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Karn Sharma took his third five-wicket haul in four matches as India A wrapped up a 2-0 series win with an innings-and-26-run demolition of New Zealand A in Vijayawada. Since the start of the Duleep Trophy last month, the legspinner has taken 31 wickets in four first-class games at an average of 15.29.New Zealand A began the fourth day at 104 for 1, needing a further 132 to make India bat again. Jeet Raval and Henry Nicholls were both well-established at the crease, having put on 85 for the second wicket. They had extended their partnership for a further 11.3 overs when Raval was lbw to the left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem for 47.That wicket opened the floodgates, as Nadeem and Karn ran through the visitors, who lost their last nine wickets for 86 runs. Apart from Nicholls and Raval, no other batsman got to 15.Nicholls was sixth out, ending an otherwise lean series – he had made 5, 1 and 0 in his three previous innings – with a 190-ball 94 containing 11 fours and a six.

Brett D’Oliveira batted Worcestershire into a strong position•Getty Images

A dusty, used surface awaits R Ashwin when he finally gets to bowl at New Road on his Worcestershire debut, but on the opening day he had to satisfy himself with a useful supporting role for Brett D’Oliveira, who celebrated a new county contract with a top-score of 93 on the opening day of the Specsavers County Championship clash with Gloucestershire.Ashwin has started a four-game spell at New Road as Worcestershire strive to reinforce their promotion credentials, with Sussex, Kent and Northants all vying to join runaway leaders Nottinghamshire in the top two, and he looked full of class in making 36 in the middle order on a sun-soaked day.But the main innings of the day came from D’Oliveira who, along with Ed Barnard, has committed his long term future to the County with new deals.The 25-year-old fell just short of his third Championship hundred of the campaign but his efforts were a key component in Worcestershire totalling 338 for 7 from 98 overs on a used pitch.There were useful contributions all down the batting order and now Worcestershire will be hoping Ashwin can work the kind of magic with the ball which has brought him 292 Test wickets.Gloucestershire opted for a toss but lost out as home skipper Joe Leach decided to bat first on a pitch used for the England Under-19 v India Under-19 four-day ‘Test’ and a NatWest T20 Blast fixture.Paceman Liam Norwell struck an early blow as Daryl Mitchell went for a drive and Cameron Bancroft held onto a low chance at first slip. But he then dislocated the little finger on his bowling hand fielding a return shot from new batsman Tom Fell and went for a hospital x-ray and did not return to the attack until after tea when the second new ball was taken.Spin was introduced as early as the 13th over via Tom Smith.Fell has experienced a poor summer with the bat but he looked in good form during a stand of 72 in 26 overs with D’Oliveira. He went past his previous highest Championship score of 35 in 2017 but added only three more before he was lbw to Smith.D’Oliveira was not afraid to use his feet and lofted Jack Taylor for a straight six and repeated the stroke against Smith. Joe Clarke reeled off a series of exquisite drives in making 32 but would have been disappointed with the way a casual flick off his legs from Kieran Noema-Barnett ended up in the hands of short midwicket.Smith enjoyed a second success as George Rhodes played back and nicked to George Hankins at first slip. D’Oliveira continued to score freely but on 93 he played forward to Smith and Hankins completed the catch after Will Tavare had initially got a hand to the ball at second slip. His 188 ball knock contained two sixes and 10 fours.Ashwin was warmly applauded on his way to the wicket in what is arguably Worcestershire’s most high profile overseas player since Glenn McGrath in 2000. He looked full of composure and class and it soon became evident why he often bats in India’s top six.He made 36 off 50 balls with a six and four fours before being undone by a ball of extra bounce with the second new ball from Norwell which was edged to Chris Dent at second slip.But keeper Ben Cox (56 not out) and Barnard ensured Worcestershire remained on top during a partnership of 86 in 15 overs before the former on 46 from 49 balls was run-out after a mix-up.

Cricket South Africa have given the five-man panel appointed to recommend a candidate for the position of head coach an extension until the end of the ongoing England tour. The committee, which includes former national coaches Gary Kirsten and Eric Simons, have “not completed their work” since being tasked with it on May 18 and could not meet Friday’s deadline, according to a CSA release. As such, no decision on the coach has been made.That means the South African team go into the final two Tests against England with continued uncertainty over who will take charge from September. Current coach Russell Domingo’s contract expires at the end of the England series. In January, CSA announced they would advertise the post but he could reapply. Initially, Domingo indicated he was unsure if he wanted to continue but confirmed his reapplication in July, ahead of the first Test against England at Lord’s.Domingo enjoys the support of several senior players including Test and T20 captain Faf du Plessis and ODI captain AB de Villiers, who has indicated his international future depends on who the coach is. Since team results improved last summer, when South Africa won all eight series’, Domingo was thought to be the favourite to continue but a wretched Champions Trophy campaign put that in doubt. Lions’ coach Geoffrey Toyana is the front-runner to take over.South Africa’s domestic franchises are currently in pre-season training and if the new coach comes from one of those teams, it will leave them scrambling for a replacement when the new season gets underway.CSA have not provided reasons for the panel’s delay. After the tour to England, South Africa’s next assignment is a home series against Bangladesh, at the end of September.

Ed Pollock made Birmingham’s victory a formality•Getty Images

Birmingham Bears took a comfortable stride towards the NatWest T20 Blast quarter-finals when they thrashed Durham by eight wickets at Chester-le-Street.Despite 53 off 37 balls from skipper Paul Coughlin, Durham could only set a modest target of 145 for 8 and the Bears’ young opening pair of Ed Pollock and Dominic Sibley launched a blistering reply with 51 off the first four overs. Victory was achieved with 5.1 overs to spare.Swivel pulls produced two of the left-hander Pollock’s four sixes as his superbly-timed strokes took him to 52 off 25 balls before he skied a catch to the wicketkeeper.The closest Durham came to an early breakthrough was when Pollock, on 11, pulled Usman Arshad for what looked a certain six until Graham Clark leapt to palm the ball back in-field from above the rope.Two overs later Pollock pulled Brydon Carse for a huge six behind square then cut the next ball crisply for four as 19 came off the over.With 79 on the board when Pollock departed in the eighth over, the Bears were able to coast, although Colin de Grandomme joined in the barrage with two sixes off Paul Collingwood.The New Zealand player became Ryan Pringle’s second victim when he drove to long-on before Sibley stepped across to lift Arshad behind square for six to reach 50 off 37 balls. He remained unbeaten on 51, made largely through orthodox strokes.The contest was as good as over when, after choosing to bat on a pleasant afternoon, Durham subsided tamely to 30 for 4 in the sixth over.Keaton Jennings was the first to go. After struggling to four off ten balls on his return to county duty against Worcestershire on Friday evening, this time he stroked the first ball of the match, from Olly Stone, to the extra cover boundary. But he added only a single before lobbing Jeetan Patel’s second ball to short midwicket.Three balls later, Collingwood advanced to loft Patel over long-off for six, but it was his only scoring shot as he aimed to smash Stone over midwicket and fell lbw.Tom Latham spooned Stone gently to mid-off in the same over, then Clark made 12 before cracking a short ball from Oliver Hannon-Dalby straight to extra cover.Coughlin hit three sixes and scored the bulk of the runs in propelling the score from 68 after 12 overs to 110 after 15. Stuart Poynter’s unbeaten 36 off 30 balls further raised Durham’s spirits, only for Pollock and Sibley to dash them in impressive style.

Ravi Shastri is clear on one thing as he takes over the position of India coach from Anil Kumble: the captain is the boss of the team. The coach and his backroom staff, according to the new India coach, are there only to make sure the players are in the right frame of mind to perform at their best.Shastri beat four other candidates to the job and said he only applied for the position having understood the “gravity of the situation” once Kumble stepped down in less than ideal circumstances last month.Shastri was team director just before Kumble was appointed coach last year, and he said he had been disappointed when he was overlooked as head coach in 2016. But after Kumble’s one-year contract expired in June, the BCCI chose not to renew it and instead sent out an advertisement seeking candidates for the position. Kumble himself had been one of the applicants, even though he was told he would be given “direct entry”. Shastri, though, was not.The Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) – Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman – tasked with finding India’s next coach told the BCCI that Kumble remained their first choice. But Kumble stepped down after realising the differences between him and the captain Virat Kohli had become “untenable”.It was then that Shastri decided to enter the fray, with the BCCI re-opening the interview process.”I had not really wrapped my head around the gravity of the situation,” Shastri told . “There was nothing personal. I really hadn’t begun to understand the seriousness of this. But when I sat down and gave it a serious thought, I began to tell myself: ‘Here is a unit that I have been part of and enjoyed a great working relationship with. Having been part of the unit that helped it become No. 1, I thought the onus is on me now to make it work again, in the best interests of everybody involved. That’s when I knew it’s time for me to apply again.”According to various individuals from the BCCI and CAC as well as the committee of administrators one big point of difference between Kohli and Kumble was who was the boss.Shastri is more than happy to let the captain take charge. “It’s always the captain’s team and it is the leader who calls the shots. That’s how it has always worked. A coach’s role, effectively speaking, is to stay in the background and let the onus be on the players. The coach and support staff’s role is to get the players in the most brilliant frame of mind to execute things and if done effectively, it brings enjoyment to the player’s game.”Shastri said his relationship with the support staff – both Sanjay Bangar (assistant coach) and R Sridhar (fielding coach) were appointed by him – as well as the positive rapport he has with the players meant he could hit the ground running.”I’m simply going to press the refresh button and begin from where I left. I know what I’m stepping into, players have an idea of what’s coming, so that ticks the first box. Just to give you an idea, I won’t be spending the first six to eight months in the job warming up to the team. That had already been accomplished in my previous stint. This time, it’s going to be about getting on the job from day one.”Although Shastri and Kohli will be the men in command, a new challenge awaits them in the form of Rahul Dravid and Zaheer Khan, who have been appointed as consultants by the BCCI at the behest of the CAC. The CAC felt, with India travelling overseas in the next two years for challenging Test series’ and the 2019 World Cup in England, the players needed experienced specialist hands to ensure success.Asked for his thoughts on working with Dravid and Zaheer, Shastri was optimistic, but hinted he would have the last word on support staff appointments.”In fact, even in my last stint, I had asked people like Rahul and Zaheer to come every now and then,” Shastri told . “I even asked Sachin [Tendulkar] to come at some stage and have a chat with the boys. I always believe that you need a fresh set of ideas. Your core team is meant to do the job for 200 days a year and every now and then, whenever you get some fresh inputs through with the quality of players like Zak (Zaheer) or Rahul it can only be good.”Tomorrow it could be an excellent fielding coach. What stops Jonty Rhodes from coming and having a chat with the boys? Overseas, I could pick the brains of a fast bowler who has bowled very well in those conditions – say in South Africa or Australia. It’s fresh inputs that might trigger off something. I am always open to such kind of ideas.”

Shahid Afridi will return to Hampshire for the NatWest T20 Blast.He was part of the side that endured a poor 2016 campaign when they finished second-bottom of the South Group and his return with the ball was an underwhelming nine wickets in 12 matches although he was the most economical bowler.”He’s been an important part of our success in the short form of the game in previous seasons and we feel his talents fit well with the current squad,” Giles White, Hampshire’s director of cricket said.Afridi’s most recent cricket was the PSL which ended in early March. He scored 177 runs in eight innings at a strike-rate of 173.52 but only managed two wickets before missing the final in Lahore with a finger injury.

Tim Southee, the New Zealand fast bowler, has signed for Middlesex as their second overseas player for the NatWest T20 Blast. His arrival to play under the captain and coach combination of Brendon McCullum and Daniel Vettori – both former New Zealand team-mates of Southee – gives a strong Black Caps feel to Middlesex in the shortest format.Southee, who is currently playing for Mumbai Indians at the IPL, will link up with Middlesex in early July and is expected to be available for 13 group matches (out of 14), as well as the knockout stages, potentially.”Tim is one of the leading fast bowlers in the world. He has plenty of experience in T20 cricket and looks to bowl in the periods where we feel we could be better,” Angus Fraser, Middlesex’s managing director of cricket, said. “We look forward to welcoming him to Lord’s.”Southee previously played county cricket for Essex in 2011, when he took 22 wickets during the Friends Life t20, as well as scoring his only T20 half-century – 74 off 34 balls opening the batting against Hampshire. Overall, he has taken 139 T20 wickets with an economy of 8.26.”I’m excited to be joining Middlesex this year for the NatWest T20 blast and helping the club throughout the T20 competition,” Southee said. “When the opportunity come up to play for Middlesex it wasn’t a tough decision to make and I’m looking forward to calling Lord’s home while I’m there.”

Match facts

Kings XI Punjab v Rising Pune Supergiant
Indore, April 8, 2017
Start time 1600 local (1030 GMT)
2:59

Hogg: Changing captains shows lack of direction for Kings XI

Head to head

It’s one all, with each team having won at their home venue last year. These two teams finished bottom of the table last season.

In the news

Australia batsman Glenn Maxwell, who has never led any team in the 340 recognised matches he has played across formats, will debut as captain for Kings XI. He was picked for the role ahead of international captains such as Eoin Morgan and Darren Sammy.A last-minute addition to the Kings XI squad, Ishant Sharma is set to represent his fifth IPL franchise – the joint-second most by any player – against the team that let he go after the 2016 season. Kings XI brought in Ishant as a replacement for M Vijay, who is out of IPL 2017 with wrist and shoulder injuries sustained during India’s protracted home season. Ishant had gone unsold at the IPL auction in February, after a season in which he claimed three wickets in four matches at 49.33, conceding 9.86 per over for Supergiant.

Form guide

Rising Pune Supergiant beat Mumbai Indians by seven wickets in Pune

Shardul Thakur might get into Supergiant’s XI, after the lacklustre performance from the team’s frontline seamers in their opening game against Mumbai Indians. Ashok Dinda bowled the most expensive 20th over in IPL history – 30 runs – and the side’s fast-bowling trio, comprising Dinda, Deepak Chahar and Ben Stokes, conceded 114 runs for a solitary wicket.Kings XI’s INR 3 crore recruit T Natarajan made quite a mark in the Tamil Nadu Premier League, particularly with his six yorkers in a Super Over against Tuti Patriots. He could push Varun Aaron for a spot in the XI. Kings XI will also take the field with a new coach behind them; J Arun Kumar took charge following Sanjay Bangar’s resignation.Indore’s Holkar Stadium, which hosted its last IPL game in 2011, will be Kings XI’s second home after Mohali. Three games will be played at the ground.

The likely XIs

Kings XI Punjab: 1 Manan Vohra, 2 Glenn Maxwell (capt), 3 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 4 Eoin Morgan, 5 David Miller, 6 Marcus Stoinis, 7 Axar Patel, 8 KC Cariappa, 9 Sandeep Sharma, 10 Mohit Sharma, 11 T Natarajan/Varun AaronRising Pune Supergiant: 1 Ajinkya Rahane, 2 Mayank Agarwal, 3 Steven Smith (capt), 4 Ben Stokes, 5 MS Dhoni (wk), 6 Manoj Tiwary, 7 Rajat Bhatia, 8 Jaydev Unadkat 9 Imran Tahir, 10 Shardul Thakur/Ishwar Pandey, 11 Adam Zampa

Stats that matter

• In Indore, where the last T20 match played was during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy – India’s domestic T20 competition – in 2015, teams batting first won seven out of ten matches.
• In Maxwell, Kings XI identified their tenth captain – the most among all IPL teams. This lack of stability across seasons is, perhaps, best reflected by the overall standings: they have finished at the bottom of the table three times – the joint most by any franchise, along with Delhi Daredevils.
• Against Kings XI, MS Dhoni has four half-centuries – the most for him against any team – and his best strike rate against an IPL team (three matches minimum).
• David Miller’s slump in form has resulted in his average, strike rate, fifties and balls per boundary decreasing every year, starting 2013, where he amassed 418 runs in 12 innings with an average of 59.17. In the two games against Pune last year, he scored only seven runs apiece, in a season where he got 161 runs in 13 innings.
• Supergiants’ run rate of 8.00 in Powerplays, while batting first, was the second best last season. Ironically, they lost all seven matches in which they batted first last season. A big contributor to that would have been their economy rate in Powerplays when defending totals: 9.80, the worst among all teams.

ScorecardCraig Overton’s hat-trick couldn’t rescue MCC•Getty Images

Middlesex overcame a 153-run deficit on first innings, as well as a Craig Overton hat-trick, to secure a tense one-wicket win over MCC in Abu Dhabi. John Simpson’s unbeaten 89 provided the crucial plank in Middlesex’s chase of 305, as the wicketkeeper helped the last three wickets chisel out 64 runs after Overton had appeared to swing the match towards MCC.Harry Podmore and Tom Helm, who had shared six wickets to help skittle MCC for 151 in their second innings, kept Simpson company in partnerships of 36 and 22 respectively and, although Mason Crane removed both as part of a four-wicket haul, No. 11 Ravi Patel hung on to help complete victory.Simpson was the hero when Middlesex chase 302 eight down at Taunton last year, on the way to the club’s first title in 23 years. MCC’s Somerset trio of Overton, Lewis Gregory and Jack Leach did their best to undermine Middlesex again, taking 15 wickets between them, but the champions ultimately proved too strong.MCC saw their last two wickets fall on the third morning with only four added to the overnight score; Liam Plunkett was unable to bat after straining a calf earlier in the match. That still meant Middlesex needing to score considerably more than the 179 they managed in the first innings for victory.They were given a much stronger base by the top order second time around. Nick Gubbins and Nick Compton both struck half-centuries and they looked to be cruising to their target on 242 for 4 in the 54th over.Enter Overton, wicketless to that point. He pinned Steve Eskinazi lbw for 44, had Middlesex captain James Franklin caught behind first ball and then won another lbw decision against James Harris to change the complexion of the innings. Simpson, however, stayed calm and ticked off the runs with the lower order to ensure Middlesex would start their season with a win under lights.

ScorecardFile photo – Hilton Cartwright struck nine fours and four sixes in his 145-ball 94•Getty Images

A solid first-innings batting effort from Western Australia extended their advantage against Tasmania in their Sheffield Shield match in Hobart. Resuming on 1 for 149, Western Australia went on to post 410 on the back of fifties from Hilton Cartwright (94), Cameron Bancroft (84) and Josh Inglis (55).Bancroft and Cartwright added 98 for the second wicket, but Tasmania’s bowlers chipped away thereafter, reducing Western Australia to 8 for 369. Wicketkeeper Inglis, batting at No. 7, struck a counter-attacking half-century off just 48 balls to push Western Australia’s lead to 212. Cameron Stevenson picked up three wickets, while Simon Milenko and Cameron Boyce took two wickets each.Tasmania lost their openers within the first four overs of their second innings. In the eighth over, Alex Doolan was caught off fast bowler David Moody and Beau Webster was dismissed four overs later, as Tasmania slumped to 4 for 37. George Bailey and nightwatchman Stevenson took Tasmania to stumps, still trailing by 154.