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Umpire Paul Reiffel has dismissed the idea of wearing a helmet while officiating in Test matches, despite suffering a concussion after being hit by a fielder’s throw in the fourth Test of the ongoing India-England series

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Dec-2016Umpire Paul Reiffel has dismissed the idea of wearing a helmet while officiating in Test matches, despite suffering a concussion after being hit by a fielder’s throw on the first day of the fourth Test of the ongoing India-England series. Reiffel is currently home in Melbourne, after the ICC deemed him unfit to take the field in the final Test in Chennai.Speaking to , the former Australia fast bowler said wearing a helmet would complicate the umpiring process for him. “It would be too heavy and too hot, five days with a helmet on, it just would be impossible,” he said. “It’s hard to hear [with the helmet on]. I’ve put one on and thought ‘could I umpire in this?’, and I thought I’d really struggle.”Reiffel, who was standing at square leg when he was hit by a throw from India’s Bhuvneshwar Kumar, said the accident occurred because he took his eyes off the ball thinking it was dead. “Always keep your eye on the ball,” he said. “I just didn’t do it. I feel a bit silly not doing that. It’s like playing; if you watch the ball you should come out all right. It was just an accident. I’d back myself to get out of the way if I see it coming.””The batsmen had stopped running, the fieldsmen were taking their time. I must have relaxed and expected him to throw it to the keeper over my head and he decided to throw it halfway to the fieldsman. He got it wrong and hit me on the back of my head. It got me behind the ear and hit me flush, that’s what’s done the damage.”He said he could remember little of what happened thereafter, and, in hindsight, was glad the ICC took the decision to make him stand down for the rest of the Test. “Apart from that, I don’t really remember a lot about it. I suppose it did hurt. I’ve watched the replay and I went down pretty quick. I was rolling around a bit. It certainly shook me up.”The next day you feel as though you should be out there. The England cricket team doctor put me through a few tests and I didn’t pass them that well, so they decided it was best not to do the Test and have a bit of a rest and come back later. The ICC decided it was for the best I had the rest. I’m glad about that because I needed it. I was pretty sick for a few days there.”Reiffel is expected to return for the New Zealand-Bangladesh ODI series, which begins on Boxing Day.

William Bosisto’s maiden first-class century and an unbeaten fifty from wicketkeeper Sam Whiteman helped Western Australia salvage a draw against Victoria as the visitors were only two wickets away from losing the match

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Nov-2015
ScorecardFile photo: Sam Whiteman fought till the end with an unbeaten 51•Getty Images

William Bosisto’s maiden first-class century and an unbeaten fifty from wicketkeeper Sam Whiteman helped Western Australia salvage a draw against Victoria as the visitors were only two wickets away from losing the match. Set a target of 390, WA ended the day on 282 for 8 in 106 overs as James Pattinson and Fawad Ahmed took three wickets each at the MCG.WA started the day on 25 for 1 and lost nightwatchman David Moody early in the day before Shaun Marsh joined Bosisto for a stand of 65 runs. But legspinner Fawad had Marsh caught for 33, and Victoria set an unusual field with two slips wearing helmets, before twin strikes from James Pattinson left WA on 173 for 5 just before tea. Bosisto withstood Victoria’s charge at the other end and his crucial stand of 76 runs with Whiteman ensured WA approached 250 as they survived 29.1 overs together.When Bosisto fell for 108 off 288 balls, WA were 249 for 6 with at least ten overs left in the day. Victoria closed in further when Glenn Maxwell had Ashton Agar stumped for 10 and Fawad took a return catch from Hilton Cartwright to leave them on 282 for 8. Whiteman’s presence till the end for his 51 not out from 121 balls avoided WA’s second loss in three matches. Fawad finished with eight wickets in the match.

Michael Klinger’s century ensured Gloucestershire had no trouble in chasing 188 to beat Leicestershire by nine wickets at Grace Road, their first win of the season

03-May-2013Gloucestershire 280 (Taylor 61, Freckingham 4-69) and 191 for 1 (Klinger 103*, Dent 71) beat Leicestershire 250 (Thakor 75, Howell 5-57) and 217 (W Gidman 4-39) by nine wickets
ScorecardMichael Klinger, seen here for Worcestershire last season, steered Gloucestershire home•Getty Images

Australian Michael Klinger hit his first County Championship century to lead Gloucestershire to a nine-wicket victory on the final day at Grace Road.After surviving a tricky first half-hour, openers Klinger and Chris Dent shared a stand of 129 to ensure there would be no major problems chasing a target of 188.Dent was out for 71 to the last ball before lunch but Klinger hit the winning runs and reached his century at the same time with his 16th boundary. He was unbeaten on 103 from 172 balls.It was Gloucestershire’s first win of the season and earned them 21 points, while Leicestershire collected five as they slipped to their first defeat of the season following drawn games against Hampshire and Kent.With Gloucestershire starting the day on 16 for 0, Leicestershire needed to take early wickets if they were to have any chance of snatching an unlikely victory. Pacemen Ollie Freckingham and Robbie Williams bowled well without any luck early on a slow pitch starting to show signs of uneven bounce.Both batsmen played and missed on several occasions and three times the ball flashed through the slip cordon down to the vacant third-man boundary. But as the shine went off the ball, the sting went out of the bowling, and both Klinger and Dent began to play with far more confidence and assurance.Dent was the first to reach his 50 off 68 balls with eight fours and Gloucestershire captain, Klinger, brought up the 100 partnership with a well-timed square drive to the boundary off Freckingham.A neat late cut off Michael Thornely saw Klinger reach his 50 off 100 balls, and Leicestershire’s frustrating morning was summed up when Josh Cobb put down an easy slip catch offered by Dent off Jigar Naik’s off spin.Naik gained some revenge by having Dent lbw with the last ball before lunch. But Klinger remained in good touch, straight driving Claude Henderson for a six before square cutting another boundary off Shiv Thakor to reach his landmark century and clinch victory.

Kent made a faltering reply to Northamptonshire’s first-innings on the second day of their Championship Division Two clash against Northamptonshire at Canterbury.

17-May-2012
ScorecardKent made a faltering reply to Northamptonshire’s first-innings on the second day of their Championship Division Two clash against Northamptonshire at Canterbury.The hosts went in at stumps on 123 for 3 after Northamptonshire had extended their overnight score of 244 for 4 to 418 all out. Having taken just over nine hours to dismiss the visitors on what appeared a placid pitch, Kent’s top order all experienced some difficulty contending with fading light and variable bounce.On-loan opener Scott Newman went for 16 just after tea, inside edging Lee Daggett’s delivery on to his off stump. But it was the bowling of Northamptonshire captain and one-time Kent overseas player Andrew Hall that did most to derail the reply mid-way through the final session.The South African allrounder ended a decent second-wicket stand of 63 by enticing left-hander Ben Harmison to drive wide outside off stump, picking out David Willey at backward point.Then, in his next over from the Nackington Road End, Hall got one to hold its line against the slope and brush the edge of Rob Key’s bat to give a regulation catch to another former Kent man, wicketkeeper Niall O’Brien.Key batted a shade over two hours for his 48 but, with the floodlights on, fourth-wicket partners Michael Powell and Brendan Nash saw out the final half-hour to go into day three trailing by 295 runs.The day had started with David Sales and James Middlebrook hogging centre stage with their side’s record fifth-wicket stand against Kent – 205 in 66.1 overs – beating the county’s previous best against Kent, the 187 set by Rob Bailey and Richard Williams at Wantage Road 22 years ago.Sales contributed an excellent 140 to the cause having batted 319 minutes for his part in the stand. His innings ended when, having just driven James Tredwell for two successive boundaries, he attempted an impudent lap-sweep against the England offspinner only to top-edge to the keeper. Middlebrook was leg before soon after, off balance and playing across the line to a full ball from Matt Coles, the former Essex man gone for 73.That brought together Con de Lange and Willey for another century stand, this time for the seventh wicket. On a docile pitch – and against an old ball – scoring became such an easy past-time that Kent skipper Key introduced his own brand of slow bowling in an effort to encourage an early declaration. His one over cost 11 runs, but failed to have the desired effect as the visitors batted on.Willey was finally caught in the deep for a career-best 64 in 85 balls, Daggett clipped one to short mid-on and last man Jack Brooks dragged on against Darren Stevens to complete the Northamptonshire innings.

A round-up of matches on the fifth day of the ICC World Cricket League Division Seven competition in Gaborone, Bostwana

ESPNcricinfo staff07-May-2011Nigeria have ensured they finish top of the points table – as a result qualifying for World Cricket League Division 6 – by beating Botswana by eight wickets in a rain-affected game in Gaborone.Going into the match tied on points with Botswana, Nigeria chose to field. The decision paid off, as none of the host’s batsmen were able to build on the starts they got, folding for 123 in 37.2 overs. Legspinner Sean Philips was the pick of the bowlers, stifling the batsmen to finish with 3 for 10 in 6.2 overs. Nigeria’s openers, Ademola Onikoyi and Segun Olayinka, got the chase off to rapid start, putting on 71 in 10.2 overs. But then play was interrupted by rain, and subsequently the target reduced to 120 off 47 overs. After the resumption, Nigeria knocked off the 49 more required for a win without much drama, with Olayinka batting through.Endurance Ofem, the Nigeria captain, said the ease of the victory was unexpected. “I expected more from them [Botswana] today, considering they chased down 272 [against Norway on Thursday]. But I told my guys that if we do well in the morning then the afternoon would be ours for the taking,” he said. “Our bowlers worked hard today and it really paid off for us.”Nigeria will take on Kuwait in the final on Sunday, while Botswana will play Germany for third place.Norway needed a massive win against Germany to avoid relegation to WCL Division 8, but could not pull it off, succumbing by 18 runs via the Duckworth-Lewis method in a rain-curtailed match.Choosing to bowl, Norway’s bowlers did well to restrict Germany to 184. While medium pacer Babar Shahzad knocked over a couple early, opening bowler Waseem Gill bowled an impressive second spell, carving up the middle and lower order with three scalps. S Satyanarayana was the only batsman to make a sizeable contribution, adding respectability to the total with 52 off 47 balls. In the mid-innings break the rain came down and the revised target for Norway was 141 in 29 overs. The right-left combination Rajeev Vohra and Ehsan Latif were hard to manoeuvre early on in the chase, picking up two apiece to leave Norway 40 for 4 in the ninth over. Norway didn’t recover and fell 18 runs short, all out for 122 in 25.4 overs. Latif claimed two more wickets, finishing with 4 for 26 in 5.4 overs.German captain Asif Khan said his team were happy to keep their place in Division 7. “On the whole, we’re delighted that we’re a part of Division 7,” he said. “Our batting didn’t click so well today, but Satya [Satyanarayana] proved his worth under pressure. I think to have got them out for under 140 on this wicket is a real achievement.”Germany will play Botswana for third place on Sunday, while Norway will take on Japan in the fifth-place play-off.The match between Japan and Kuwait was abandoned without a ball being bowled. The sides split points, taking one apiece.Japan have finished at the bottom of the table, meaning they have been relegated to WCL Division 8, irrespective of the result of the fifth-place play-off in which they play Norway on Sunday. Kuwait, who are No. 2 on the points table, have made WCL Division 6, and will take on Nigeria for the Division 7 title.

Chamari Polgampola, the right-arm fast bowler, will replace Shashikala Siriwardene in the Sri Lankan women’s squad for the ICC World Twenty20

Cricinfo staff02-May-2010Chamari Polgampola, the right-arm fast bowler, will replace Shashikala Siriwardene in the Sri Lankan women’s squad for the ICC World Twenty20, the ICC has confirmed. Siriwardene, the off spinner, had to pull out of the tournament due to an illness and the ICC’s event technical committee approved of her replacement on Sunday.Polgampola last played for Sri Lanka during the World Twenty20 in England in 2009. Siriwardene did not bat during Sri Lanka’s warm-up game against South Africa at St Kitts on Sunday. Sri Lanka kick-off their campaign against Pakistan at Warner Park on Thursday.

Chelmsford proves unhappy temporary home for Seaxes as they suffer 98-run thumping

ECB Reporters Network31-May-2024Matt Parkinson claimed a hat-trick as Kent thrashed Middlesex by 98 runs at Chelmsford to open their 2024 Vitality Blast campaign with a win.Parkinson, who made the move from Lancashire over the winter, shone for his newly adopted county, claiming the scalps of Jack Davies, Tom Helm and Henry Brookes in his third over on route to figures of 4 for 25.It meant the hosts, playing the first of two home games at Chelmsford in this campaign were hustled out for 107 to fall way short of their victory target of 206.Earlier, Joe Denly was the mainstay of Kent’s 205 for 8 with 56 in 33 balls complete with two sixes and seven fours. Daniel Bell-Drummond, another man to be the scourge of Middlesex in the recent past, provided good support with 38. Luke Hollman returned 3 for 27 and Blake Cullen 3 for 47 in his first match of the season.Bell-Drummond and England opener Zak Crawley made an explosive start, each striking Cullen for huge sixes in the third over as they posted a 50-stand within 23 balls.It took a super catch running back at mid-wicket by Leus Du Plooy to end Crawley’s effort on 26, but Bell-Drummond continued the assault, pummelling Henry Brookes back over his head for six before being dropped by Joe Cracknell in the deep.The miss wasn’t costly as Tom Helm pulled off a ‘worldy’ in the next over diving full length at deep mid-on to send Bell-Drummond on his way for 38. It was the first of two in two balls for the impressive Hollman as Sam Billing suffered a first-ball duck. Hollman would snaffle a third when Tawanda Muyeye struck him straight to Cracknell to leave Kent 79 for 3.Denly was though in no mood to see a collapse and played the innings of substance, striking the ball powerfully straight and employing the scoop to good effect in a well-paced effort. He was one of three late wickets for Cullen but nevertheless the target of 205 looked daunting.Middlesex promoted du Plooy to opener, but the move backfired as he fell for 11 bowled by Grant Stewart.Ryan Higgins’ stay was brutal yet brief, one huge six followed by a mishit which ballooned to mid-off, Beyers Swanepoel the bowler to profit and skipper Stephen Eskinazi also holed out on the fence to give Stewart a second wicket.Eyes were now on Max Holden who made 121 in the same fixture last season. There would though be no repeat as he drilled one straight to Crawley on the boundary at mid-off from the spin of Marcus O’Riordan and at 49 for 4 the hosts were in a mess.Cracknell down at an unfamiliar position of No. 6 rather than at the top of the order came and went bowled by Parkinson. Davies blossomed briefly but then came Parkinson’s party piece to hasten the end of the rout.

He backs Sri Lanka to make a serious push for victory at the Hagley Oval on Monday

Andrew Fidel Fernando12-Mar-2023Sri Lanka has the seam-bowling weaponry to make a serious push for victory on Monday. So believes Angelo Mathews, their centurion from day four, who was most responsible for setting New Zealand a target of 285.In the 17 overs Sri Lanka bowled at New Zealand before stumps, the seamers were probing and disciplined. Kasun Rajitha claimed the wicket of Devon Conway, and New Zealand could not score at more than 1.64 an over, finishing at 28 for 1, with Tom Latham and Kane Williamson the overnight batters.In the first innings, Sri Lanka’s seamers had had New Zealand at 188 for 6, before an outstanding Daryl Mitchell hundred, and lower-order hitting from Matt Henry pushed the hosts into a narrow lead.”We’ve got the fast bowlers to exploit the conditions,” Mathews said after play. “We’ve got some fantastic fast bowlers in the group, and we have the belief that if the batters get the runs on the board, the fast bowlers will definitely come into play, with the conditions. They’ve done exactly that.”We’ve given ourselves a great chance to win the Test match. We have to turn up tomorrow and just go for it. The game is evenly poised. Latham and Williamson – we all know they are world class. We need to strike early to get into the game. If we can open one end, we can put a lot of pressure on the Kiwis.”Related

• Mathews says SL not getting enough Tests, especially this year

• Mathews' 115 helps SL set NZ a stiff target

The surface did not appear especially treacherous on day four – though there was still some movement off the seam for the quicks. The Hagley Oval surface has in the past tended to get lower and slower as a match goes on, though spinners have been effective at this venue late in the game as well.”You can’t predict a wicket 100%, but there was variable bounce today,” Mathews said. “But hoping he [Prabath Jayasuriya] can hit the rough spots. Especially to the left-hander there’s a big rough on either side. The spinner also might come into play – you never know.”His own 115 off 235 balls, which was his 14th Test ton and his second in successive tours of New Zealand, Mathews put down to experience. It was a vital innings, during which he forged a 105-run partnership with Dinesh Chandimal, then put on 60 alongside Dhananjaya de Silva.Kasun Rajitha and Lahiru Kumara shared five wickets between them in the first innings•AFP/Getty Images

Although in the first innings Sri Lanka rattled along at almost four an over, they were prevented from scoring freely for much of day four, by some disciplined New Zealand bowling.”The more you play the more you learn, and I’ve played a lot of cricket in New Zealand, and in Christchurch as well,” Mathews said. “I know what kinds of conditions we are getting here. Credit should go to the New Zealand bowlers as well. After Neil Wagner got injured, the other three fast bowlers gave nothing away. It was hard work out there, but they kept pegging away, and we had to work extremely hard to get those runs. We had to keep grinding all day, which we did, I thought.”Scoring was especially difficult before lunch, when New Zealand sent down 28 overs and conceded just 67 (a run rate of 2.39).”You come set to play certain shots because they aren’t giving anything away,” Mathews said. “You kind of know what you get from each bowler, so you kind of mentally plan it out. The first session they gave nothing away at all. We had to keep fighting for sngles and twos – forget about the fours. We all know [Tim] Southee is a world-class bowler, and no matter how tired he is he lands it on the spot. Matt Henry bowled extremely well, as well as [Blair] Tickner though he’s young and new to the Test arena, he bowled with a lot of gas. We knew what’s coming with each and every bowler, and we had to plan accordingly.”Sri Lanka must win this match, and the next one, to stand any chance of making the World Test Championship (WTC) final at The Oval later this year. Mathews lauded the work of coach Chris Silverwood and captain Dimuth Karunaratne for creating a vibe through which a side that is not particularly studded with standout players, has been able to come close to making a major final.”The captain and the coach play a major part in the team’s environment. And us seniors will back it up with them. Chris Silverwood and his support staff and the captain has done a fantastic job in creating a great environment, to play cricket with a lot of freedom. That’s what you want – to put everything aside, and go out there and enjoy yourselves, which we’re absolutely doing.”

Among ODI bowlers, Ngidi returned to the top 20 and in the T20I bowlers’ rankings Holder reached a career-best 26th

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Jan-2022South Africa wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock has jumped up four places in the ICC ODI rankings for batters to move to fifth place and Rassie van der Dussen has gone up 10 spots to reach a career-best 10th position. de Kock re-entered the top five for the first time since the 2019 World Cup after he topped the run charts with a total of 229 runs (124, 78 and 27) in the three ODIs against India as South Africa blanked them 3-0, while van der Dussen was second on the list with 218 runs.Captain Temba Bavuma went up 21 places to reach a career-best 59th position, with the help of a century against India. Opener Shikhar Dhawan – India’s top-scorer in the series with 169 runs in three innings – moved up one place to 15th position. Rishabh Pant went up five spots to 82nd position.Among bowlers, Lungi Ngidi returned to the top 20 with his five wickets in the series – joint-second most with Jasprit Bumrah – to be placed on 20th, Keshav Maharaj moved to a career-best 33rd, and Andile Phehlukwayo, the top wicket-taker of the series, went up seven places to 52nd.Afghanistan batter Rahmat Shah also made gains, moving up seven places to joint 36th position with an aggregate of 153 runs against Netherlands recently. For Netherlands, Scott Edwards’ series-leading tally of 208 runs saw him go up 97 places to 100th spot. From Sri Lanka, Charith Asalanka went up from 52nd place to a career-best 46th spot.In the T20I rankings, Jason Roy’s knock of 45 in the second T20I against West Indies took him up one place to 15th while Brandon King went up 28 places to 88th spot after his unbeaten 52 in the series opener.Among T20I bowlers, Jason Holder moved to a career-best 26th spot with his Player-of-the-Match performance of 4 for 7 in the opening game, and Akeal Hosein gained 40 places to reach 33rd with economical figures of 1 for 15 and 1 for 6 over seven overs in the two games.

Worcestershire duo reach unbeaten fifties in response to Rhodes’ 207, while Charlie Morris claims five-for

ECB Reporters Network23-Aug-2020Warwickshire captain Will Rhodes scored his maiden double century before Worcestershire openers Daryl Mitchell and Jake Libby launched a powerful response on day two of the Bob Willis Trophy encounter at Blackfinch New Road.Rhodes extended his overnight 142 not out – already a career best – to 207 before he became one of five victims of Worcestershire paceman Charlie Morris. The 25-year-old helped Warwickshire secure three batting points as they reached 355 for 9 declared shortly after lunch.It was an impressive and composed contribution from the former Yorkshire CCC all-rounder who replaced Jeetan Patel as Bears skipper during the winter.Rhodes gave only one chance – on 123 off Mitchell yesterday evening – and received excellent support from England Under-19 player Dan Mousley, who reached, 47, during a fourth wicket stand of 128 in 40 overs.Mitchell would have admired the powers of concentration shown by Rhodes, who batted for more than eight hours, as someone renowned himself for occupying the crease. He demonstrated for the umpteenth time the same sort of qualities in making a half century – his third of the campaign – as he and Libby posted a century partnership in 39 overs.By the close Mitchell had moved onto an unbeaten 85 from 183 balls with 10 fours and Libby 80 not out from 167 deliveries with seven boundaries.Home keeper Ben Cox collected five more catches to take his tally to 22 – the highest in the competition – as Warwickshire lost late wickets in an effort to force the pace in their 120 overs.But on a sluggish, unresponsive pitch, offering little encouragement to the bowlers and described as “turgid” by Warwickshire batsman Sam Hain, it is hard to imagine anything but a draw particularly with an uncertain weather forecast on the horizon.Rhodes, whose previous highest score of 137 was achieved against Gloucestershire at Edgbaston two years ago, reached his 200 with a pull for a single off Ed Barnard 15 minutes before lunch. It was completed from 321 balls and contained 21 fours.Warwickshire, who resumed on 228 for 3, stepped up the tempo today in search of bonus points on a slow pitch.Rhodes brought up the 250 with a pull to the ropes at Worcestershire captain Joe Leach’s expense and then collected 4-2-4-2 off successive deliveries from the same bowler.Mousley was playing only his second first-class match and showed the promise evident when impressing in the winter Under-19s ICC World Cup beforeWorcestershire broke through with two wickets in successive overs.Morris induced an edge from Mousley, who faced 134 balls and hit five fours, through to Cox who then held onto a nick from Michael Burgess in the next over from Ed Barnard.But Worcestershire had to be content with one bowling point as Warwickshire ended on 319 for 5 from 110 overs.New batsman Tim Bresnan made a breezy 17 before pulling Morris into the hands of Libby at deep square leg.Rhodes eventually succumbed to Morris when he nicked through to Cox after going for a big hit down the ground. In total he faced 328 balls and struck 22 boundaries.Morris completed his five-wicket haul when Craig Miles skied a catch to Brett D’Oliveira at mid-wicket shortly before the declaration.When Worcestershire launched their reply, Mitchell and Libby, recruited last winter from Nottinghamshire, continued their recent good form and posted a century stand in 39 overs.Neither batsman was particularly troubled with Mitchell first to a half century off 103 balls with a steer to third man off Oliver Hannon-Dalby for his seventh boundary.Libby followed him to fifty with a single off Ryan Sidebottom – from 122 balls with four fours.