'I don't know why they gave a wicket like this' – Roshen Silva

The Sri Lanka batsman expressed surprise over the rank turner in Mirpur based on how his team had “very experienced bowlers” capable of exploiting it

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Feb-2018If one was looking to take a bit of pleasure in the Mirpur Test, it was either in seeing a parade of spinners turning the ball a mile or watching how Roshen Silva tackled those vicious deliveries. The 29-year old may only be playing his third Test match, but he didn’t seem too perturbed by the conditions. Playing the ball as late as he could, he has scored two high-quality half-centuries to put Sri Lanka 312 runs ahead.Roshen now has four successive scores of 50 or more in his first five innings at the Test level. Only three other players have managed such a sequence: Herbie Collins (1921), Sunil Gavaskar (1971) and Mohammad Azharuddin (1985). Roshen’s only blemish was a duck on Test debut last December. A veteran of 110 first-class matches, he struck his maiden Test century in Chittagong, but that effort came on a featherbed and as such might pale in comparison to his knocks in Dhaka.Roshen took a refreshingly realistic view of proceedings on the second day at the Shere Bangla National Stadium. He didn’t sugarcoat anything, saying it wasn’t easy out there but that a batsman has to be mentally prepared that there would be far more deliveries spitting off the edge of the bat than those hitting the middle.”Before going to bat, praying is the best thing,” Roshen said. “I am just joking. But if you get a good ball on this wicket, you can’t help it. You can lose one or two wickets suddenly. You must get runs from the loose balls. We play in similar kind of wickets back home. We just wanted to play as normally as possible. I am not going to say it is a good wicket, but mentally we knew it was going to turn.”Roshen said that he was lucky to survive the initial skirmishes. “Thank God I didn’t get out in the first few balls to Mustafizur Rahman. You must have seen it was really bad. I didn’t think that this would happen.”But once he got a hang of the pitch, like in the first innings, his ability to play the ball close to his body, and with soft hands, thwarted the Bangladesh spinners. He cut them away forcefully whenever they dropped it short and when they went too full – like Mehidy Hasan did – he struck fours thorough midwicket.Roshen was surprised to see Bangladesh lay out a rank turner against a side that has experienced spinners. Keeping in mind how the hosts batted in the first innings, he said Sri Lanka’s 312-run lead is enough to get them a win. “I thought it would be a good batting wicket. In the subcontinent, when Aussies or other teams come, we give this wicket but Sri Lanka has a good spin attack. I don’t know why they gave a wicket like this.”I think this [lead] is enough. All the batsmen from the Bangladesh team also know this wicket is not going to be easy. We have a much more experienced spin attack. They also have really good bowlers but Rangana Herath and Dilruwan Perera are very experienced bowlers. Rangana has 400-plus Test wickets; Dilruwan 700 first-class wickets. Suranga and Akila Dananjaya bowled well too. We are in a good position to win this match.”

Wyatt's 124 powers England in record chase

The opener’s blistering 64-ball 124 was instrumental in England gunning down a chase of 199 against India in Mumbai

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Mar-2018 by seven wicketsOpener Danielle Wyatt’s blistering 64-ball 124 was instrumental in England gunning down a record chase of 199 against India at the Brabourne Stadium. Wyatt was the cornerstone of a rousing chase that saw her bat till the end of the 17th over. England went over the line with seven wickets in hand and eight balls to spare.During the course of her knock, which included 15 fours and five sixes, Wyatt was involved in two sizeable stands. She first put 61 runs in 5.2 overs for the opening wicket with Bryony Smith. Then, she raised 96 runs for the second wicket with Tammy Beaumont, who slammed a 23-ball 35. Deepti Sharma dismissed Wyatt, but captain Heather Knight and Natalie Sciver knocked off the remaining runs with little difficulty. Four of India’s bowlers went for more than 10 runs an over.Danielle Wyatt’s second T20I hundred set England on course to breaking their own record•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

England’s bowlers couldn’t avoid a similar fate early on, as India’s batsmen went on the rampage after being sent in. India prospered from a 129-run stand for the opening wicket between Smriti Mandhana (who smashed the fastest T20I fifty by an India women’s player en route to her 76 off 40 balls) and Mithali Raj (53 off 43). Captain Harmanpreet Kaur then carried on the momentum with a 22-ball 30 even as India ransacked 45 runs off their last 19 balls.Pooja Vastrakar finished the innings with a flourish by slamming an unbeaten 10-ball 22. Tash Farrant was the pick of the England bowlers with 2 for 32. Sophie Ecclestone and Sciver claimed a wicket each.

Rain drama denies Uganda promotion; re-match against Jersey on Sunday

Had they been able to complete two more balls, Uganda would have clinched promotion to WCL Division Three later this year

The Report by Peter Della Penna in Kuala Lumpur05-May-2018No result
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsCoach Steve Tikolo and captain Roger Mukasa are stoic after rain denied Uganda victory•Peter Della Penna

The World Cricket League has already thrown up its fair share of drama in the first half of 2018, beginning with the miracle that was Nepal’s 51-run tenth-wicket stand on the last day of group play to beat Canada at Division Two in Namibia. On Saturday in suburban Kuala Lumpur, the heavens opened up for a different kind of miracle to save Jersey and deny Uganda promotion.Having already sat through a two-hour delay in the ninth over that reduced Uganda’s original target from 127 to 105 off 35 overs, Riazat Ali Shah had just clubbed the fourth ball of the 20th over through wide long-on for four to put Uganda on 55 for 3, four runs ahead of the DLS par score for 20 overs. But as the ball bounced over the ropes, another storm that had closed in on the ground in the previous over let loose with heavy rain, forcing the umpires to take the players off the field 80 minutes before the official cut-off time of 5:45 pm. Even though the shower lasted only 20 minutes, it was enough to render the bowlers’ run-ups unplayable.The umpires took a final inspection at 5:05 pm before waving Uganda captain Roger Mukasa and his Jersey counterpart Charles Perchard out to deliver the news. The pair shook hands, Mukasa waved his hands apart while Perchard gestured a throat slash. Both gestures were met with silence from their respective camps before a full handshake line commenced with Uganda frustrated and Jersey relieved. Under the tournament rules, the match will be replayed from ball one on Sunday, with the playoff round scrapped and turned into a reserve day as league matches take precedence in determining promotion and relegation.Had they been able to complete two more balls, Uganda would have clinched promotion to WCL Division Three later this year while Jersey would have stayed in Division Four. However, thanks to Denmark’s loss to Vanuatu at Kinrara Academy Oval, where play went on uninterrupted just 16 miles northwest of UKM-YSD Oval in Bangi, Jersey can sleep on the knowledge that a win over Uganda in Sunday’s replay could see them overtake Denmark on the net run rate tie-breaker for promotion. Uganda, however, remain firm favourites to move up regardless of a win or loss.The rain spoiled another brilliant performance from Mohammed Irfan, who took the new ball and ripped through Jersey’s top order to leave them 36 for 5 during an unbroken 10-over spell of spin after Uganda sent Jersey in at the toss. Whether it was defending on the front foot (Peter Gough), back foot (Nick Ferraby), charging down the pitch (Jonty Jenner) or sweeping from the crease (Harrison Carlyon), Irfan found all sorts of ways to defeat the Jersey batsmen to claim 4 for 26.First-drop allrounder Ben Stevens held firm in the face of Irfan’s assault, building a 92-ball 66 that prevented Jersey from crumbling altogether and helped drag the innings out to 42.2 overs. Irfan’s new-ball medium-pace partner Bilal Hassan then returned to rip through the tail as Jersey were dismissed for 126.

Moeen Ali shuts out the negativity despite Edinburgh dismissal

The allrounder says he would rather get out playing the way he wants rather than way other people tell him

George Dobell12-Jun-20180:51

England better for Scotland defeat – Morgan

Moeen Ali has defended the choice of stroke that led to his dismissal in Edinburgh and vowed not to change the way he plays.Moeen appeared to have taken England to the brink of victory over Scotland with a fluent innings of 46 when, with 25 more required from the final 28 deliveries of the match, he tried to thrash a six and was caught on the long-on boundary; the eighth wicket to fall. It seemed an unnecessary risk from England’s last front-line batsman.But Moeen insisted it was the right choice of stroke and he wasn’t going to allow “negativity” to change the way he plays.”The ball was there to hit and I just mis-hit it,” Moeen said. “I’d hit two or three for six. When they are going for six and you’re playing well, everyone is trying to big you up. Mis-hit one, get out and all the negative people come out.”I could have knocked it for one, but then Liam Plunkett would have been on strike and could have been out. Then Adil Rashid could have been out. And then you’re in the same position.”From my point of view, it’s best not to have any sort of doubt. I have to stay true to myself; don’t doubt myself.”When I went out of the Test side, I sat down and realised that you have to be true to yourself. I’d rather get dropped playing the way I want to play rather than playing the way people want me to play. So that’s what I’m going to do.”I’m going to stay true to myself and not worry about what people say. There is a lot of negativity around. Scotland played really well, we couldn’t stop them from scoring runs and they made it really hard for us and they deserved to win.”Moeen also insisted he was growing into the ‘finisher’ role that and it is true that, a little after he came to the crease with the score on 276 for 7, England were in deep trouble. A stand of 71 with Plunkett appeared to have put England back on course”We were struggling big time but Liam and myself got us back in the game,” he said. “I feel good in my game: batting and bowling. I want to try to stick to my mindset and not let anyone change that.”If there was any lesson from the Edinburgh experience it was, perhaps, that England may not have the strength in depth they thought. Certainly Ben Stokes, who would have played in place of Alex Hales, and Chris Woakes, who would have played in front of David Willey, were sorely missed.Without a frontline sixth bowler – England did have the option to try Joe Root in Scotland, but were persuaded not to bowl him by the short boundaries – they had no insurance option should one of the main bowlers have an off day. As it transpired, pretty much all five of them did. They may also have missed Woakes’ calm head in the run-chase.”I always feel you’re better off having six bowlers in one-day cricket,” Moeen said. “The best thing is that Stokesy bats in your top six. If you can have two guys in the top six who bowl, I think you’re sitting pretty with the balance of the team.””It was a very good game in the end. They scored a lot of runs that we had to try to chase. It was a small ground and we should have chased them. Good for Scotland, bad for us.”

Sri Lanka's Vandersay sent home from the West Indies

The 28-year old Sri Lankan legspinner has been punished for conduct that was in breach of his player contract

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Jun-2018Sri Lanka have sent legspinner Jeffrey Vandersay back home from the tour of West Indies owing to conduct that was in breach of his player contract. A press release from the board said the team management had reported an “incident” following which this decision was taken.Sri Lanka have had a difficult time in the Caribbean. They lost the first Test by a huge margin, became the subject of a ball-tampering controversy in the second, and the penalties handed out mean they won’t have the services of their captain Dinesh Chandimal in the third.Chandimal along with the coach Chandika Hathurusingha and manager Asanka Gurusinha are awaiting sanctions on another charge, relating to their role in holding up play for two hours on the third day in St Lucia in protest against the umpire’s suspicions that they had altered the condition of the ball.

Wright on song again as Sussex strengthen grip

Sussex pulled off a confident win at the Ageas Bowl to extend their unbeaten record at the top of South Group

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jul-2018
ScorecardLuke Wright scored his second fifty in a week to keep up Sussex’s 100 per cent win record in the Vitality Blast as they thrashed Hampshire by eight wickets.Opener Wright never looked in any trouble, and refused to give his opponents a sniff, as he struck 68 off 53 balls as he put on 96 with Laurie Evans, who also scored a brilliant half century.Having already beaten Essex and Glamorgan in the opening two rounds, Sussex looked confident chasing 158.Phil Salt and Wright attacked the task with a mixture of quick running and timely boundaries.

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Salt was deceived by a brilliantly disguised slower ball from Gareth Berg but the let up didn’t come for the home bowlers, with 53 scored off the powerplay.Wright, on the back of an 88 against Glamorgan, arrowed a pair of impeccable cover drives off Kyle Abbott, although was involved in a controversial moment when Mujeeb Ur Raham thought he had bowled him but after a long delay was given a reprieve.The former England international reached his 35th format fifty off 40-balls, before he found Chris Wood on the long-on boundary.Evans, who collected a classy 55 not out, guided Sussex home with 10 balls to spare to leave Hampshire winless from their opening two Vitality Blast fixtures.Earlier, Hampshire were stuck in by Sussex skipper Wright on a wicket that never really came onto the batsmen.James Vince promoted himself back up to open, alongside Colin Munro, and took the attack to the Sussex bowlers – drilling Jofra Archer and David Wiese for three clean fours in each of their opening two overs.The Hampshire captain played one shot too many in his 16-ball 30, when his aggressive drive swirled high to cover.Munro attempted to keep the high run-rate going as he slapped a straight drive for six, to take the hosts to 59 for one at the end of the powerplay.But the runs and boundaries dried up, with 15 balls without the ball reaching the ropes, as Sam Northeast joined Munro.The former Kent batsman grew in confidence by taking Wiese for three successive fours but like Vince overhit one extra ball – as he found Archer at long off off Danny Briggs’ bowling.Rilee Rossouw smashed a six down the ground but was caught on the midwicket boundary attempting a slog sweep next ball.Briggs then claimed his third scalp, Munro caught at long off for a scrappy 30, as he ended with figures of three for 29, spoiled somewhat by a six and four from his final over.The backend of the Hampshire innings proved a battle against an experienced and wily Sussex attack with only 38 coming from the last five overs – despite Tom Alsop’s battling unbeaten 35.The main menace was Archer, who ended with figures of three for 26, with a yorker bowling Berg and a square leg catch getting rid of Lewis McManus.

Lightning threat cuts short Sussex's thunderous batting

Aaron Finch missed the match and will be absent for the next two having returned to Australia due to a family bereavement

ECB Reporters Network09-Aug-2018
ScorecardBad weather, and ultimately a threat of lightning in late evening, meant that both Surrey and Sussex had to be content with a No Result point in the Vitality Blast south group game at the Kia Oval.Sussex did manage to score an impressive 159 for 2 from 13 overs, in a game originally shortened to 15 overs per side following afternoon rain. But then more rain arrived just before 9pm, plus the warning of electrical activity in the south London area, and the match was abandoned.Luke Wright had hit a 30-ball 55, and Sussex’s score was further boosted by Laurie Evans’ 48 off 24 balls with four sixes and two fours, plus a quickfire 20 from 11 balls by Delray Rawlins, also including two sixes.Wright and Phil Salt put on a rapid 71 in 5.2 overs for Sussex’s first wicket after they had been put in, and Salt’s departure for 33 off 14 balls, caught and bowled by Rikki Clarke from a skier, was perhaps an unlucky dismissal.Salt, having hit the final ball of Jade Dernbach’s opening over for six and also plundered four fours, hoisted Clarke’s first ball – a waist-high full toss at the start of the sixth over – over long leg for another six. But it was not called a no ball, when it might easily have been, and Salt fell to the very next ball. If Clarke had been no-balled for an unfair delivery, then Salt would have had a free hit.Wright fell to the second ball of the 10th over, bowled swinging at Clarke after a typically free-wheeling innings that featured eight fours and a six driven against Tom Curran over long off.The 11th over, bowled by Mat Pillans, cost 19 as a high full toss did give Evans the chance of a free hit – which he duly deposited high over mid wicket for six – while a length ball was swung high over long on for another maximum by left-hander Rawlins.Evans, who had warmed up by pulling Gareth Batty’s off spin for six, then tucked into Curran as he twice drove the seamer for successive sixes into the crowd, first over long off and then high over long on’s head. Curran’s two overs were taken for 37 runs.A rain shower cut short Sussex’s innings two overs early, but Evans and Rawlins had already added an unbeaten 54 in a mere 3.4 overs to put the visitors into a powerful position.Earlier the day-long rain, which had washed out the opening day of England’s second Test against India across the Thames at Lord’s, finally relented around 6pm – which allowed the Oval groundstaff to mop up and for the umpires, Paul Pollard and Tim Robinson, to inspect at 7pm and sanction a start at 7.45pm.Surrey were missing explosive opener Aaron Finch, who has had to return home to Australia following a family bereavement. The world’s No 1 ranked T20 batsman will also miss Surrey’s next two South Group games, the away fixtures at Somerset at Taunton tomorrow and against Gloucestershire at Bristol on Sunday, but is expected to return in time for Surrey’s last two matches – at home to Hampshire next Wednesday (August 15) and away against Glamorgan at Cardiff two evenings later.

Allen inflicts sixth straight loss for Tridents

Batsman rescues floundering and hits 17 off the final over as St Kitts & Nevis Patriots clinch last-over thriller

The Report by Peter Della Penna05-Sep-2018Randy Brooks – CPL T20 / Getty

A sparkling half-century by Fabian Allen, in his maiden CPL innings, salvaged a floundering St Kitts and Nevis Patriots chase and took them to victory by two wickets over Barbados Tridents at Warner Park on Tuesday night. Allen made an unbeaten 64 off 34 balls to rescue the Patriots from 92 for 6, including 17 runs off the final over, to pull his team through with two balls to spare.The win puts Patriots temporarily in first place, though their regular season is now finished. Trinbago Knight Riders and Guyana Amazon Warriors are one point behind, but both have three league fixtures remaining, two of which are against each other.Shamsi leaves his imprintPatriots’ overseas batsman Tom Cooper had a miserable time at CPL 2018. His six innings yielded just 45, and the team management ran out of patience. When he had to head home for the start of Australia’s domestic season, the franchise sought a replacement and picked South Africa left-arm wristspinner Tabraiz Shamsi, who was actually filling the void left by Nepal legspinner Sandeep Lamichhane. In his first outing, Shamsi, who is coming off back spasms, suffered during the tour of India with the South Africa A team, left his imprint.Coming on at the end of the Powerplay, Shamsi struck with just his second ball, trapping Dwayne Smith lbw to end a 45-run opening stand. Smith’s opening partner Sunny Sohal fell leg before as well in the next over to Mahmudullah’s offspin, pinned on the back foot after shuffling across his crease too far to flick. A poor call for a run to backward point resulted Hashim Amla’s run out to make it 66 for 3 at the halfway mark. When Shai Hope was out slogging to mid-off, Shamsi, who did him in with flight, reinforced the advantage.Shamsi didn’t concede a single boundary in his spell of 4-0-16-2. He could have had a third wicket when he beat Roston Chase sweeping, just as he had Smith earlier in the night. Umpire Nigel Duguid denied a strong lbw shout, though the ball had pitched in line with leg stump and would have gone on to hit it. On 5 then, Chase proceeded to make the most of the let-off, carving an unbeaten 38 off 28, including partnerships of 48 with Nicholas Pooran, and an unbroken 53 with Jason Holder to take the Tridents to a competitive total.Mo wickets at the topMohammad Irfan continued to cement his status as the standout bowler of the last two weeks of CPL 2018 with another brilliant opening spell. The tall fast bowler from Pakistan struck thrice in the Powerplay to rein in a hot Patriots start in pursuit of 168.Evin Lewis was beaten for pace in the fourth, offering a simple catch to midwicket while attempting a pull. Irfan struck again two balls later, when he got one to keep a touch low and bowled Rassie van der Dussen. Chris Gayle fell in near identical circumstances to Lewis, in the final ball of the Powerplay by sending a catch to mid-on that reducing Patriots to 52 for 3. Three more wickets had fallen by the 12th over, and Patriots were in disarray, still 77 runs adrift of the target, before Allen saved the day.Fab finishAllen’s biggest claim to fame in the CPL prior to Tuesday night was a one-handed diving catch at the point boundary in Florida last year, one that earned him the top spot on ESPN Sportscenter’s Top 10 Plays.Allen had not batted in his two other CPL outings previously, but had proven earlier in the summer that he was no slouch, striking an unbeaten 75 for West Indies B against Edmonton Royals in the Global T20 Canada. He rescued the Patriots on this occasion with the bat in stunning fashion. With 49 needed off the last five overs, Allen scored the bulk of the 23 runs Patriots made across the next two overs to bring the equation down to a very manageable 26 off 18.But Ben Cutting’s silly swipe to be bowled by Holder off the second ball of the 18th turned things around. The result was Allen being starved of the strike over the rest of the 18th and 19th, as he didn’t face another ball until the start of the final over. But Holder may have possibly miscalculated his bowling options, leaving 20-year-old debutant Dominic Drakes to bowl the final six.Allen pounced on two full deliveries, driving a pair of straight sixes to start the over, then pulled a flat four just short of the midwicket rope to level the scores, before a scampered leg bye secured victory.

No Dhoni for Jharkhand in Vijay Hazare knockouts

India’s chief selector MSK Prasad had earlier stated that Dhoni would appear for Jharkhand in the quarter-finals, much like Rohit Sharma for Mumbai

Saurabh Somani13-Oct-2018MS Dhoni will not take part in Jharkhand’s knockout matches for the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018-19.Jharkhand will play their quarter-final against Maharashtra at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Monday, and Dhoni wasn’t present at the first nets the team had, at the adjoining NCA ground, on Saturday. Team members that ESPNcricinfo spoke to on Saturday said they weren’t expecting Dhoni to join the squad.Jharkhand coach Rajiv Kumar said that he had not received any official word about Dhoni joining, but in his opinion, Dhoni wouldn’t have wanted to disturb the team’s combination, especially since he would have been able to play only one match.”He has to go to Hyderabad on October 16 to report for the ODI series,” Kumar said. “Maybe he will come for a day, I don’t know yet what his plan is, but so far, he is not coming. But it may be possible. You know he takes his own decisions. He is saying the boys are doing well, so there is no point coming for just one game and taking somebody’s place.”Jharkhand topped Group C with 32 points from nine matches, to qualify.The semi-finals are scheduled for October 17 and 18, meaning Dhoni would not have been able to take part even if Jharkhand win their match against Maharashtra.It is understood that Dhoni linking up with the Jharkhand team in Chennai was spoken of before he left for the Asia Cup. The Asia Cup concluded on September 28, with India beating Bangladesh in the final. Jharkhand had four league games remaining in Group C after that, with the first one on October 1. They won three of the games, with one abandoned without a ball bowled. Dhoni, however, eventually didn’t join the team.At the press conference after the Indian ODI side had been announced, chief selector MSK Prasad had said that Dhoni would be playing in the Vijay Hazare quarter-final.Dhoni’s decision is rendered more curious given his recent struggles in limited-overs cricket, and questions beginning to be asked about whether he is the right man to be the first-choice wicketkeeper in the 2019 World Cup. In the Asia Cup, he batted four times, scoring 77 runs with an average of 19.25 and a strike rate of 62.09. Overall in 2018, he has batted 10 times in 15 matches, for an average of 28.12 and a strike rate of 67.36. Dhoni’s last first-class match was in the Irani Trophy over a decade ago, while his last List-A game for Jharkhand was in the 2017-18 Vijay Hazare Trophy semi-final against Bengal.However, while Dhoni has decided to stay away, Rohit Sharma will be part of the Mumbai XI that takes on Bihar in the first quarter-final on Sunday. Rohit, who also didn’t join the Mumbai squad during the league stages, has flown down to be part of the first knockout match. A Mumbai team spokesperson confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that if the Indian ODI team had asked players to report by October 16, Rohit would also miss any subsequent knockout matches.

Chris Wilkins, the original pinch-hitter, dies aged 74

Wilkins, who scored 10,966 first-class runs including 18 centuries, had been in deteriorating health for some time

Liam Brickhill02-Oct-2018Chris Wilkins, the former South African provincial and county opening batsman, has died at the age of 74. Cricket South Africa announced Wilkins’ death “with shock and sadness” on Tuesday morning.An aggressive opening batsman who could also bowl nippy medium pace, Wilkins represented Border, Eastern Province and Natal in a career that spanned nearly 20 years. Wilkins settled in KwaZulu-Natal after his retirement, becoming a farmer in the Harding district. He had been in deteriorating health for some time.During his playing days, Wilkins also had a stint with Derbyshire in the County Championship, and in all scored 10,966 first-class runs, including 18 centuries, and took 142 wickets. He was also an excellent fielder, often keeping wicket when he wasn’t bowling, or standing at slip.It was, however, as a limited-overs cricketer that he made his biggest impact during his time with Eastern Province. His ability to hit the fastest of bowlers over mid-on and mid-off made him a feared competitor.In an interview with The Cricket Monthly in 2017, legendary South African fast bowler Garth Le Roux made special mention of Wilkins’ positively modern approach to batting.”One or two batsmen hit me back over my head for six,” he said. “Viv Richards did it once or twice, but the player who tried it most often was Chris Wilkins. He was particularly good at it. He’d move right back on his stumps and hit straight. This also gave him more time to hook and pull anything a bit short. He was the most annoying batsman to bowl at.”On Twitter, former South Africa spinner Pat Symcox commented: “Sad to hear of the passing of possibly one of South Africa’s most attacking batsmen ever. An opening bowler’s nightmare. Chris Wilkins was a legend.”Wilkins transferred his pinch-hitting skills to first-class cricket, forming a formidable opening partnership for Eastern Province with Simon Bezuidenhout. On one occasion Wilkins scored a century in just over an hour and the pair managed to secure a bonus batting point before the lunch interval. With Currie Cup bonus batting points allocated for surpassing set team totals, this would have meant that the pair must have scored at least 175.”On behalf of the CSA Family I extend our deepest condolences to his family, his friends and his many cricketing colleagues,” CSA Chief Executive Thabang Moroe said.

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