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Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer and David Wiese slipped seamlessly back into four-day mode to dismiss Middlesex for 169 in helpful conditions but the home side fought back

Matt Roller29-Aug-2018
ScorecardLess than three years have passed since the domestic schedule was changed to avoid counties constantly switching between formats, but if this Sussex bowling effort was anything to go by then nothing could be easier than transitioning between T20 and a promotion charge.After a clinical quarter-final win at Chester-le-Street on Friday night, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer and David Wiese slipped seamlessly back into four-day mode, bowling with control and discipline to dismiss Middlesex for 169 in helpful conditions.But adapting to the demands of red-ball cricket proved harder for the batsmen. Their recent victory over Derbyshire was a fast-scoring effort on a pitch that allowed them to continue their Blast aggression, but a gloomy final hour under the Lord’s lights saw them let slip the opportunity to make Middlesex pay for their underwhelming efforts with the bat.While Sussex’s short-form bowling attack often resembles the Harlem Globetrotters, such is the box-office nature of Tymal Mills’ raw pace and Rashid Khan’s spellbinding legspin, this was an old-fashioned demonstration of the merits of hitting a consistent line and length, as the four seamers shared ten wickets between them.Chris Jordan said: “It did a lot all day and in the morning when we took four wickets we could have taken even more. It swung, there was some seam movement as well and I thought our bowlers exploited the conditions really well.We were pleased with the score we restricted them to but we knew it would be tough for us as well, even though it was a shorter session after tea to bat. But we bat all the way down to 11 and we’re going to need every run.”In the morning session, Middlesex’s misfiring top order all threatened stoicism before falling cheaply, as Sam Robson, Stevie Eskinazi and Dawid Malan were all trapped lbw by inswingers, and Nick Gubbins’ loose drive saw him caught at second slip.It is easy to forget that Middlesex have won three of their last four Championship games, such is the mood around the club following another disastrous Blast season and the departure of Richard Scott, but those wins have relied on third and fourth-day fightbacks after poor starts.While every batsman except for Australians Adam Voges and George Bailey from the title-winning 2016 side is still on the club’s books, a collective failure to find the form of that campaign has led to something of a slump in the two years since. This was the fifth time in ten games this season that they have failed to secure a single first-innings batting point; only once have they passed 250 in their first innings.The one find since that year in batting terms has been Max Holden, whose unbeaten 50 was a gritty and determined innings from a man still learning his game. Two gift-wrapped cover drives stuck in the mind, but it was his dogged defence and patience at the crease that will provide the club with reason to believe he has a bright future.When he last played a first-class game on this ground, Jordan was England’s newest and most promising seamer in the 2014 Test against Sri Lanka, and while that reputation has changed considerably in the past four years, his mid-afternoon spell was a reminder of his ability as he found pronounced movement off the seam.First, Jordan ended Eoin Morgan’s torturous innings of 6, which spanned 78 balls and had the aesthetic value of a brutalist Eastern European tower block, before he bowled both Ollie Rayner and James Fuller to put Sussex firmly on top.If Sussex’s seamers were metronomic, Middlesex’s started with the rhythm of Theresa May dancing in front of a group of South African schoolchildren. They sprayed the new ball about on a pitch that rewarded discipline, but then dragged themselves back into the game as they found their groove in a final hour which changed the day’s complexion.The Sussex top three fell to aggressive strokes, before three late strikes – including Luke Wright, who ended up on the rough end of a harsh lbw decision – gave Middlesex hope of a manageable deficit if not a first-innings lead.It will take a much better day with both bat and ball for them to edge in front in this game, and a rekindling of the fighting spirit in their recent wins. But Sussex ended this day on top, and creeping ever closer to a promotion which few would claim to be undeserved.

The former captain said he did not understand why Maxwell had been left out of the A tour of India and not been given a chance to claim a Test spot

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Sep-2018Ricky Ponting has slammed the decision to drop Glenn Maxwell from Australia’s squad for the Test series against Pakistan in the UAE, saying he’d be “ropeable” if he was in the batsman’s position.Batsman Peter Handscomb was also left out of the tour, Australia’s first since the ball-tampering scandal in Cape Town, but it was Maxwell’s omission that raised the biggest stir, particularly because he wasn’t on the just-completed Australia A tour to India, which meant he did not have a chance to win a spot in the Test squad. Moreover, Maxwell had said he received positive reinforcement from the selectors following his omission from the A squad, leading most to believe he was set to tour the UAE.”If I was Maxi I’d be thinking, ‘why didn’t you give me the chance to actually go there (to India) and push my case to get myself into the team?'” Ponting told . “That’s all a bit bizarre to me. If I was Maxi and I hadn’t been given the chance to play for Australia A, I’d be ropeable.”They didn’t pick him on that Australia A tour and they’ve said they’ve seen him play enough in those conditions and knew what he could do. But if you think about it now, that must have actually meant they weren’t going to pick him at all. He didn’t even come into calculations for that Test tour.Maxwell, who made his Test debut in 2013, has never been able to nail down a spot in the longest format, having played only seven Tests over the past five years. His last Test was in September last year in Chittagong, where Australia completed a series-levelling win.Ponting was most critical of the fact that Maxwell wasn’t given the chance to prove himself on the A tour. “With Marnus and Travis Head going on that A tour, they gave them the opportunity to play in those conditions, they’ve done well and then they picked them [for the Test squad]. I’m not sure what the message is, but it’s a bit confusing to me.”Ponting said the selectors needed to convey to Maxwell what he needed to do to work his way back to Australia’s Test squad.”He’s someone who’s desperate to play Test cricket for Australia, he wants to play any game of cricket he can for his country,” Ponting said. “He’s always going to be that type of match-winning player. If he comes off every two or three or four games – that’s the kind of player he’s always going to be. He’s got enough time and skill to be able to play more Test cricket for Australia.”Fast bowler Peter Siddle, who was recalled to the Test squad because of injuries to Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, also said he was surprised by Maxwell’s omission. “Coming home and being around him yesterday, he was a little bit confident that he was going to be a part of this squad so he’ll be very disappointed. I do feel for him, you always want your team-mates to be in and around the squad and be a part of it with you. I know he’ll be shattered.”But I know one thing he’ll do is work hard and get ready to push his case for the summer. It’s hard, it’s a whole new-look side and a lot of changes. And obviously the direction that they’re going at the moment, with three spinners in there, it does make it hard to be a batting spinner in the side. So you can see where they’re coming from. He’s got plenty of opportunity now to get ready for the summer to push his case.”

Amitabh Choudhary has accused Vinod Rai of overstepping his powers as chairman and overriding the views of Diana Edulji, the CoA’s other member

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Oct-2018Amitabh Choudhary, the BCCI’s acting secretary, has asked the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA) to resolve the rift within it over the handling of the allegations of harassment against CEO Rahul Johri. The two members of the CoA, chairman Vinod Rai and Diana Edulji, had disagreed over the way ahead in the issue, and Choudhary has alleged that the procedure eventually followed was improper on several grounds.On Thursday night, the CoA sent out a press release announcing that a three-member independent inquiry committee would investigate the allegations against Johri. The release also detailed the disagreement between Rai, who felt an independent inquiry was necessary, and Edulji, who had wanted Johri to resign or have his contract terminated.In an email to the CoA, which ESPNcricinfo has accessed, Choudhary has accused the CoA of dealing with the allegations in a “cavalier manner” and questioned the “days of inaction” between Johri submitting his explanation to the CoA (October 20) and the setting up of the independent panel.Choudhary also accused Rai of overstepping his powers as chairman and overriding the views of Edulji, the CoA’s other member.”The Committee of Administrators was constituted by the Hon’ble Supreme Court as a four member body and one of the members of the said committee was made the chairman to convene its meetings and preside over them,” Choudhary’s email said. “The position of the Chairman was only that of first among equals and no additional or superior powers had or have been conferred upon the Chairman by the Hon’ble Supreme Court.”Presently, the committee comprises two members and both members are equal in status for all purposes. That being so, the Learned Chairman has no power or authority to prevail over the views of the other esteemed member and take decisions unilaterally on behalf of the CoA or on behalf of the BCCI.”Given the divergence of views between Rai and Edulji, Choudhary said the only way forward was for the CoA to refer the issue to either the Supreme Court or the BCCI’s general body.Choudhary said there was no explanation in the CoA’s press release of how the inquiry committee was constituted and who chose its three members. Given that she disagreed with the need for an independent inquiry, Choudhary suggested Edulji could “hardly have had anything to do with” setting up the committee. This, Choudhary said, made the inquiry committee “further suspect”.Of the three members of the inquiry committee, two – Rakesh Sharma, a former judge of the Allahabad High Court, and PC Sharma, a former director of the Central Bureau of Investigation – are over 70 years old. This, Choudhary said, disqualified them from being part of such a committee, under the BCCI’s new constitution.”A committee stricken with such infirmities from its inception is hardly expected to dispense any real justice and is bound to be seen with great suspicion,” the email said. “The undersigned most humbly desires that a solution be immediately be found in view of the points noted above.”

He replaces Akila Dananjaya, who will miss the Test to undergo a bowling-action assessment in Brisbane

Madushka Balasuriya20-Nov-2018Uncapped offspinner Nishan Peiris has been drafted in to the Sri Lanka squad for the third Test against England, which is set to begin on November 23 in Colombo.The 21 year-old Peiris replaces Akila Dananjaya, who is set to undergo a bowling-action assessment at the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane on November 23.Dananjaya was reported for a suspect action following the first Test in Galle, and was given 14 days to respond to the charges, which allowed him to play the second Test in Pallekele last week.Peiris has picked up 38 wickets in 12 first-class matches at an average of 29.52, having made his debut for Badureliya Sports Club in 2016. He played for the Sri Lanka Board XI in both of England’s warm-up games before the Test series, picking up the wickets of Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali in the first match.

South Africa seamer is set to miss the first Test of the home series after sustaining a hairline fracture on his right thumb

Liam Brickhill16-Dec-2018South Africa seamer Vernon Philander is set to miss the first Test against Pakistan on Boxing Day after sustaining a hairline fracture on his right thumb. With Lungi Ngidi out of action until February with a knee injury, South Africa will go into the first of three Test matches with just three fit frontline quicks in Duanne Olivier, Kagiso Rabada and Dale Steyn.Philander had recently returned to action following rehabilitation for a recurring ankle injury, that had flared up during South Africa’s trip to Sri Lanka in July, and had played in one of the early season rounds of the domestic four-day competition, as well as turning out for Durban Heat in seven of their Mzansi Super League matches.”I really don’t even want to think about what would happen should there be another injury,” said South Africa coach Ottis Gibson.All three of the remaining fit quicks will be playing in Sunday’s Mzansi Super League final, but they will not be part of next week’s round of domestic four-day cricket.ALSO READ: Gibson not worried about Amla’s dip in form“If you look at where we are, Steyn, Rabada and Olivier become very important to us. We just want to manage them as best we can. We’ve seen how Dale’s been going. I don’t want to say we’ve seen a transformation because he’s always been a top player, but he’s back to full fitness and performing like the player of old. KG (Rabada) as always is very important to us.””We’ve looked at a few bowling options over the past 14 months and we’ve got what we feel now is a very good bowling attack and group,” Gibson said. “You’ve got Steyn, Rabada, Philander, Ngidi and Olivier, who’s been in-and-out, but always in our thinking. That’s the making of a good attack in any form of the game. My job now is to keep them fit and fresh for them to be at their peak at international level.”

Tim Paine denied a major difference of opinion with his bowlers and insisted there had been no falling-out in the camp following interviews by Nathan Lyon and bowling coach David Saker, which suggested tensions had emerged

Andrew McGlashan at the SCG04-Jan-20195:35

We are always clear on what we are trying to do – Paine

Tim Paine has denied a major difference of opinion with his bowlers over the tactics employed at the SCG, as he tried to put on a brave face after Australia had been taken for over 600. He did concede, however, that the huge workloads on his bowling attack had left them unable to repel India’s charge over 600.Paine insisted there had been no falling-out in the camp following interviews by Nathan Lyon – who told ABC Radio he “wasn’t happy” with the short-ball plan used in the first session of the match – and bowling coach David Saker after the first day’s play, which suggested tensions emerged as they watched their chance of levelling the series slip away.”I think the bowlers wanted one thing, Tim wanted one thing,” Saker told . “That’s not been the case as the general rule but when you were watching from the sideline you could see there was some confusion.”Last night we talked quite heavily about the day, more because we thought it was a really disappointing day and we just wanted to get our point across,” Saker added. “Some of it was quite aggressive and that’s not like me usually. I was quite animated, and I know I was not the only one. JL [Langer] wasn’t happy. The bowlers know that.””We always have discussion post game but in terms of being on a different page, no, I think we’re pretty clear on what we’re trying to do,” Paine responded. “Yesterday afternoon – and to be fair probably the first hour in the morning then the first hour after lunch – we got it slightly wrong. Sometimes you don’t quite execute and teams can get away from you and that’s what happened.”CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images

Australia’s last chance came and went when Paine reviewed for a caught behind against Rishabh Pant when he was on 8 – and India were 5 for 345 – but there was a flat line on Snicko. Australia did manage to extract Cheteshwar Pujara for 193, only to then chase leather as Pant and Ravindra Jadeja added 204 in 37.2 overs in a statement of authority and control.”Rishabh I’m pretty sure nicked one and it would have been 6 for 330 and it’s a different ball game,” Paine said. “They are just little things that make a huge difference and with cricket it’s the small things that add up. We have to stick together, you have days in Tests that don’t go your way and are difficult, the easy thing to do is to throw in the towel but we won’t be doing that. We’ll fight as hard as we can for the next three days.”Having spent more than 205 overs in the field in Melbourne and 167.2 in this innings in Sydney – with just three days between the matches – there were some dispirited and weary bowlers who were thrown the third new ball during the final session of the second day. It was to Josh Hazlewood’s credit that he kept running in, and could have had Jadeja lbw, but Mitchell Starc’s one over was all over the place and Pat Cummins was flogged for 16 by the batsman.”It’s not so much the number of Tests but the number of balls that this Indian batting line-up has made us bowl. That takes its toll,” Paine said. “We spoke about that right back in Adelaide, that’s something we wanted to do to their attack. We haven’t quite been able to do it and they’ve done it to ours. At the end of a long series, you can get some real rewards if you can make teams bowl lots and lots of overs. I think that’s what you saw late today. You have to tip your cap to India, they’ve worked extremely hard for three-and-a-half tests to get us where they got us today.”It is no secret that the Australians are disappointed at the two pitches which have been served up for them in Melbourne and Sydney. The lack of pace and bounce – although Sydney has had more of both than Melbourne – allied to the ongoing inability to find much swing with new or old ball has left the attack looking helpless at times, but Paine acknowledged it was a skills failing and not just the surface in front of them.”The pitch here and the pitch in Melbourne didn’t make us bowl as badly as we probably we have in this Test. We’ve just been outplayed,” he said. “Both teams have had similar conditions. But from me, who also loves watching Test cricket, I’m sure guys would like to see a bit more pace and bounce in Australia, something we’ve probably become accustomed to in Australia but it is what it is. We’ve just got to play better on whatever wickets are served up, wherever we are in the world.”

Chase saluted the efforts of his captain after helping to secure an emphatic victory over England in the first Test

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Jan-2019Roston Chase saluted the efforts of his captain and fellow Bajan Jason Holder, after helping to secure an emphatic victory over England in the first Test. Chase claimed a career-best eight-wicket haul as West Indies wrapped up a crushing win to go 1-0 up in the series, but said there was “no greater feeling” than seeing Holder score his landmark double-hundred on the third day.Holder became only the third man batting at No. 8 or lower to score a Test double-ton, as he and fellow centurion Shane Dowrich kept England toiling in the field, eventually setting them a notional target of 628, or more than six sessions to survive. Holder also claimed two wickets and three catches to be named Man of the Match in front of his home crowd.”Jason is a legend in my eyes, a long-time friend, I believe in him and he believes in himself on the field,” Chase said. “Could have been no greater feeling than to see him do that double-hundred yesterday. I thought he was going to give it away for a bit but he really showed the true character that he is, so I’m really happy for him and for my friend Shane Dowrich, who came through for the team.”While England made a decent start to their rearguard, with an opening stand of 85 between Keaton Jennings and Rory Burns, the floodgates opened late in the afternoon session. Having already bowled Burns, for 84, Chase removed Joe Root, Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali in quick succession, before rounding up the tail after tea.”Looking at the wicket, I always thought I would come into play in the second innings,” he said. “The quicks set it up for us in the first innings and Mushy [bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed] told me I’m going to have to bowl 25 overs in the second innings, to get my mind ready for it, so I was always prepared to do some work, to give the pacers a rest. I started to pick up some wickets and it went from there.”I just tried to be consistent and land it my areas, despite what the batsmen were doing, put some revs on the ball and vary my pace a bit.”With West Indies having cruised into a 1-0 lead in the three-match series, Chase said that it was important for the hosts not to get carried away with victory. The teams travel to Antigua next, with plenty of questions surrounding England, who had been viewed by many as favourites coming.”It gives us big confidence for the series, because England are a higher-ranked team than ourselves,” he said. “For us to carry on from here, don’t get too big headed, continue to do what we do well, the basics and focus on our processes, we should be all right.”

England bowled out for 113 as West Indies end series 2-2

The Report by Valkerie Baynes02-Mar-2019
Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentaryOshane Thomas tore England’s house down, leaving Chris Gayle to build his castle on the demolition site and enjoy the view – king of a drawn series as West Indies won the fifth and final ODI by seven wickets with 227 balls to spare in St Lucia.England’s total of 113 was their lowest in ODIs against West Indies and the defeat was their worst in terms of balls remaining in ODI history. So comprehensive was the defeat, West Indies wrapped things up before the the lunch break normally scheduled between innings.The match was astonishing but, in the context of a series in which every match has been full of record-breaking moments and breath-taking performances, it was another jaw-dropping installment of a contest which ended level at 2-2 after the third fixture, in Grenada, was a washout.Thomas took 5 for 21 in 5.1 overs – his maiden ODI five-for – to be named Man of the Match, claiming four of his wickets as England lost 5 for 2 in 21 balls to end an innings which lasted just 28.1 overs.Gayle looked like single-handedly overhauling the target, smashing 77 off just 27 deliveries, pummeling Chris Woakes and Mark Wood for a total of nine sixes and five fours along the way.Woakes looked to have Gayle out for 31 to a top edge caught at fine leg, but Gayle stood his ground and the delivery was ruled a no-ball by the third umpire for being too high, much to England’s indignation. Gayle proceeded to smack Woakes’s next delivery for a gigantic six which landed atop the pavilion roof.Gayle reached his half-century off just 19 balls, the fastest ODI fifty by a West Indies batsman, beating the 20-ball mark achieved twice by Darren Sammy and poetically broken by Gayle at the ground bearing Sammy’s name.By the time Gayle was out, bowled by a Wood offcutter, West Indies’ work was done at 93 for 2, the winning runs coming from a boundary by Shimron Hetmyer off Tom Curran’s first and only ball of the match, the chase lasting just 12.1 overs.Gayle, who announced before the first ODI in Barbados that he would retire from one-day cricket after this year’s World Cup, amassed 424 runs to be named Player of the Series, adding knocks of 162, 50 and 135 to his latest innings of 77 and hitting a total of 39 sixes to thrill all who watched him.It was the bowlers, however, who set things up. Jason Holder and Carlos Brathwaite added two wickets apiece to Thomas’s five-for to give West Indies their best imaginable chance of drawing the series.Sheldon Cottrell struck during his second over – the third of the match – with a full inswinger that found Jonny Bairstow’s inside edge and sent leg stump cartwheeling. Cottrell did not have to do much to play a part again when Joe Root sent a Holder delivery straight down his throat at third man.When Brathwaite had Alex Hales out nicking to wicketkeeper Shai Hope, England still looked to be in good hands with Ben Stokes and Eoin Morgan, whose century in the fourth ODI was overshadowed by Jos Buttler’s towering 150 off 77 balls, still at the crease. But, with Morgan, Stokes and Moeen Ali all falling cheaply, the tourists were in deep trouble, even with Buttler’s wicket intact.Woakes’ starring role with the bat in Antigua in 2017 was not to be reprised. He struggled to settle and skied the ball to Holder at midwicket for a duck, giving Thomas his third wicket for the match. Two balls later, Thomas removed danger man Buttler with a short, 142kph ball top-edged to Cottrell at deep fine leg for just 23.Holder had Adil Rashid out caught behind and Thomas’s ball to knock over Curran’s stumps and complete his five-for was a beauty.England’s innings could not have been more different to the run-fest of the fourth ODI in Grenada, where they scored 418 for 6. But West Indies showed what they were capable of, following their win in the second match with a gallant chase to reach a total of 389 in the third.

The Kings XI Punjab captain said his conscience was clear and that his character couldn’t be judged from his decision to run Jos Buttler out

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Apr-2019R Ashwin has defended his decision to run out Jos Buttler at the non-striker’s end during the IPL 2019 match between Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab, saying his ‘conscience was clear’.Opinion had been divided on whether Ashwin acted by the nebulous ‘Spirit of Cricket’ when he removed the bails before completing his bowling action, with Buttler having taken a few steps outside his crease. The mankading dismissal stood after being referred to the third umpire. Buttler gesticulated angrily while walking off, and said later that the law on this was ‘wishy washy’ and that he thought he shouldn’t have been given out.”There is nothing to defend,” Ashwin said, speaking to the TV channel. “As I said in the press conference that day, it happened instinctively, it was not a plan that ‘Buttler will go outside (the crease) and I have to get him’. Although he did do it four or five times. They didn’t want to take risks against my bowling that day, so what they were doing was pushing the ball on the legside and trying to take twos. I saw that he’d done it (backing up too far) four or five times, and it’s there in the rules that if the batsman goes out of his crease, you can run him out. It’s the batsman’s responsibility to stay behind the crease.ALSO READ: Jos Buttler queries ‘wishy-washy’ Law in wake of Mankading controversy“The most important thing for me is what is my conscience saying, and my conscience is clear,” Ashwin added. “Those who know me well know that I will never do something illegal. You can’t say that ‘Ashwin is a villain because of this’. Because this is not my character trait. You don’t tell someone who has hit a bowler for 30 runs in an over that he is not a good person. He will hit the bowler, that’s part of the game. And whatever rule is there in the game, I took advantage of that. I’m not denying I did that, but that’s the rule. If someone doesn’t like it, and you think it doesn’t fit into ‘sportsmanship’ in cricket, then you should remove the rule. As long as the rule is there… see our (bowlers’) foot can’t go beyond the line. Even the line belongs to the batsman. And in this rule, the only thing is the bat should stay in the crease. The batsman still gets two yards, he can be outside the crease, with his bat inside.”Ashwin, the Kings XI captain, ended the game with 1 for 20 in four overs as Royals collapsed in their chase to lose by 14 runs. Ashwin gave the analogy of a theft being wrong even if it was for one rupee, while also harking back to the Under-19 World Cup in 2016, in which Keemo Paul – currently part of Delhi Capitals – had used the tactic to win a crucial game for West Indies.”The only factor which sort of makes me uncomfortable is how the bowling community is being victimised,” Ashwin was quoted as saying by ‘s sister website , in further excerpts from his interview. “Why isn’t a bowler allowed to bowl a no-ball as a repeat offender? If I have to bowl the ball within the 22 yards, why is the batsman allowed to steal a few yards on that? I am sure there have been debates about how far he was down the ground. But, I think even one rupee is still a theft.ALSO READ: The spirit of cricket is not a substitute for the laws“Even if you look at what happened to Keemo Paul, he was victimised till the end of the Under-19 World Cup… I have to inform which side of the wicket I am bowling from, I have to bowl from behind the crease, the line belongs to the umpire, the line sometimes belongs to the batsman – the inner half of it, he can stand right-handed and hit me left-handed, he can make a switch hit and he can actually walk down the pitch and hit me too. What about the spirit of the game when it comes to bowler’s psyche?”The dismissal drew particularly sharp criticism in Buttler’s home country England, with James Anderson even putting a photo of Ashwin through a shredder as part of a talk-show programme. Ashwin, however, said the stunt hadn’t bothered him.”I was not all disturbed. Like I said, my conscience is very clear. So I decided that whether I get negative or positive opinions on this, I won’t let it affect me. Because it is their opinion, it doesn’t reflect my character or my game. Today Jimmy Anderson might feel that whatever I did was wrong, tomorrow he might end up doing it.”

Wessels smashed 11 sixes in 130 from 62 balls before Ferguson’s 103 not out eased side to 352 target

ECB Reporters Network06-May-2019Worcestershire 353 for 6 (Wessels 130, Ferguson 103*) beat Derbyshire 351 for 9 (Reece 128, Madsen 113) by four wicketsA brutal assault from Riki Wessels led an impressive run-chase that swept Worcestershire to a four-wicket victory over Derbyshire and a home quarter-final of the Royal London Cup.Wessels smashed 11 sixes in his 130 from 62 balls before Callum Ferguson’s perfectly paced unbeaten 103 from 95 balls eased his side to their 352 target.Luis Reece with 128 and Wayne Madsen 113 put on 222 to lift the Falcons to 351 for 9 but Wessels and Ferguson carried the visitors to 353 for 6 with 10 balls to spare.Pat Brown had Billy Godleman caught behind in the first over but that was the Rapids’ last success for 31 overs as Madsen and Reece took the bowling apart.Josh Tongue conceded 40 from his first four overs and was twice ramped for six by Madsen who became the first Derbyshire batsmen to score 3,000 List A runs for 14 years.Madsen also drove Brett D’Oliveira over the long-on boundary on his way to a 87th ball century – his sixth in List A cricket – which contained nine fours and four sixes while Reece reached his first 50-over hundred from 88 balls.Worcestershire had bowled out the opposition for under 150 in their previous two games but they failed to apply any pressure until the Falcons had passed 250.Madsen was caught behind driving at Ross Whiteley but the Falcons still had 400 in their sights until the innings stalled with the wickets of Tom Lace and Reece in consecutive overs.Reece drove Wayne Parnell to long on and after Matt Critchley was run out, it was left to Alex Hughes with 43 from 31 balls to get Derbyshire up to 350.It was still a tough chase but Wessels tore into the bowling, pulling Logan van Beek for three sixes on his way to a 31-ball 50.He then pulled and drove Mark Watt for three consecutive sixes in an over that cost 26 and dispatched Alex Hughes for two more before his sixth four took him to a 47 ball hundred.Tom Fell made 49 out of the opening stand of 152 before he played across Hughes and the Falcons finally got Wessels in the 23rd over when he pulled Matt Critchley to wide long on where van Beek took a running catch.But he had put the Rapids in a strong position and although Ferguson faced 34 balls before he hit a boundary, he reached 50 from 59 to bring the target down to 79 from 10 overs.He hit Watt for consecutive sixes and although Ben Cox was caught behind off Ravi Rampaul, Ferguson cruised to a 91-ball century that competed a highly impressive chase.