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A century of the highest class from Quinton de Kock helped South Africa complete the highest successful run-chase in an ODI at Centurion and keep the series against England alive

The Report by George Dobell09-Feb-2016 South Africa 319 for 3 (de Kock 135, Amla 127) beat England 318 for 8 (Root 125, Hales 65, Stokes 53) by seven wickets

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details2:05

‘Showed a lot of hunger on the field’ – De Villiers

A century of the highest class from Quinton de Kock helped South Africa complete the highest successful run chase in an ODI at Centurion and keep the series against England alive.With England having won the first two games in the five-match series, South Africa required a win to sustain their hopes of avoiding their first double defeat – in the Test and ODI sections of a tour – at home for 14 years.But when they conceded 318 it left them requiring a record run chase at this ground on a pitch that had appeared cracked and two-paced during the England innings.Yet they made light of their target, with an opening stand of 239 in 36.5 overs between de Kock and Hashim Amla racing them to victory with seven wickets and 22 deliveries remaining. They made it appear easy.It is a pretty special batting performance that eclipses a century from Amla, but so sweetly did de Kock time the ball, so wide was his range of stroke, so little margin for error did he allow the bowlers that a pitch on which few England batsmen looked comfortable was made to appear something approaching a batting paradise.The statistics of his de Kock’s career are worth dwelling upon for a moment. Despite only celebrating his 23rd birthday in December, this was his 10th ODI century in his 55th match. To put that in perspective, nobody has reached the milestone at a younger age (Virat Kohli was the previous holder of that record) and it is as many ODIs centuries as Graeme Smith managed in his entire 196-match ODI career.England will be relieved South Africa did not select de Kock earlier in the Test series. He has now scored three centuries against them (one in the Centurion Test and two in this ODI series) in his last four international games.Such is his ability, he forces bowlers to alter their natural length and then punishes the resultant full or short deliveries. Twice in the first over, he eased David Willey through the covers for four. Minutes later he was treating Reece Topley the same way and following it with a perfectly timed drive straight back past the bowler.Moeen Ali’s first delivery was delightfully late cut for four before he was slog-swept for six and when the seamers dropped short in search of a solution, they were pulled with dismissive power. One pick-up pull for six off a Chris Jordan delivery that was only fractionally short was probably the stroke of the day.With both sides set to name their World T20 squads on Wednesday, there was food for thought here for England. Despite all the progress they have made, with their batting in particular, their bowling attack remains both green and a little lacking in pace. In conditions where there is little swing available, they lack the weapons to dislodge well-set batsmen. Steven Finn might have made a difference, but there may also be a temptation to recall Stuart Broad, an unused member of this ODI squad.Amla was only marginally less impressive than de Kock. Using his crease to upset the line of the England bowlers, he stroked some balls off his off stump through midwicket and others through extra-cover. When the bowlers reacted by bowling wider of off stump, he unveiled that familiar, flowing drive that has featured in each of his 22 ODI centuries. Only AB de Villiers, with 23, has scored more for South Africa.Earlier the biggest of Joe Root’s seven ODI centuries took England to an apparently challenging total. By the time South Africa struck for the fourth time, they could have been quietly satisfied with their work. Jos Buttler, again promoted to No. 4 to build upon the strong start from England’s top order, had fallen first ball clipping to an intriguingly placed leg gully, while Eoin Morgan had laboured for 24 deliveries over his eight runs.But then Ben Stokes joined Root in a fifth-wicket stand of 82 in eight overs that took England’s total from the average to the strong. While Root was not entirely fluent in the early stages of innings, so wide is his range of stroke and so impressive his fitness levels that even when he was struggling to find the boundary, he was accumulating steadily. His 125 was the highest ODI score made by an England batsman against South Africa.Recognising that, once the shine had left the ball, the pitch became somewhat sluggish, Root started to skip down the pitch to hit the seamers off their length and over mid-on. With the bowlers struggling to hit upon a length that contained him, he punished the resulting short balls with one uppercut for six off Morne Morkel the stroke of the innings. Twice he thrashed full-tosses from Imran Tahir for six over mid-wicket.He gave one chance, on 44, when de Kock was unable to lay a hand on a tough chance offered off the bowling of David Wiese – a dab to third man that went a little finer than Root intended – but that moment apart, it was another masterful innings by Root.While de Kock went on to redeem himself, perhaps a key passage of play occurred far earlier. With seven overs and a delivery remaining of their innings, England had six wickets in hand, two batsmen well set and a target in excess of 330 in their sights.But then Root was run-out following a mix-up with Stokes – Root’s drive crashed into the stumps at the non-striker’s end and, in the confusion, the pair were caught mid-pitch – and Kyle Abbott, in particular, bowled with control and skill to stall the charge. He dismissed Stokes and Jordan with successive deliveries and, in five overs up to the end of the 48th over, England added just 24 runs.Such is the depth of England’s batting, that even their No.9 and No.10 – two men with 12 first-class centuries between them – are capable of attacking and Adil Rashid and Willey struck a six apiece in plundering 25 from the final two overs. But perhaps that lost momentum in the final seven overs cost them dear.Maybe Eoin Morgan will also reflect on his decision to bat first. de Villiers made no secret of his desire to bowl first, had he won the toss, and it did appear that conditions eased for batsmen as the lights came into play and the light dew allowed the ball to come on to the bat a little more readily.Or it may just be that, as with the best innings, the quality of the batting made it seem that way. The sense remains that, whatever England did with the ball and whenever they bowled, on this form de Kock was too good for them.

Cameron Gannon, the Queensland right-arm seamer who was earlier reported for a suspect bowling action, has had his suspension lifted by Cricket Australia

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Aug-2013Cameron Gannon, the Queensland right-arm seamer who was earlier reported for a suspect bowling action, has had his suspension lifted by Cricket Australia after a biomechanical analysis of his action.Gannon was reported during the 2012-13 Sheffield Shield final in March and was tested under the Cricket Australia Doubtful Bowling Action Procedures. Results found that not all of his deliveries were legal, and was suspended the following month for a minimum period of 90 days. He had figures of 1 for 88 and 2 for 35 as Queensland conceded the title to Tasmania in Hobart.Gannon worked with Queensland Cricket and Centre of Excellence staff to modify his action. This testing was conducted at the Australian Institute of Sport biomechanics facility in Canberra on July 30. His action complied with CA’s tolerance level, which is an elbow extension of 15 degrees or less for every delivery.Gannon was reported four times across the summer, including twice in the final. A minimum of three reports within the same season are required for a bowler to be subjected to testing.

Surrey’s captain, Rory Hamilton-Brown has taken indefinite compassionate leave and stepped down temporarily as Surrey captain following the death of his team mate Tom Maynard last month in an accident on the London underground.

David Hopps03-Jul-2012Surrey’s captain, Rory Hamilton-Brown has taken indefinite compassionate leave and stepped down temporarily as Surrey captain following the death of his team mate Tom Maynard last month in an accident on the London underground.Hamilton-Brown has been deeply affected by the death of Maynard, who he shared a house with and who had been a close friend since their days at Millfield School. He tried to return for Surrey’s Friends Life t20 match against Hampshire at West End on Sunday but found the experience too much to bear.He said: “I have decided to take a break from cricket. I am grateful to the club for their support and understanding of my decision and I look forward to returning to the game where I will hope to contribute and take forward my form of recent seasons.”The death of Maynard, whose funeral is on Wednesday, has caused considerable grief as well as some reflection among the Surrey squad. He had been with some Surrey team mates shortly before he was stopped by police shortly before dawn in Wimbledon for “driving erratically” whereupon he fled the scene. He died from electrocution on he District Line less than an hour later.Richard Gould, Surrey’s chief executive, stated: “Tom’s death has affected many people, and he and Rory were great friends. Rory now needs some time out, and the club is keen to provide whatever support we can.”Rory has performed very well both as captain and as one of our leading players over the last three years, and we look forward to him returning when the time is right. The club would also like to express its appreciation for the support provided by the PCA over the last two weeks.”Hamilton-Brown will be replaced as captain by Gareth Batty, who has led the side in recent Friends Life t20 matches. Batty faces a challenging task in holding together the season for a young Surrey squad which, particularly in the case of Hamilton-Brown, has found a return to cricket hard to bear.

South Africa A beat Zimbabwe XI by one run in a nail-biting match in Harare, to score their first points in the tri-series

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Jul-2011
ScorecardSouth Africa A beat Zimbabwe XI by one run in a nail-biting match in Harare, to score their first points in the tri-series. Chasing 239, Zimbabwe needed two off the last ball, but came off second as Rusty Theron held his nerve to bowl a wicket-taking dot.Zimbabwe were steered through most of their innings by captain Brendan Taylor, who scored 98. While there were no other half-centuries from the line-up, the next six batsmen got into double figures, making sure Zimbabwe were on course in the chase. They took the third Powerplay in the 43rd over, needing 77 off 48 balls with seven wickets in hand. With a close finish looming, a five-ball 45th over did the hosts no favours. It came down to the last ball, off which Theron had Forster Mutizwa stumped.Choosing to bat, South Africa’s innings was similar to that of Zimbabwe’s in that it was guided by a patient 98 by the captain-opener, Jacques Rudoplh. Three wickets went down in the first 15 overs at the other end, leaving South Africa in a spot of trouble at 52 for 3. But wicketkeeper Heino Kuhn complemented Rudolph well, scoring 61 off 70 balls as the pair added 116 runs. Cameos from the lower-middle order followed, pushing the score to a competitive 238. Prosper Utseya was the pick of the bowlers, picking up four middle order wickets.Rudolph was named Man of the Match. Zimbabwe take on Australia A on Sunday, at the same venue, in the next game of the tournament.

Sharad Pawar has ruled out bilateral series between India and Pakistan in the near future, saying the restoration of cricketing ties was a diplomatic issue that had to be addressed by the two governments

Cricinfo staff08-Jul-2010Sharad Pawar, the ICC president, has ruled out bilateral series between India and Pakistan in the near future, saying the restoration of cricketing ties between the countries was a diplomatic issue that had to be addressed by the two governments.”Immediate ties between both countries is not possible,” Pawar told . “It is not in the hands of the cricket boards. It is a diplomatic issue. This is a decision taken by the Indian government.”Diplomatic relations between India and Pakistan worsened in the aftermath of the Mumbai terror attacks in November 2008. The BCCI called off a scheduled tour of Pakistan in early 2009, following a directive from the government. The two countries have only played two ODIs since – in the Champions Trophy in 2009 and the Asia Cup this year. The relationship between the two countries’ board was also strained when Pakistan was stripped of its rights to host the 2011 World Cup after the Lahore attacks, and the World Cup secretariat was moved to Mumbai.There has been steady speculation in Pakistan since the ICC meeting in Singapore of a potential Pakistan-India series, on neutral turf sometime next year. The chatter is linked with Pakistan’s backing of other Asian and African countries, as well as the West Indies, in the movement to reject John Howard’s nomination as ICC vice-president but PCB officials have not commented on the matter.On Wednesday in Lahore, Ijaz Butt, chairman of the PCB, didn’t confirm or deny a query on the possibility of a resumption, arguing that bilateral talks between any boards on future commitments should remain private until further development. Butt has, in the past, been open about wanting to see the rivalry resume sooner rather than later though he has also acknowledged that it is tied in with political realities.

Ollie Pope confirmed as England captain for three-match Test series against Sri Lanka

Vithushan Ehantharajah13-Aug-2024Ben Stokes has been ruled out of the rest of the summer after scans on Tuesday revealed England men’s Test captain has torn his left hamstring.Stokes sustained the injury playing in the Hundred for Northern Superchargers against Manchester Originals on Sunday. Called through for a quick single early in Superchargers’ chase, he pulled up injured on completing the run, before falling to the floor and clutching his left leg. He had to be helped on the field and returned to the team dugout with crutches.A scan on Tuesday revealed the extent of the damage, with Stokes now unable to play any part in the upcoming three-match Test series against Sri Lanka which begins in Manchester on August 21. It means Ollie Pope, Stokes’ vice-captain for over a year, will assume full captaincy duties for the series. He was subsequently withdrawn from London Spirit’s squad for their final Hundred match against Northern Superchargers on Tuesday evening.Related

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The ECB said in a statement that Stokes is aiming to return for England’s winter Test tour of Pakistan, which will start in Multan on October 7. Zak Crawley, who is missing the Sri Lanka series with a finger injury, is also targeting the Pakistan tour for his return.England have decided not to name a replacement for Stokes in their squad to face Sri Lanka. In his absence, Jordan Cox will come into contention to make his Test debut as a specialist batter at No. 6. Alternatively, they could change the balance of the team by moving Jamie Smith and Chris Woakes up to No. 6 and 7 respectively, and select an additional seamer in Matthew Potts or Olly Stone.Ollie Pope will captain England against Sri Lanka•Getty Images

Stokes is expected to join the rest of the squad in Manchester this weekend, as originally planned, and it is understood he will try to be with the team for every day of the series, which includes two Tests in London.At the same time, England will hope Pope embraces his temporary promotion, having been made Stokes’ deputy in 2023 with a view to giving him more responsibility to harness his leadership potential. His promotion to No. 3 came on similar grounds, which has largely been a success, averaging 44.63 in that position, with five centuries.Pope’s captaincy experience is limited to a single first-class match, leading Surrey against Glamorgan in September 2021, though he did take the reins for their 2024 Vitality Blast campaign with regular skipper Chris Jordan away with England at the T20 World Cup.He has previously captained England XIs in warm-up matches in the UAE ahead of the 2022 Pakistan tour and in New Zealand at the start of 2023, after Stokes opted to sit out of both.

The Gujarat Titans captain also praised his team-mates for their match-winning performance against Lucknow Super Giants after only a day’s rest

ESPNcricinfo staff07-May-2023Hardik Pandya has hailed Rashid Khan’s athletic outfield catch to dismiss Kyle Mayers that broke Lucknow Super Giants’ strong opening stand as a “match-changing” effort, after Gujarat Titans prevailed by 56 runs in Ahmedabad.Chasing 228, Mayers had powered to 48 off 31 balls in a partnership of 88 with Quinton de Kock in just 8.1 overs. Then, he top-edged a pull over square leg off a Mohit Sharma slower ball. Rashid came sprinting in, running diagonally from fine leg, then slid and dived to take the catch to his right after making a last-minute adjustment.Super Giants lost momentum after losing Mayers and scored only 33 runs between overs 9 and 14, leaving them with too much to do in the last six.Related

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Hardik said that Rashid’s catch was the game-changer at a time when his team was under pressure. “The way the game changed after that… at one point of time at the eighth or ninth over we were even-stevens but that catch just changed the momentum and we were able to squeeze in a couple of tight overs,” he said after the match. “And after that I think they were chasing the game more than us.”We started controlling the game. Before that they were taking [us] on and we had to chase the game and make sure that we don’t concede as many runs and let them get into the game. So I think that catch was match-changing.””I think we both were driving at 100 kilometers per hour as a team but I think that bump in their innings cost them the game and got us back in the game.”Hardik also praised his team-mates for producing a match-winning performance after only one day’s rest. Titans’ last game was on Friday night and their match against Super Giants was the afternoon game on Sunday.”I don’t think I can ask anything better from the boys, Hardik said. “Especially, playing after one day’s gap and playing an afternoon game, the boys showed up and how.”Mohit, who gave Titans that vital first wicket, finished with 4 for 29, his best figures in the IPL since 2014. He has 12 wickets in eight matches in IPL 2023 with an economy rate of 6.96 despite bowling many of his overs at the death.”We keep discussing how to go about it, especially once the ball gets a little old how we can mix it up,” Mohit told broadcasters after the game. “And if I get the chance with a new ball, then what can I do with it. Today it was a day game so I knew that the wicket could get a little drier and be on the slower side so how we can mix it up in those conditions, that’s the kind of stuff I discuss with Shami.”I have practiced the knuckle ball, but I have a slight injury on my fingers so it’s not holding, so I am not able to bowl the knuckle ball. But I am using back-of-the-hand deliveries. When it’s the second innings and there’s a bit of dew, I can’t pitch it up too much, I have to bowl it away from the batter. So I am trying to stay as far from the batter’s range as possible.”I keep talking with Ashu Pa [Nehra] off the field. We talk a lot about bowling, what kind of balls I can bowl to different batters. Especially how we can mix up the length ball,” Mohit said. “He keeps saying that it shouldn’t be too short. It should be around top of off.”The win against Super Giants was Titans’ eighth victory in 11 games, giving them a three-point lead over Chennai Super Kings at the top of the table.

On a Karachi pitch that is showing signs of deterioration, Australia have amassed 505 for 8

Tristan Lavalette13-Mar-2022Captain Pat Cummins resisted declaring late on day two of the second Test with Australia preferring grinding a weary Pakistan into the ground, as they passed 500 in their first innings on a Karachi pitch showing signs of deterioration.Australia reached the close in a commanding position at 505 for 8 with Mitchell Starc 28 not out and Cummins yet to score. Starc and Alex Carey batted almost through the entire final session in an attempt to break the back of Pakistan, who have spent two whole days in the field but in-form openers Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq were surely relieved not to have faced a tricky period before stumps.Cummins is set to face scrutiny for not sending Pakistan in late on the day although Australia gave a clear indication they want to bat just once in this pivotal match in a belief the pitch will deteriorate further. Australia batted their highest number of overs in an innings in Asia since 1956, but inconsistent bounce and sharp turn was evident later in the day.Carey fell for 93 just before stumps and agonisingly short of his maiden century after batting fluently to energise an otherwise dull final session, where everyone was seemingly waiting for Australia’s declaration but it never came.Australia’s indefatigable innings was dominated by Usman Khawaja’s brilliant 160 off 369 balls as he fell just short of his highest Test score of 174 against New Zealand at the Gabba in 2015. His 11th Test century – and first in the country of his birth – was marked by unwavering concentration, but he could only score 33 runs off 103 balls on day two underlining the changing nature of the pitch.Khawaja’s innings ended midway through the second session when he was bowled by a cracker of a delivery from offspinner Sajid Khan, who produced drift and sharp turn to hit the top of off stump.After a memorable first innings in the city his family hails from, the 35-year-old departed to a standing ovation from a boisterous crowd having become the first Australian Test centurion in Pakistan since Mark Waugh’s 117 in Peshawar in 1998.Alex Carey fell seven short of a maiden Test century•AFP/Getty Images

Eyebrows were raised after tea as Carey and Starc resisted the temptation of throwing the bat to ensure the match went through the motions. That’s been a familiar sensation during this historic series.Australia just kept batting as Carey, who had been somewhat under pressure due to patchy glove work and batting, effectively reverse-swept his way to his second Test half-century of his career.An increasingly confident Carey powered to his highest score in what should be a tonic ahead of an important stint behind the stumps. While he capitalised on Australia’s strong platform, middle-order batters Travis Head and Cameron Green missed out after being dismissed during a lively second session where the match appeared to be moving only for that to prove fool’s gold after a laborious final session.Pakistan toiled amid oppressive conditions in their Karachi fortress. They did attempt a fightback in the second session with spinners Sajid and Nauman Ali conjuring sharp turn on a pitch showing the first signs of encouragement for bowlers seven days into the series, the first between the teams in Pakistan since 1998.Sajid bounced back with variations in pace and flight after notably struggling on day one where he pursued a defensive line of bowling before and after tea. The 28-year-old did a lot of heavy lifting and finished with 2 for 151 from 54 overs.Shaheen Shah Afridi couldn’t rouse the same energy he memorably produced during the tame draw in Rawalpindi apart from a lethal spell of reverse swing in the second session that was repeatedly thwarted by Khawaja’s stout bat.Pakistan’s flagging bowlers were understandably weary by the time they took the third new ball, which only made scoring easier for Carey and Starc who finally started upping the ante.In what felt like an eternity ago, Australia resumed day two at 251 for 3 and nightwatchman Nathan Lyon stole the show in the first hour with a breezy 38 to frustrate Pakistan’s bowlers hoping for early inroads. But he fell short of a maiden Test half-century after being comprehensively bowled by Faheem Ashraf in Pakistan’s only success in the morning session.Lyon’s unexpected cameo provided a rare source of entertainment in another hard grind of a day during this slow-moving series.

No suggestions of an increased quota, but focus on including more black African players in the national sides

Firdose Moonda12-Oct-2020Cricket South Africa (CSA) intends to outline the implementation of a more aggressive transformation policy to parliament, if they are allowed to present their plans to the sports portfolio committee on Tuesday. The meeting comes a week after CSA were hauled over the coals by the same committee for failure to present the forensic report they used to fire former CEO Thabang Moroe.At a two-hour meeting last week, in which no other matter was discussed, CSA committed to furnishing the committee with a copy of the report by Friday. The deadline was met, though the version of the report CSA sent contained redactions, and discussion over the report are expected to take up most of the meeting time tomorrow. However, if the meeting moves past the report, CSA may have the opportunity to unveil its Social Justice and Nation Building (SJN) agenda.Among CSA’s proposals is an emphasis on ensuring “that more black players, particularly black African players are included in national teams on a sustainable basis,” and major changes to the way cricket is governed at franchise and provincial level, to ensure greater representation of black women. Beginning in December this year, CSA would like all its affiliates to make new appointments according to affirmative action requirements, and will fine those who do not.”It will become part of the membership requirements that the executive management teams of unions and the boards become predominantly black with a heavy focus on black female members in these critical positions. The intention is to identify at least 10 black female candidates. The onus will be placed on Affiliates to address the current status of non- transformed positions especially in CEO and Executive positions. Failure by the Unions to do this will result in financial penalties,” CSA’s presentation reads.Similarly, CSA have committed to filling the independent director vacancy on its board, which resulted from the resignation of Steve Cornelius in August “by a black female, preferably with skills in media and marketing”. The position is expected to be filled by the end of November, before the rescheduled AGM which will take place on December 5.On the playing field, the presentation notes that “the number of selections for whites’ dwarfs (54%) the numbers for any of the black demographic, with the players of Indian descent and Coloured players, making up an equal 12% selection in any of the 15 matches played,” over the last year. It notes that selection was particularly skewed in fifty-over cricket primarily because of the consistent inclusion of four players. “It is particularly within the ODI format where the selection frequency is predominantly in favour of white players. These numbers are boosted by the consistency in selection of (Quinton) de Kock, (Rassie) van der Dussen, (Faf) du Plessis and (David) Miller.”While the presentation does not say there will be an increased quota (currently the national team is required to field six players of colour, of which at least two must be black African, on average over the course of a season), it does state that there will be no target reduction and that the direction of cricket, the coaches and selectors will have to adhere to transformation key performance areas, which will be part of their contracts. CSA exceeded their 2018-19 transformation target, with the 2019-20 data yet to be released, but have also come under fire from the sports minister, Nathi Mthethwa, for failing to have people of colour in senior roles.Since then, CSA have committed to applying a preference for consultants of colour and now appear to be taking the policy further. The presentation also mentions addressing the salary difference between the men’s and women’s teams and confirms a cash injection of R10 million (US$604, 575) for the SJN project, which could offer reparations to players who were discriminated against in the past. In August CSA named Advocate Dumisa Ntsebeza as their SJN ombudsman and they intend to begin hearing at provinces in January 2021. The ombudsman will also independently present to parliament and the sports minister.

Bowler was sent home in June for breaching ICC code; now, team manager suspended over cover-up of the same incident

Nagraj Gollapudi and Jarrod Kimber06-Jul-2019It has emerged that Aftab Alam, the Afghanistan fast bowler, was sent back home from the World Cup following allegations of serious misbehaviour with a female guest at the Southampton hotel the team was staying in.At the time, the ICC had said that Alam was being sent back under “exceptional circumstances”, but the Afghanistan Cricket Board later confirmed that it was for a “breach of ICC’s disciplinary code of conduct”. That, ESPNcricinfo understands, wasn’t the only occasion when Alam ran into trouble during the tournament – he was removed by the security from a hospitality suite during the India-Pakistan game in Manchester too.While pulling up Alam, the ACB also suspended team manager Naved Sayem, while asking the board’s disciplinary committee to conduct a probe into the Alam hotel incident and submit its report within a week. Alam was suspended as soon as the ACB decided to remove him from the World Cup squad – made official on June 27.ALSO READ: Afghanistan have hit a bump on their happy roadThe latest development came at the ACB’s annual general meeting, held in Kabul, today. “The disciplinary committee has already been assigned to carry out the investigation in the Alam incident and asked to submit the report in a week,” Atif Mashal, an ACB board member, told ESPNcricinfo.Mashal said Sayem was found guilty of not reporting the incident “properly”. “He was found to hide things from the ACB. That is why it was decided to suspend him and investigate. As for the player (Alam), we will formalise the sanction against him once the disciplinary committee submits its report.”It is understood that the ICC’s anti-corruption unit (ACU) has concluded its investigation on Alam, finding him guilty of inappropriate behaviour, and has sent its report to the ACB to take action against the player.Alam’s last game in the World Cup was on June 22, against India, when Afghanistan fell short in their chase of India’s 224 for 8 by 11 runs. He took a wicket and was then bowled for a duck. Incidentally, the team hotel where the alleged incident took place is inside Hampshire Bowl, where the Afghanistan squad was staying for their group matches against India and Bangladesh.It is believed that the ACU got the Afghanistan squad to assemble at the team hotel in Southampton on June 23 morning, but Alam wasn’t present. He wasn’t in his room either, and it emerged that he was with a relative in London. Alam is understood to have returned later in the day, but Phil Simmons, Afghanistan’s head coach, suspended him for two matches for not being present at the ACU meeting. Alam was told he could not even participate in the practice sessions for those games.In the earlier game between India and Pakistan at Old Trafford, Alam turned up at the game unannounced and requested VIP access for himself and his friends. Using his player’s accreditation pass, he made his way to one of the hospitality rooms and then refused to leave. When security was summoned, his friends left but Alam stayed. Eventually, however, security was called and he was removed.Action against senior ACB officials too
In an unconnected development, two senior ACB officials – acting chief executive Asadullah Khan and Dawlat Ahmadzai, former chief selector – who were found guilty of separate offences, are also going to be investigated by a panel comprising three board members, Mashal confirmed, saying that a “serious” decision had been taken on that front too.Asadullah has been charged with breaching the ACB constitution and policies on various decisions he took after taking charge recently. Ahmadzai was pulled up for taking controversial decisions in squad selection for the World Cup. Ahmadzai, who was shifted to the junior selection panel midway into the World Cup, took controversial decision to replace Ashgar Afghan as the ODI captain with Gulbadin Naib, while also removing Afghan from the leadership of the Test and T20I teams.”A three-member committee comprising board members will conduct the investigation for the various breaches (by Asadullah and Ahmadzai),” Mashal said.