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Andre Fletcher and Kevin Pietersen powered St Lucia Zouks to 179 against Trinidad &Tobago Red Steel before rain washed out the game

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Jun-2015
Match abandoned due to rain
ScorecardFile photo – Andre Fletcher set up St Lucia Zouks’ innings with a fifty•LatinContent/Getty Images

Andre Fletcher struck 57 off 49 balls and Kevin Pietersen hit 42 off 26 balls as St Lucia Zouks ran up 179 in 20 overs, the highest CPL score at the Beausejour Cricket Ground in Gros Islet before rain washed out the match.Rain arrived five balls into the Trinidad & Tobago Red Steel’s chase, forcing the second game of the season to be called off, with the teams taking a point each.Fletcher and Johnson Charles gave Zouks a strong start after the hosts were inserted. They raced to 37 in four overs before Jacques Kallis had Charles caught at short midwicket for 16. Fletcher, joined by Kevin Pietersen, built the innings before kicking into higher gear in a partnership worth 70 in 8.5 overs. Though both batsmen departed in successive overs, late contributions from Henry Davids (27), Darren Sammy(15) and Kyle Mayers (19) ensured that Zouks finished with a formidable total.Fletcher and Pietersen hit 13 boundaries between them while Kallis was the pick of the bowlers for Red Steel, claiming figures of 2 for 31.Kallis would later begin the chase with a four and a six before rain cut the match short.

Eoin Morgan defended Ian Bell’s understated role as he shared a record-breaking opening stand for England in World Cups, describing his stand of 172 in 30.1 overs with Moeen Ali as “a perfect platform”. As Moeen played freely for a second ODI hundred, Bell was more circumspect, needing 85 balls for his 54, but nevertheless England were able to point at a decisive victory as they saw off Scotland by 119 runs in Christchurch.”There were a lot of positives to take from today: Ian’s innings is one of them,” Morgan said. “I thought he and Moeen faced reasonably tough circumstances. The ball held up a bit and nipped around early, and I thought they held their composure really well.”It was Moeen, nevertheless, who introduced the first signs of optimism to England’s World Cup campaign with a second ODI century to follow the one he made in Sri Lanka before Christmas. His hundred came only four balls after Bell had reached 50.”Moeen struck the ball really well, as he has been, and for him to set a platform like that was absolutely ideal,” Morgan said. “I rate him really highly. He’s an allrounder which we haven’t had for a very long time, somebody who opens the batting and plays in the fashion that he does, and the purchase he gets on the ball. I think we’re very privileged to have him.”England had designs on a total approaching 350 when Bell was the first batsman to fall, but they were encouraged into a more restrained approach as wickets tumbled. Morgan put that down to a surface, also used during West Indies’ defeat of Pakistan, lacking in pace.

Moeen seeks to banish ‘negativity’

Moeen Ali hoped that his matchwinning hundred against Scotland would help England banish the negativity that he feels is surrounding their World Cup challenge.
@It feels like everybody is against us and everything is negative,” he said. “It’s very important we take all of that away. Teams do lose but we have to stay together.”

“You always think you should get more than you should, but having been there for the last five overs, the wicket slowed up the older the ball got, and with the wind as well, it made it difficult to find the boundary,” Morgan said. “That gave me more confidence that 300 was an above par score.”England’s World Cup challenge has been rubbished after heavy defeats against Australia and New Zealand – the two toughest sides in the group, but Morgan claimed that pessimism had not taken hold in the dressing room.”I don’t think there’s ever a state of panic. Obviously we had two hard games, and the fact we didn’t perform was the most disappointing, but a win just puts things a little more at ease, and it gives guys a little bit of confidence. Even the guys who didn’t perform today, talking to other guys who have had a little bit of success today will be good for them.”Morgan justified England’s decision to retain an unchanged side against Scotland, in defiance of two thumping defeats, on the grounds that they had played too poorly to enable any conclusions about the make-up of the side.”We came to the conclusion that we haven’t performed in the first two games, so you couldn’t really argue the balance of the side was wrong because we hadn’t seen guys perform. I was very confident going into the first two games that we had the strongest side to win those games, so reinforcing our confidence going with the same team today was very important.”In your head, I think you can be guilty of building up a tournament, of having to play your best throughout the tournament and hammer every side in order to win it, but the games that I’ve watched haven’t shown that at all. Strong sides have been beaten. It’s about getting points on the board; how you do it doesn’t really matter.”

MatériaMais Notícias

A quinta-feira começou com uma boa notícia no tumultuado ambiente do Figueirense. Através de uma nota oficial, a diretoria confirmou que quitou os débitos com os funcionários do clube e atletas da categoria de base.

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Com a quitação da dívida, as categorias sub-15 e sub-17 voltaram a treinar normal nesta manhã e cresce a expectativa para saber se o elenco profissional retoma as atividades ou não nesta tarde.

Na nota, o Figueira explicou que as negociações com o time principal continuam em curso e cita o capitão e volante Zé Antônio como porta-voz do elenco.

Confira abaixo a nota do Figueirense

Conforme ratificado no termo de compromisso assinado com a Associação Figueirense, o Figueirense Futebol Clube informa que a regularização dos pagamentos de 2019 segue sendo feita até o dia 28 de agosto.

As pendências anteriores serão equacionadas a partir de negociações pontuais, como já ocorreram nas últimas semanas e foram aceitas por jogadores profissionais, como o volante Zé Antônio, e fornecedores.

Brendan Taylor has blamed Zimbabwe’s poor batting as the reason for their narrow loss in the first Test against Bangladesh

Devashish Fuloria in Mirpur27-Oct-2014Brendan Taylor has blamed Zimbabwe’s poor batting as the reason for their narrow loss in the first Test against Bangladesh. Defending a target of 101, Zimbabwe picked up the first three wickets with the score on zero and would have improved their chances further had John Nyumbu taken the catches of Shakib Al Hasan and Mahmudullah. But despite Zimbabwe’s fight, Bangladesh sneaked through for a three-wicket win.”We have been saying 150 would have been very interesting,” Taylor said. “But at the end of the day, we batted badly and did not deserve to win the game.”They could have been 10 for 5 but that’s the way it goes. If we could have got Shakib there and (Mahmudullah) Riyad, that would have been a big difference. Good teams and good fielders will take those chances and probably we didn’t have our best fielder there at that time.”In the first innings, only one Zimbabwe batsman went past fifty as the team was bowled out for 240. Led by Tinashe Panyangara’s five-wicket haul, the visitors managed to restrict Bangladesh’s lead to 14 but when it came to their batsmen to set up the game, they fared worse than the first innings. Zimbabwe lost seven wickets in the morning session and were soon bowled out for 114 in 35.5 overs.”Losing the match always hurts,” Taylor said. “We can be proud of the way we fought and tried to defend a 100 runs but being bowled out for 114, that’s what hurts the most. We were very disappointing. The way we got out, we didn’t really show any fight. At the end of the day, if we are not going to put runs on the board and put a prize on our wickets, we are not going to win too many games. So we have got a lot to learn from this game. But I can assure you that in the second game the guys will be a lot more disciplined, lot hungrier to succeed.”The bounce on the Dhaka pitch that should have helped strokeplay, according to Taylor, was also the reason for the downfall of batsmen from both sides. But while Zimbabwe’s batsmen faltered against spin, Bangladesh’s players were undone by pace.”It was a good cricket wicket. Pace and bounce and turn, that’s going to make entertaining cricket, but definitely bad batting will have to be the case,” Taylor said. “I think we can agree that both sides batted badly, there were soft dismissals and guys didn’t apply themselves. Twenties and thirties are not going to win you Test matches. Guys need to convert those.”After the first innings in which Bangladesh spinners shared nine wickets, a lot of focus was on how Zimbabwe’s inexperienced spinners were going to bowl. But despite the help available from the pitch, the two spinners – Nyumbu and Tafadzwa Kamungozi – had just one wicket between them in the match.”I think our two spinners were a little bit weak,” Taylor said. “But unfortunately we lost two very good players, Sean Williams and Prosper Utseya, but that is not an excuse. Our spinners haven’t played a lot of first-class cricket and they weren’t good enough today. So they have got a lot to learn. Hopefully there might be a change in the second Test match. “Legspinner Natsai M’shangwe, who picked up the most wickets in the only practice match in Fatullah, could be an option. But Taylor said that the team was waiting for the bowler to recover from a minor niggle.”There is a very good chance (of M’shangwe playing in the second Test),” Taylor said. “He has been carrying a bit of a niggle so whether he is ready to go or not, I am not too sure. We will have to make a few changes and not become too predictable.”Zimbabwe came in to the series as underdogs and fought hard, but they will still go to the Khulna Test trailing 0-1. Taylor said they would have to maintain their intensity.”There are still two matches. So it’s still not gone. The momentum may be with them but we have shown we can fight. There is not much to choose between the sides. The conditions might favour them but we will have to come to Khulna with a mindset that we are going to win.”

Chris Dent hammered an unbeaten 55 off just 23 balls as Gloucestershire produced a shock NatWest T20 Blast victory Essex

Press Association20-Jul-2014
ScorecardChris Dent propelled Gloucestershire to a stiff target•Getty Images

Chris Dent hammered an unbeaten 55 off just 23 balls as Gloucestershire produced a shock NatWest T20 Blast victory over South Division leaders Essex by six wickets at Cheltenham.The left-hander hit five sixes and two fours to clinch an unlikely win, a target of 184 being reached with two balls to spare in a thriller. Skipper Michael Klinger contributed 45, while both Alex Gidman and Ian Cockbain made 27.Essex posted 183 for 7 after losing the toss, Ravi Bopara profiting from being dropped three times to make 51 and Ryan ten Doeschate smiting 27 off nine balls at the death. Benny Howell was the most successful bowler with 4 for 26 from his four overs.It was only the second time in 12 group matches that Essex had suffered defeat and came against a Gloucestershire side who only had pride to play for, with no chance of reaching the quarter-finals.Dent said: “It was time I did something for the team because I have had a lean season by my standards. There was a short boundary on one side and I always felt we had a chance because it didn’t take much of a hit to clear it.”The visitors made a poor start to their innings when Tom Westley was caught behind for a golden duck off the third ball of the game, bowled by left-arm spinner Tom Smith.But Mark Pettini and Kishen Velani responded with a stand of 42 off 28 balls before Pettini was caught at deep square by Howell off Graeme McCarter.At the end of the Powerplay Essex were 59 for 2. The eighth over saw Bopara survive a caught and bowled chance to Howell on four and Velani, on 34, caught at long-on the ball after depositing a full toss over midwicket for six.Bopara was badly dropped for the second time on 19, Jack Taylor spilling the chance at short third-man from a reverse sweep, before going on to add 52 in 34 balls for the fifth wicket with Ben Foakes.Bopara had hit six fours and a six by the time he fell to Howell in the 18th over, the ball after being dropped for a third time by David Payne, the same fielder atoning on the deep midwicket boundary.If Gloucestershire thought that was the end of their problems, ten Doeschate had other ideas. The Essex captain smacked two fours and two sixes in his cameo and 19 came off the final over, sent down by McCarter.Gloucestershire openers Klinger and Gidman both hit straight sixes off the third over of their team’s reply, bowled by left-arm spinner Tim Phillips, who had been given the new ball.George Sharp was umpiring at both ends, with his partner Stephen Gale operating at square-leg, having received a painful blow on the knee from a straight drive by Bopara during the Essex innings.Young seamer Matt Salisbury conceded only three off the last over of the Powerplay and it was not until the seventh over that Klinger and Gidman brought up their half-century stand.Bopara broke the partnership on 71 by inducing a return catch from Gidman while conceding only two off the ninth over. There was no keeping the England one-day international out of the action as he then took a catch at deep midwicket off Phillips to send back Howell for a brisk 16.Salisbury took a brilliant low catch running round from short third-man for remove dangerman Klinger, with Gloucestershire requiring 91 off 7.5 overs, but successive sixes from Dent off Greg Smith in the 14th over kept the home side’s hopes alive.Cockbain helped add 70 in six overs before being bowled by Graham Napier at the start of the 19th over. Even then Essex looked favourites, but Dent was now flying and finished the game with two, two, six, four off the final over from Salisbury to secure the win.Ten Doeschate said: “We were carrying a few injuries and it was a bit of a jaded performance. I felt we should have scored more runs on that pitch and we are disappointed.”

Stephen Cook has been appointed first-class and 50-overs captain. Neil McKenzie will lead the 20-over side while Temba Bavuma will serve as vice-captain across formats

Firdose Moonda09-Jun-2014A new-look Lions leadership pack, headed by Stephen Cook, will take the franchise into the 2014/15 season. Cook has been appointed first-class and 50-overs captain while Neil McKenzie will lead their 20-over side. Batsman Temba Bavuma will act as deputy in all three formats. Alviro Petersen, who stepped down as captain last season, remains part of Lions’ squad but has not been tasked with any leadership duties.”I am greatly honoured to have been given this job. I grew up on the banks of the Wanderers watching my dad play and leadership is something I’ve always wanted to be involved in,” Cook told ESPNcricinfo. “I know its going to be a tough challenge but I am really looking forward to it.”After finishing second in the first-class competition and winning the twenty-over trophy in the 2012/13 season, Lions were rudely brought back down to earth last summer. They finished bottom of the points table in all three competitions in a season that was plagued by injuries and unhappiness. While seamer Chris Morris battled an ankle injury, Petersen stood down on the morning of a match after what he called interference by the selectors, forcing Thami Tsolekile to take over at the 11th hour.That marked the lowest point in the Lions’ dismal season and Cook is keen to move on. “Our players did not become bad overnight. I think what happened is because we had done so well the season before, we didn’t adapt to the fact that other teams had improved and we were caught on the hop,” he said. “But we have resisted the urge to make too many changes.”Lions have held on to their players from last summer and have made two additions to their group. Devon Conway, who was named the provincial one-day cricketer of the year at CSA’s awards last week, has been added to the contracted list along with under-19 World Cup winner Kagiso Rabada, who made his first-class debut at the end of last season.They have three nationally-contracted players on their books: Petersen, Quinton de Kock and Lonwabo Tsotsobe and an experienced core which includes Cook, McKenzie and Tsolekile. McKenzie will turn 39 in the coming season but has committed himself to playing in all formats for Lions.Cook has made it clear everyone, including the new faces, will have more demanded of them this season. “We are all really motivated to do well and guys know they will get will get pressed a little harder and asked to work a little smarter,” he said.For Cook, the goal is simple. He wants the franchise to be able to add to the trophy cupboard and if he has it his way, it will be in the longest format. “Every competition is important but for me, it would be most special to win the first-class [competition] because that is the one that really tests you as a squad,” he said. “You have to play good cricket for 40 days, whereas with the limited-overs [game] you could end up third and have a good day and then make the final. The first-class is also the competition I have never won with Lions. The last time they won it here was the season before I made my professional debut.”That was 15 years ago in the 1999/2000 season, before the franchise system had formed. Back then, all Cook wanted to do was play for what was then Gauteng and eventually for South Africa. A decade and a half later, it is still all he wants. “I have never given up on playing for South Africa. That’s my driving force.”Cook is a regular among the top ten run-scorers in the first-class competition but has struggled for higher honours largely because of where he bats – in the top two. The presence of Graeme Smith in the Test team made it difficult for Cook to get a look-in but with Smith retired, a vacancy in the national team and a platform from which to audition for it, Cook still believes anything is possible, for both him and his Lions.

Mark Boucher has called on the ICC to think about “what’s important to the game and what isn’t” when they sanction players for breaching the code of conduct

Firdose Moonda01-Mar-2014Mark Boucher, South Africa’s former wicketkeeper, has called on the ICC to think about “what’s important to the game and what isn’t” when they sanction players for breaching the code of conduct. Boucher was referencing the discrepancies in the sanctions handed out to Faf du Plessis and David Warner during the ongoing series.In ‘s television build-up to the third Test match in Cape Town, Boucher said the ICC should “get its ducks in a row,” when it comes to applying discipline.David Warner was fined 15% of his match fee for making what match referee Roshan Mahanama called “disrespectful,” comments which “publicly denigrated an opponent,” when he suggested to an Australian radio station that South Africa had achieved reverse swing in Port Elizabeth through dubious means.Contrastingly, Faf du Plessis had to hand over 50% of his match fee for a second clothing violation within the last 12 months. Du Plessis took to the field in Port Elizabeth with green shoelaces instead of the white ones which are stipulated as the acceptable gear for Test matches. In November 2013, du Plessis wore shoes with a red tongue instead of a white one.Both those are in contravention with clause 2.1.1 of the ICC’s code of conduct for players and player support personnel. Because they occurred within a 12-month period, the minimum fine of half the player’s match fee, was imposed. Boucher said he thought du Plessis’ offence was not in the same vein as Warner’s and he could not understand why the South African was so harshly punished.

وضع نادي برشلونة الإسباني، أحد نجوم فريق مانشستر سيتي الإنجليزي، أولوية خلال سوق الانتقالات الصيفية الحالية، مع الرحيل الوشيك للفرنسي عثمان ديمبلي.

وسينضم ديمبلي إلى باريس سان جيرمان الفرنسي، ومن المتوقع خضوعه للفحص الطبي غدًا الجمعة مع الفريق الباريسي.

وبحسب صحيفة “موندو ديبورتيفو” الإسبانية، يرغب برشلونة الآن في ضم برناردو سيلفا من مانشستر سيتي، حيث جدد اهتمامه بالبرتغالي الدولي.

ولا تعد تلك المرة الأولى التي يتجه فيها برشلونة لفكرة التعاقد مع برناردو سيلفا، فالبرتغالي محل اهتمام للبلوجرانا منذ فترة.

ويوضح التقرير أن التعاقد مع برناردو سيلفا أولوية مطلقة لبرشلونة مع رحيل عثمان ديمبلي عن الفريق، وهو أمنية للمدير الفني تشافي هيرنانديز.

تشير الصحيفة أيضًا إلى أن العملية جارية بالفعل من الرئيس خوان لابورتا، والمدير الرياضي ماتيو أليماني وديكو، الذين بدأوا جميعًا في العمل على الصفقة، وتم إيقاف الملفات الأخرى للتركيز على برناردو.

ويحاول برشلونة البحث عن صيغة مناسبة للتفاوض وإقناع مانشستر سيتي بقبول العرض لبيع برناردو.

وتؤكد الصحيفة أن برناردو سيكون سعيدًا بالانضمام إلى برشلونة ومستعدًا للضغط حتى يفتح النادي الإنجليزي الباب أمامه.

لن يكون الأمر سهلاً، لكن برشلونة وبرناردو واثقان من أن بيب جوارديولا مدرب مانشستر سيتي سيفي بوعده، حيث أكد للاعبه بأنه سيسمح له بالرحيل طالما وصل عرض قوي.

أكدت الصحيفة أيضًا أن برناردو يريد فقط مغادرة مانشستر سيتي للذهاب إلى برشلونة وهذا هو السبب في رفضه لعروض الدوري السعودي وكذلك من باريس سان جيرمان.

ومن المنتظر أن يتحرك برشلونة للتقدم بعرض رسمي إلى مانشستر سيتي وفتح محادثات جادة للتعاقد.

South Africa’s march towards a result that will draw the series and prolong their seven-year unbeaten record away from home continued unabated, but the gloss on their seemingly impeccable performance was lost when the on-field umpires penalised them for t

The Report by George Binoy25-Oct-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsSouth Africa’s bowlers made slow but steady progress towards squaring the Test series•Associated PressSouth Africa’s march towards a result that will draw the series and prolong their seven-year unbeaten record away from home continued unabated, but the gloss on their seemingly impeccable performance was lost when the on-field umpires penalised them for tampering with the ball. Graeme Smith’s team ended the third day needing six wickets to complete an emphatic victory – probably by an innings considering Pakistan were still trailing by 286 with two days remaining – but the likelihood of a meeting with the Match Referee loomed large as the sun set in Dubai.The incident occurred two overs after tea, before the start of the 31st over, following television visuals of one player rubbing the ball allegedly on the zipper of his trouser pocket. The umpires Ian Gould and Rod Tucker called Graeme Smith over for a chat and subsequently changed the ball and awarded a five-run penalty against South Africa, sanctions that are consistent with the penalty for unlawfully changing the condition of the ball. A second television visual showed another player allegedly picking at the side of the ball with his finger.On either side of that unsavoury episode, however, South Africa made strides towards victory, albeit not at the pace at which they had shut Pakistan out of the Test over the first two days. After South Africa were dismissed for 517 with a lead of 418, 16 minutes before lunch, Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander punched Pakistan in the gut by dismissing their openers in their only overs before the break.Steyn swung the ball back into Shan Masood’s front pad and the left-hand batsman continued Pakistan’s lousy use of reviews by wasting one on an lbw that was plumb. Philander then handed Khurram Manzoor his first pair in Test cricket; the right-hand batsman hung his bat outside off stump and watched Jacques Kallis dive to his right at second slip to take the catch at head height. Pakistan were 2 for 2.After lunch, Younis Khan and Azhar Ali focused on survival. Steyn swung and seamed the new ball away from the right-handers; Philander bowled with unrelenting accuracy; Morne Morkel hit speeds off 149.6 kph – the fastest ball of the Test – in his first over. With four slips and other catches in place, there were gaps to exploit on the huge outfield but only 18 runs were scored in the first 13 overs. One of Tahir’s legbreaks spun so viciously from the rough around off stump that it went straight to first slip.Azhar and Younis, however, survived all that until Smith brought on the part-time offspinner JP Duminy ten minutes before tea. His first ball spun sharply into Azhar and kept low to hit the back pad just in line with off stump. In an instant, a vast amount of hard graft had come undone and Pakistan were 48 for 3. Duminy could have struck in his second over, too, but Kallis failed to catch an outside edge from Younis off the penultimate ball before the break.Younis’ composure, which had served him well through the second session, disappeared soon after the tampering incident, when he charged Tahir and attempted a mow across the line. He missed and the ball bounced off his pad on to his stumps. At 70 for 4, Pakistan were in danger of sliding further towards defeat but Misbah-ul-Haq and Asad Shafiq put on an unbeaten 62-run stand. Shafiq was fortunate to survive a stumping chance on 18 off Duminy, and Pakistan will need a miraculous performance from him and the rest to prevent an innings defeat.The third day had begun with promise of more records being broken, with Smith resuming on 227 and de Villiers on 157. However, with the job already done unlike when they had come together early on the second day, their stroke-play wasn’t as tight.De Villiers began to drive at Mohammad Irfan from the start, but a ball after he placed one to the straight boundary, he drove again and edged. This time Adnan Akmal caught it, 164 runs and 273 deliveries after he should have caught de Villiers first ball. Irfan had now worked up a brisk pace and soon drew an edge from Smith. Akmal dropped it again, and Irfan told the wicketkeeper just what he thought of that effort. The mistake did not cost Pakistan, though, because Ajmal had Smith caught at slip a ball later, leaving South Africa 478 for 6.What followed made Pakistan wonder about the different paths this match might have taken had Akmal not dropped de Villiers before he had scored. Irfan ran in from over the wicket and tormented Duminy with deliveries that pitched on a good length outside off stump and jagged into the left-handed batsman. Three times in a row, Irfan struck Duminy on the pad and bellowed appeals for lbw. He was denied each time because the impact was too high.In his next over, after hitting Faf du Plessis on the glove, Irfan took the umpire out of the equation by bowling Duminy between bat and pad with a fuller delivery. He celebrated with vigour, but in his next over – the innings’ 149th – Irfan ran out of rope the umpires had given him by following through on the danger area once again. He was suspended from bowling further in the innings.With Irfan lost, and Junaid Khan blunt, Ajmal was the only threat and du Plessis steered South Africa past 500 and the lead past 400. Ajmal gradually worked his way through the tail to pick up a six-wicket haul, but the end of South Africa’s innings provided little relief for Pakistan.

Two men who have watched Shikhar Dhawan closely over the years say that his positive frame of mind has translated into his prolific streak

Abhishek Purohit13-Aug-2013Ever since he cracked 187 off 174 against Australia on Test debut in March, Shikhar Dhawan has been the hot topic for the year 2013. And he keeps doing stuff that keeps making him a hotter topic. Man of the Series in the Champions Trophy. Another hundred in Zimbabwe. Now, a 248 in a one-dayer in South Africa. How is he doing what he is doing? How is it different from what he was doing all those years in domestic cricket? How is it different from what he did when he first played for India in 2010? Two men who have watched him closely over the years say that mostly, it is all in the head. Call it what you want – frame of mind, confidence, temperament, mental strength, self-belief; Dhawan’s positivity, along with improved shot selection, has translated into this extraordinary comeback, feel Vijay Dahiya and Lalchand Rajput.Dahiya, the former India and Delhi wicketkeeper, knows Dhawan from his days in junior cricket. He has played with him and later coached him. Was Dhawan always special and just ignored or has something critical fallen into place? Dahiya says he has never come across this avatar of Dhawan before.”I have not seen him batting before the way he is now, even in the nets,” Dahiya told ESPNcricinfo. “That kind of batting display is just phenomenal. There is no comparison. Last year, he had a pretty mediocre Ranji season, if you go by the standards he is setting right now. [Dhawan made 461 runs in 11 innings] which I think is alright for an opener in Indian first-class cricket when you end up playing seven-eight games. He had a fantastic Challenger Trophy [a domestic one-day tournament]. But what he is doing right now is something really special.”After a short, unsuccessful stint with the Indian one-day team, Dhawan was out for a couple of years before the sensational Test debut against Australia. Lalchand Rajput, the former India batsman and now India A coach, says that one knock has generated so much confidence, it continues to feed itself and extend Dhawan’s streak.”One good innings against Australia in the Test match … ” Rajput said. “Cricket is a game of confidence. If you are confident, you bat like a dream. Plus, playing the way he did in England in the Champions Trophy … He has gone from strength to strength and is batting at his peak now.”Dahiya concurs, saying not much has changed in terms of ability. “I think it is more mental,” Dahiya said. “I’ll say that skill-wise, he was the same. What I see now is that mentally he has become very strong. He is backing himself. He is extremely confident, which plays such an important role in any sport. He is playing all the shots against all bowlers in any conditions. That shows how confident he is.”Every time you see him batting, it looks like a display of cricket intelligence. A lot of players who make runs sometimes end up playing shots as if they are millionaires and don’t care about the value of their wickets. If you look at him, though, he is beautifully stretching his purple patch and making it count.”Also, I don’t think he is carrying any baggage. That is something you can’t see from the outside yet – the baggage of expectations. Every time he goes out there, he starts beautifully, understands what is required, and goes on from there. He takes his time to build and then flourishes.”

“I think it is more mental. I’ll say that skill-wise, he was the same. What I see now is that mentally he has become very strong. He is backing himself. He is extremely confident, which plays such an important role in any sport. He is playing all the shots against all bowlers in any conditions. Shows how confident he is.”Vijay Dahiya, the former India wicketkeeper

Rajput had witnessed a very different Dhawan from close quarters just a year ago, when he was coach on the A side’s tour of the West Indies, where the opener averaged 7.50 in the unofficial Tests. Rajput believes Dhawan has used the time away from the national side to tighten his game.”It is not only mental, it is about selecting the right balls [to go after] as well,” Rajput said. “He has matured now and is never satisfied. He wants to do well every game. Look at his conversion rate. If he passes 50 or 60, he gets a hundred, in Champions Trophy, in Zimbabwe, now as well, big hundreds.”In the West Indies [in 2012], he used to play too many shots too early, and as an opener, that is taking too much risk. He always had the shots but not the selection, but now he knows what shot to play and what to not play. He has really developed control over his off-side game.”Dhawan’s form has lasted half a year now. How long before international bowlers find a chink somewhere? Dahiya does not think that moment, although inevitable, has arrived yet. “Everyone will always have shortcomings,” Dahiya said. “It is for the opposition to figure them out. Right now, he has played against almost all the top sides and it does not look like people have sorted something out. We saw in Zimbabwe in one of the games he got out to a short ball but in the next game he was scoring off them. Again, I will say his frame of mind is brilliant right now.”