charlotte Edwards Cup on September 5, with the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy final staged at Wantage Road in Northampton on September 25.Fixtures:Wednesday, September 1: 1st T20I, Chelmsford
Saturday, September 4: 2nd T20I, Hove
Thursday, September 9: 3rd T20I, Taunton

The England & Wales Cricket Board has pledged a funding boost for women’s cricket of £20 million over two years, and plans to invest £50 million in the next five years, in a bid to make cricket into a gender-balanced sport.The challenge of transforming women’s and girls’ cricket was one of six priorities within the ECB’s ‘Inspiring Generations’ strategy for 2020-2024, and part of the new remit is a commitment to the funding of 40 full-time professional, domestic contracts, in addition to the existing central contracts for England Women’s elite players.A ten-point action plan was unveiled by Clare Connor, the ECB’s managing director for women’s cricket, at an event in London, with a focus on five key objectives:Participation: To increase the number of women and girls playing cricket recreationally
Pathway: To develop aspiring female cricketers (U11-17) as players and people
Performance: To drive the performance of England women’s cricket through a new semi-professional, eight region structure
Profile: To elevate the profile of women’s cricket through The Hundred, the England Women’s team and the elite game
People: To increase the representation of women across the cricket workforce”Cricket has been an integral part of my life, as a player and in my role of Managing Director of Women’s Cricket. I have never been more excited by the opportunity in front of us right now,” said Connor.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“Recent initiatives have given women and girls more opportunities to play, such as All Stars Cricket for 5-8-year-olds, the South Asian female activators programme, and the Kia Super League for our most talented domestic cricketers. But to truly transform women’s and girls’ cricket, we must now move from targeted standalone programmes to addressing the whole pathway as one.”We have an amazing opportunity to make cricket the sport we want it to be – a sport that is modern, innovative and inclusive. I have been so heartened by the level of enthusiasm, commitment and support for this plan from everyone involved in cricket.”Tom Harrison, the ECB chief executive, added: “During the development of Inspiring Generations, and extensive conversations and research across the game, the strong appetite to transform cricket’s relationship with women and girls was abundantly clear.”There is tremendous energy across the cricket network to pursue the game’s largest growth opportunity and to increase the number of women and girls playing, watching and volunteering at every level of the game.”This plan, formed in collaboration with the whole cricket network, and supported by our commercial and media partners, represents a crucial step in achieving our ambition of making cricket a gender-balanced sport.”The plan was produced following two years of consultation with all 38 Counties and Cricket Wales, and detailed analysis of thousands of survey responses from the recreational and elite game.To test some of the recommendations for the recreational game, ECB has run pilot programmes with over 600 cricket clubs to better understand the essential criteria in creating the most sustainable women’s and girls’ clubs.”This action plan is a really exciting next step in the continued growth of women’s cricket,” said Heather Knight, England Women’s captain. “We need more young girls to be inspired to play and those young girls need to be able to see a clear pathway above them that encourages them to continue pursuing the game.”As England players we’re fortunate enough to meet lots of young girls who love the game and it means so much to us to see how much they love cricket. Much of this plan is about normalising the game for women and girls and I’m excited to see how this increased opportunity takes the game forward.”

At first, Islamabad United’s historic decision to bat at the toss – for the first time in PSL history – seemed like a bad idea. Their top five were each out for single-digit scores against the Lahore Qalandars and they were reeling at 20 for 5.However, a 123-run partnership for the sixth wicket changed the game around. Asif Ali counterattacked with six fours and five sixes in his 75 off 43, and Iftikhar Ahmed played Asif’s sidekick with 49. Together they neutralised Rashid Khan and posted a total big enough to give their bowlers something to defend.That was successfully pulled off as Muhammad Musa, Shadab Khan and Fawad Ahmed produced a period of play where the Qalandars lost seven wickets for 14 runs. Musa collected three wickets, and both Shadab and Fawad took two each to seal a win that was eventually very comfortable.The win took United to the top of the PSL points table, tied on points with their opponents of the night, and helped them achieve victory in a manner they had never done previously. And all that without Hasan Ali’s services.Faulkner, pacers breathe fire
It was meant to be a long, hot afternoon for the Qalandars unit after United chose to bat – more so as Colin Munro and Usman Khawaja came in on the back of a ten-over partnership of 137 runs against the Quetta Gladiators. But that wasn’t to be, as Shaheen Afridi had Khawaja caught behind for a duck on the third ball of the match after getting a full ball to move away that made the opener flick down the wrong line. Next ball, Rohail Nazir was pinned lbw with a yorker, only to survive as Afridi had overstepped.However, Nazir could not make the most of his reprieve. He was trapped lbw by a James Faulkner delivery that moved into him in the second over. Two overs later, Faulkner earned another wicket through an lbw, when Munro did not pick a cutter and looked to defend down the wrong line.With Faulkner’s military medium still getting sideways movement, he was given a third over where Hussain Talat’s flick went straight to deep midwicket. Haris Rauf, Afridi’s replacement at first change in the seventh over, then struck first ball when a quick delivery that was angling in had Shadab edging behind. After 6.1 overs, Faulkner had three, Afridi and Rauf had one each, and the Qalandars were 20 for 5. In the last match, the Qalandars had posted their highest ever powerplay score; in this game, they posted their lowest ever.The counterattack
The early blows aside, it remained a batting-friendly track, and that was proved when Ifthikar and Asif had their backs against the wall after Shadab’s wicket, but they clawed their way back with every passing over.Asif struck two fours off Faulkner to bring the Australian’s spell to a close and then used Rauf’s pace to hit back-to-back boundaries. Ahmed Daniyal then bore the brunt of Asif’s onslaught as the batter cleared long-on for six, after which he deposited a flighted Rashid Khan ball for another six on his way to a 28-ball fifty in the 13th over.Iftikhar was scoring at under run a ball until now but he changed gears in the 15th over. After striking Daniyal for a four, he brought up United’s hundred before depositing a full-toss and a slower ball off Rauf for consecutive fours. Together, Rashid and Daniyal conceded 82 runs in eight overs for no wickets, and with two overs to go, United had reached 135 for 5.The 19th over from Afridi began with the bowler being hit for a six by Asif, but a few balls later he was hit-wicket after going too deep in his crease while expecting a yorker, thus ending their 76-ball stand of 123. But his knock, together with Iftikhar’s 49, ensured United reached a respectable 152 for 7.Muhammad Musa took 3 for 18, as the Lahore Qalandars collapsed•PSL

Qalandars crumble after Akhtar departs
Sohail Akhtar took the early charge in the powerplay during the Qalandars’ chase of 153 as he helped take 11 runs off Mohammad Wasim’s first over. He then walked across his crease multiple times to explore the fine-leg region with boundaries off Ali Khan and Wasim. However, Shadab introduced Fawad for the final over of the powerplay, and he struck off the last ball of the over when Akhtar failed to pick a googly. His 19-ball 34 had helped the Qalandars raze down 55 runs, but his dismissal started a massive collapse that the Qalandars could not arrest.A run-out of No. 3 Zeeshan Ashraf in the seventh over didn’t help them when they just needed to settle into another partnership after Akhtar’s wicket. But a brilliant piece of fielding near cover from Shadab sent Ashraf back.Musa, usually expensive but with the habit of taking crucial wickets, then took two – of Mohammad Hafeez pulling to deep midwicket and Dunk caught behind – to tilt the balance United’s way. Musa then added a third as Fakhar Zaman fell for a laboured 37-ball 44, top-edging one to third man.Then came the spin onslaught. Tim David was out trying to clear long-on off Shadab, while Rashid failed to pick Shadab’s googly. From the other end, Fawad’s quick thinking had Afridi run-out before he bowled Faulkner through his defenses. At 100 for 9, the Qalandars had truly lost the plot, and despite an entertaining tenth-wicket stand, they fell 28 runs short. Apart from the openers and the No. 11 Rauf, no other Qalandars batter reached double digits.

Derbyshire’s openers denied Durham’s bowlers on a rain-shortened opening day of the LV=Insurance County Championship match at Derby. Billy Godleman and Brooke Guest negotiated 17 overs in difficult conditions to reach 48 without loss before play was called off at 4.30pm.England fast bowler Mark Wood was unlucky not to take a wicket in his seven overs after Durham won the toss but the weather made it a test for players and umpires.On a day borrowed from winter, Durham’s bowlers had to contend with a buffeting wind that forced Wood to abort his run-up in his brief opening spell from the Racecourse End. The conditions were a challenge for everyone, not least the hundred or so Derbyshire members who braved the unseasonable weather on the first day spectators were allowed back to the Incora County Ground.For Godleman and Guest, who moved up to open in the absence of Luis Reece, it was a question of resisting Durham’s pace attack under slate grey skies with the floodlights on from the start although it was not just about survival for the openers.Godleman moved into one-day mode several times, advancing down the pitch to smack Ben Raines down the ground while Rushworth was dispatched through the covers. Rushworth was close to having Godleman caught behind before rain forced the players off after 35 minutes and although the match resumed after an early lunch, bad light and more rain had the last word.There was bad news for Derbyshire who announced Australian fast bowler Billy Stanlake will not play again this season because of a back injury. The 26-year-old made his debut in the defeat against Essex at Chelmsford last week but a scan has revealed a stress fracture.