Like his German composer namesake, Neil Wagner does not mind a hint of the dramatic. Where New Zealand have gained a reputation for even temper and a lack of on field histrionics, Wagner’s Afrikaner blood gets up at times, as shown by an on-field posture that can look more Dale Steyn than Tim Southee.

‘Olden days’ WACA pitch in prospect

With as few as two Test matches left for the WACA Ground to host before major international cricket moves to the drop-in pitches of the nascent Burswood Stadium, the curator Matthew Page is as intent on keeping things as retro as possible.
“With us being the WACA, it’s all about trying to replicate the olden days and provide a traditional WACA wicket,” Page said. “It goes back to the 70s, that sort of thing, so for us every wicket we do we’re trying to replicate those conditions.”
Page replaced Cameron Sutherland only a matter of weeks before the Ashes Test two years ago, and his knowledge of the surface has grown since, including the constant historical comparisons.
“They changed the clay back to what it originally was about six or seven years ago, and I guess the pace and the bounce has returned since then,” he said. “We’re always compared with the olden days. For us, it’s about trying to get it as close as we can.”

Given New Zealand’s poorly display in Brisbane, where they were bullied by an Australia side as aggressive in deed as they are infamous for being in word, Wagner’s occasionally fiery countenance may be a useful tonic for Brendon McCullum’s side as they seek to fight their way out of the hole they find themselves in.Wagner certainly likes the look of the WACA, a place at which he has never bowled but can vividly recall the exploits of many a fast bowler at the ground. Plans to shift major international matches to the Burswood Stadium and a drop-in pitch mean all pacemen are running out of chances.”I’d love to play Australia, I’d love to get that chance,” Wagner said. “I had a training session yesterday at the Melville club and they told me it was the last two Tests at the WACA or something like that because they’re talking about a different ground. That’s a bit of a shame because it’s quite a nice ground, I loved watching it growing up, a lot of history over there and I’d love to play there. It’s pretty awesome, a very special place for fast bowlers.”Just watching cricket here over the years, I think overseas teams have come here and bowled a bit too short. They get carried away with the bounce and the pace sometimes. Sometimes you’ve got to bowl a touch fuller length, sort of top of the stumps. For us I think the thing is to not get carried away with it. Hit consistent areas and ask good questions for longer periods of time and things will happen.”Even though Southee bowled soundly in the morning at nets to prove his fitness after suffering from an irritated disc in his back at the Gabba, Wagner is still a chance to play. The New Zealand coach Mike Hesson has forecast a five-man bowling attack for the WACA Ground with the spinner Mark Craig batting at No. 7, meaning the pace options for McCullum will be many and varied. New Zealand are also sustained by the knowledge they are chronically slow starters to Test series, but invariably improve as they go on.”As a bowling unit we’ve always complemented each other quite well over past times and our success over the past two years or so is we’ve bowled in partnerships and other guys have stepped up too,” Wagner said. “I think that has made Tim and Trent bowl really well in the past. It was just a little bit inconsistency and a bit of a tough start.”We have had that in the past as well, our first Test we haven’t always started that well and we’ve picked it up as the series has gone on. Lucky for us it’s a three-match series, there’s a lot more cricket left to be played and hopefully we can set it back from ball one in this next Test.”Overall the team will be better for that hit [in Brisbane], being out in the heat and humidity and bouncy wickets, just adapting to everything, it’s now for us to go out and set it right in the second Test from day one.”One man Wagner may be asked to confront should he get the nod to play, is David Warner, the dominant batting force of the Gabba Test and now one of only three batsman ever to have thrice scored a hundred in each innings of a Test match. That sort of scoring can force opposition teams to re-think their strategies, but Wagner said it was simply a matter of being tighter for longer.”I think we still stick to our guns and our plans. If we execute it better for longer periods of time, I’m sure we’ll get more rewards,” he said. “I think our attack is up there with the best in the world. When Tim, Trent and Dougy and the rest of them all get it right – they’re pretty good bowlers. If we can be more consistent for long periods of time, we’ll definitely show that. The boys are up for the task and the challenge in this Test.”Richard Wagner’s operatic Ring Cycle is a 15-hour affair. Success for Wagner and New Zealand this week will require a similarly sustained effort.

He might not be a sure starter in India’s limited-overs XIs nowadays, but Ajinkya Rahane has been given a Grade A BCCI central contract, which carries a retainer of Rs 1 crore

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Nov-2015

He might not be a sure starter in India’s limited-overs XIs nowadays, but Ajinkya Rahane has been given a Grade A BCCI central contract. It is an elite group: only four players have made it to Grade A, others being Test captain Virat Kohli, limited-overs captain MS Dhoni and offspinner R Ashwin.Rahane was the captain when India went to Zimbabwe without Dhoni and Kohli. Rahane had an excellent year with runs in Australia, both in Tests and at the World Cup, to go with his previous year where he scored runs in South Africa and England. Grade A carried a Rs 1 crore retainer.The BCCI’s contract list for 2015-16

Men’s players
Grade A (Rs 1 crore): MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, R Ashwin, Ajinkya Rahane
In: Ajinkya Rahane
Out: Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suresh Raina
Grade B (Rs 50 lakh): Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Rohit Sharma, M Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Mohammed Shami
In: Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suresh Raina
Out: Ravindra Jadeja, Pragyan Ojha
Grade C (Rs 25 lakh): Amit Mishra, Axar Patel, Stuart Binny, Wriddhiman Saha, Mohit Sharma, Varun Aaron, Karn Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, KL Rahul, Dhawal Kulkarni, Harbhajan Singh, S Aravind
In: Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh, S Aravind
Out: Pankaj Singh, Vinay Kumar, Manoj Tiwary, Parvez Rasool, Robin Uthappa, Sanju Samson, Kuldeep Yadav
Women’s players
Grade A (Rs 15 lakh): Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, Harmanpreet Kaur, Thirush Kamini
Grade B (Rs 10 lakh): Smriti Mandhana, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav, Ekta Bisht, Veda Krishnamurthy, Niranjana Nagarajan, Poonam Raut

Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who was India’s Player of the Series in England in 2014, has been relegated to Grade B as has Suresh Raina. Bhuvneshwar hasn’t been able to replicate his form from the previous year after his return from injury. Since he was given a Grade A contract last year, Raina has made another unsuccessful attempt at a Test comeback, and has had an average time in the ODIs.Test openers M Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan, batsmen Cheteshwar Pujara, Rohit Sharma and Ambati Rayudu, and fast bowlers Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Shami retained their Grade B contracts, which carry a Rs 50 lakh retainer.Ravindra Jadeja, who has made a successful comeback to Tests with the Man of the Match award in Mohali, went down from Grade B to Grade C. After a shoulder injury, he had an indifferent time in international cricket, which led to his being dropped from all formats after the ODIs in Bangladesh in June. Another Grade B contract holder, Pragyan Ojha, whose action came under the spotlight before he came back to domestic cricket with corrections, was not given any contract.The total number of contracts went down from 32 to 26. Pankaj Singh, Vinay Kumar, Manoj Tiwary, Parvez Rasool, Robin Uthappa, Sanju Samson and Kuldeep Yadav lost their contracts. Harbhajan Singh and S Aravind were given Grade C contracts, whose retainer is Rs 25 lakh. Naman Ojha, who made his test debut in Sri Lanka, missed out on a contract as well.Women cricketers were awarded contracts for the first time, with Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, Harmanpreet Kaur and Thirush Kamini bracketed in Grade A that carries a retainer of Rs 15 lakh. Seven other players were handed Grade B contracts of Rs 10 lakh each.Last year the BCCI had not announced the various retainer fees for the various grades because there had not been an AGM owing to the impasse over IPL corruption issues. The retainer fees have not gone up from what they were in 2013.

David Balcombe, the Surrey and former Hampshire pace bowler, has retired from professional cricket to take up a full-time role with the Kevin Pietersen foundation

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Feb-2016David Balcombe, the Surrey and former Hampshire pace bowler, has retired from professional cricket to take up a full-time role with the Kevin Pietersen Foundation.Balcombe, 31, joined Surrey from Hampshire in 2015. Although he did not make a first-team appearance during the season, Balcombe was preparing for the new summer before making his decision.”To play professional cricket was a dream come true and I have thoroughly enjoyed every minute,” Balcombe said. “Hampshire gave me my first opportunity in the professional game and it is the club I will always hold close to my heart.”I have made lifelong friends, experienced some wonderful career moments and it provided me with 10 seasons of immense enjoyment.”Balcombe made his first-class debut for Durham UCCE against Somerset in 2005 – and he made special mention of the role Graeme Fowler, the former head coach at the university, played for his early mentoring role – before his County Championship debut came in 2007 for Hampshire against Kent.Overall, Balcombe took 196 first-class wickets at 32.83 with a career-best 8 for 71 against Gloucestershire in 2012. He enjoyed a productive two-year period which began with a loan spell for Kent in 2011 where he claimed 33 wickets at 17.81 before following that in 2012 with 64 first-class wickets at 26.10 back with Hampshire.”I will forever remain indebted to Kent for the tremendous support I received when I went on loan to them for a short time,” he said. “They helped me immensely with my cricket and also as an individual. Every time I think of the St Lawrence Ground it will be with a huge smile.”As a boy I had always dreamed of playing for Surrey, my home county. When, in 2015, I was given the chance to go back to where I began my cricket career it was too big an opportunity to turn down.”I am very grateful to Surrey for all their support this year and for their help and understanding in my decision to retire.”

So after 10 yrs & 11 seasons of professional cricket its time to call time. Thank you for all the wonderful memories pic.twitter.com/ghIyGrIsZy

— David Balcombe (@DavidBalcombe1) February 16, 2016

Usman Khawaja has had two unsuccessful shots at Test cricket, and despite making the squad for the upcoming New Zealand matches, he knows he may not get a fourth chance

Brydon Coverdale in Brisbane04-Nov-20151:56

‘Disappointed I wasn’t picked for the World Cup’ – Khawaja

In his first incarnation as a Test cricketer, Usman Khawaja played six Tests, scored just one half-century, and was dropped. In his second coming, Khawaja played three Tests, made one half-century, and was dropped. In his third crack at Test cricket … who knows? The rest of that story is yet to be written. But Khawaja is 28, and knows there may not be a fourth chance.He is philosophical about his cricket – “Just because I’ve been picked a third time doesn’t mean I am somehow going to be Don Bradman” – but determined to give himself the best chance of succeeding at Test level. His desire for self-improvement led him to move from New South Wales to Queensland in 2012, a change that he believes has benefited his game greatly.Part of the reason for his move was a desire to work under the coach Darren Lehmann, who was then in charge of the Bulls and is now the national coach. Khawaja has certainly thrived at the Gabba, where he scored his maiden first-class century for New South Wales and where he now averages 67.46 in first-class cricket.”I have improved a lot since I’ve moved up to Queensland,” Khawaja said. “Boof was up here, I wanted a fresh start and I have loved every bit of Queensland. I have trained my backside off every time I have come here trying to improve as a cricketer. But every game is a new game. There is nothing set in stone, there is nothing to say that I will come here and blast 400, I have to do a lot of hard work.”My game always suited the Gabba. It’s a ground where you get a lot of rewards as a batsman. It’s tough work, it swings around, but at the same time it comes onto the bat really nicely. It’s like the WACA, if you get yourself in, you can really go on with it and make a big one. You have to do the hard work early on to get the rewards later on.”Khawaja is one of those fringe Test players for whom big things were expected due to the class of his strokeplay, but in nine Tests he has not managed a score greater than 65. He is realistic about the fact that his future now lies in his own hands, and his team-mates also hope that he can show at Test level the kind of skill that he has displayed for Queensland and New South Wales.”It’s time for him to step up and show what he really can do and what he’s capable of because we know what he’s capable of,” David Warner said. “But it’s about him now on this stage, the different class of Test cricket to show what he is capable of and I think he’s definitely got the game to do it. He’s got the patience. He leaves very well outside off and when he gets in he does cash in.”Khawaja’s first foray into Test cricket ended as the result of a lean home series against New Zealand, the last time the two teams met in 2011. Then in 2013, he missed out on a recall during the tour of India when he was one of the players suspended over the homework incident – which he plainly states he believes was unfair – and had a short stint in the side during the Ashes only to be cut again.With Steven Smith moving down to No.4, Khawaja will be Australia’s No.3 during this series, a position he has occupied in the Test side before. And while the squad has so far been chosen for at least the first two Tests against New Zealand in Brisbane and Perth, Khawaja has no idea how long he will be given to prove himself.”It’s hard to say, you don’t know what the selectors are thinking, that’s why you don’t want to leave it in the selectors hands, you want to go out and perform straight away,” Khawaja said. “No one had a magic eight ball on how I will go. Whether I’m playing club cricket, first-class cricket or Test cricket, there’s always pressure to perform. It’s sport and that’s what you love about it.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsIt took until the final day of the final Test but Pakistan at last managed a reprise of England’s 2012 nightmare against spin. They needed less than half of the overs available to polish off victory in Sharjah, Yasir Shah taking the first and last wickets to fall as Pakistan skipped home by a 127-run margin for a 2-0 win that will lift them to No. 2 in the ICC Test rankings.Alastair Cook resisted almost until the end, ninth man out for 63, but his team had been cut adrift during a dizzying first hour when they lost 4 for 11 in five overs. England were competitive for all but two sessions in the series but on both occasions, here and in Dubai, Pakistan were ruthless enough to seize the prize.The conditions were perhaps not as treacherous as England’s batsmen made them look but Yasir and Zulfiqar Babar did not need encouragement to prey on the slightest hesitation or indecision. They collected six of the eight remaining wickets, evoking the damage inflicted by Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman last time around, not to mention their own exploits against Australia and New Zealand 12 months ago.With Shoaib Malik completing his final Test appearance by taking a seven-wicket haul, it meant Pakistan’s spinners had collected 9 for 101 in England’s second innings. That was nearly half as many wickets as England’s trio of Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid and Samit Patel managed in the entire series. With 15 from just two Tests, Yasir reigned supreme.Defeat by a two-Test margin means England will slip to No. 6 in the rankings, another UAE comedown after the euphoria of Ashes victory during the summer, though they were handicapped in their efforts to level the series by the injury to Ben Stokes on the first day. He came out to bat at No. 10 in the second innings, despite the forlorn match situation and a strapped-up shoulder, before a leg-side stumping off Yasir ended England’s pain.Pakistan’s legspinner had trained with Shane Warne before the match and this was a final-day dismantling of which the Australian would have been proud. Joe Root, the No. 1-ranked batsman recently referred to by a team-mate as one of the best players of spin in the world, was lbw to Yasir’s fourth ball of the morning, back when he should have been forward, and it caused a detonation as brutally effective as pulling the pin from a grenade.Yasir Shah removed Joe Root in his first over and finished with 4 for 44•Getty Images

England have shown plenty of guts against Pakistan this time around but here they were swiftly disembowelled. A target of 284 was well beyond anything they had previously managed in Asia but their displays of resilience on tour had encouraged some to think they might get close.That hope disappeared quicker than a lizard darting under a rock. Root was pinned in front of leg stump by a delivery that kept low in the second over of the day, plumb enough not to bother with a review, and James Taylor only lasted long enough to bring up England’s 50 before he was drawn fatally forward by a flighted delivery from Babar that turned to kiss the edged of a slightly crooked bat and end up at slip.Pakistan had wasted their reviews on the previous day but they need not have worried. Before their final innings in Sharjah, England had been on the receiving end of just three lbw decisions, but the problem of playing the ball with their pads returned on the most exacting surface of the series and that total was more than doubled, starting with Moeen’s dismissal on the fourth evening.Jonny Bairstow and Patel fell in such fashion in successive overs, the latter for a golden duck, as England’s slide became terminal, losing 3 for 2 in 12 deliveries. Bairstow was hit on the thigh pad in front of middle stump trying to sweep his way out of trouble, England’s final review burned in the process, and Patel succumbed to the contagion by missing a straight one from Babar that would have clipped leg.From 59 for 6, and with visions of Abu Dhabi three years ago – when they imploded for 72 chasing 145 – swimming through addled English minds, Cook and Rashid did a respectable patch-up job, adding 49 for the seventh wicket and briefly bringing a sense of calm to proceedings. Rashid has demonstrated a propensity for fifth-day heroics but this was beyond even him and Rahat Ali brought the ball back to defeat a loose drive shortly before lunch.Cook alone weathered the desert storm, maintaining his focus even as the ball beat the bat or rapped the pads and Pakistani appeals tore the air. He narrowly avoided falling to Yasir’s leg trap again on 20 and a top-edged sweep off Malik landed a yard short of deep square leg having made 44. He remained defiant, gallumphing down the pitch to loft Babar for a one-bounce four over long-on and reverse-sweeping another boundary off Yasir.He was joined on the burning deck by Stokes, after Stuart Broad had miscued a sweep off Yasir to square leg. Stokes would never willingly shirk a battle and he looked to be moving a little more freely after his collar bone injury, taking on Wahab Riaz’s bouncers and betraying only a wince when sweeping Yasir powerfully for four.That was the most encouraging sight of the day, as far as England were concerned, and with the pips thoroughly squeaked Cook walked past a delivery from Malik to be stumped for only the third time in his Test career. Cook faced more than 900 balls in the series, another half-century taking him clear at the top of the run-scorers’ list. But such an outstanding individual contribution could not compete with Pakistan’s collective brilliance.

Australia’s coach Darren Lehmann has thrown his support behind the idea of scrapping the toss, while he is also open-minded about the concept of four-day Test cricket

Brydon Coverdale03-Dec-2015

Australia’s coach Darren Lehmann has thrown his support behind the idea of scrapping the toss, while he is also open-minded about the concept of four-day Test cricket. While Australia and New Zealand pioneered day-night Test cricket in Adelaide last week, other suggestions have also been made in the debate around making Test cricket more competitive and more attractive to spectators.One idea is to abolish the coin toss before matches and instead allow the visiting team the choice of whether to bat or bowl, which proponents argue would encourage the host country to produce a fair pitch. Ricky Ponting, Steve Waugh and Michael Holding have all expressed support for the idea, while the ECB will next year trial a similar concept in county cricket.Under the ECB’s trial, the visiting county will automatically be given the option of fielding first and only if they decline will the coin toss go ahead as usual.”That is one that should definitely come in to cricket, where the opposition gets the right to choose what they want to do,” Lehmann told reporters in Adelaide on Thursday. “I reckon it will stop all the wickets suiting the home team.”As you saw in Perth, the wickets don’t suit how we want to play sometimes and in Australia in general the wickets have been fantastic for years, it doesn’t really matter on the toss, who wins or not. But in some other places it certainly has a big bearing on the game.”The MCC World Cricket Committee also expressed its concerns about pitch preparation last week and said in a statement that home advantage had become too significant in Test cricket, and it would monitor with interest the ECB trial next year. It was the MCC World Cricket Committee that pushed for day-night Tests six years ago and Lehmann said he loved the roll-out of the inaugural pink-ball Test.”I thought it was a great concept,” he said. “It was probably over a little bit quick for my liking in terms of the game but it was exciting for three days and it could have gone either way. Maybe a little less grass [on the pitch] and maybe get the ball a little bit darker in the seam, but it’s only a little bit of tweaking. I was quite impressed by it. I know the fans loved it … we have just got to make it better.”Four-day Test cricket has also been floated as a possible way of keeping fans interested in the longest format. Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland has an open mind about the concept, with the possibility that the four days could be extended so that little play was lost overall. Lehmann said he did not mind the idea, but was unsure whether the extra overs could be easily fitted in.”We don’t bowl our 90 overs in a day as it is, so that is probably the only thing,” he said. “But I’m open to all those sorts of things. Whatever makes the game better for the fans is pretty important.”

Sussex appointed their former batsman Murray Goodwin as their new batting coach

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Mar-2016Sussex appointed their former batsman Murray Goodwin as their new batting coach.Goodwin, 43, spent 12 seasons with the club as a player and was an integral part of the side that won three Championship titles and five limited-over trophies between 2003 and 2009.Goodwin, who was confirmed as a vice-president of Sussex in early 2015, said: “I believe I can bring to a very talented squad some belief and options on playing certain situations in all forms of the game. I’m hoping to try and add a winning culture to this talented squad.”I am grateful for the opportunity to come back to my second home. When I applied for the role I was always hopeful but to actually have been considered above the many applicants who applied is very humbling.”Sussex’s head coach Mark Davis said, “I am thrilled to have Murray Goodwin joining us. His vast batting experience, gained from many years of first-class and International cricket all over the world, will be invaluable. I am confident Murray’s relentless approach to batting and his technical expertise will be of great value throughout the Sussex Cricket pathway.”He has a brilliant work ethic and a passion for teaching the game, which is a vital ingredient in any elite coach. I am sure he will be welcomed back by everyone at Sussex Cricket and I look forward to him becoming an integral part of our coaching team.”Sussex have reshuffled since the departure of head coach Mark Robinson to take up the coach’s role with England Women. David was confirmed as head coach, Keith Greenfield has been appointed director of cricket and Carl Hopkinson has assumed Greenfield’s role of academy director.Goodwin scored over 24,000 runs for Sussex in all formats, including nearly 14,500 first class runs with 48 centuries and an average approaching 50. He left Sussex reluctantly at the end of the 2012 season before extending his playing career for another two seasons with Glamorgan.

Harshal Patel ran through Jammu & Kashimir with his first List A five-for, then came back as an opener to hammer 54 of the required 76-run target. The cherry on top of a match that Haryana wrapped up with only 33 overs bowled in two innings was a hat-trick for legspinner and captain Amit Mishra.Jammu & Kashmir won the toss, chose to bat and just withered away as Harshal wrecked their top order with 5 for 21. There were five ducks in all and only three scores in double-digits. At 38 for 7, they were in danger of being bowled out for under 50 but a 37-run eighth wicket partnership between Ram Dayal and Zahoor Sofi took them past that ignominy. Eventually Mishra brought himself on as fifth-change broke the stand and knocked the tail over to claim his first List A hat-trick.Haryana decided to have a bit more fun and sent Harshal out to open. He came back unbeaten with 54 off 27 balls, with seven fours and three sixes.Saurabh Tiwary’s unbeaten 94-ball 87 steered Jharkhand to a five-wicket win over Kerala in Bangalore.Jharkhand suffered a wobble in their chase of 237 and were struggling at 129 for 4 in the 32nd over after MS Dhoni’s dismissal for 18. Tiwary and Kaushal Singh kept the chase on track with a stand of 75 for the fourth wicket. Kaushal was dismissed for 48 but Tiwary stayed until the end, ensuring a win for the side in 47 overs.Earlier, Kerala’s total of 236 for 8 was propped up by fifties from opener VA Jagadeesh (60) and Sachin Baby (61). The pair also shared a 77-run, fourth-wicket stand before Padmanabhan Prasanth provided quick runs at the end with an unbeaten 34 off 18 deliveries.Axar Patel turned in yet another all-round show to help Gujarat record a four-wicket win over Railways in Bangalore’s Alur grounds, their second win in as many matches at the 2015-16 Vijay Hazare Trophy.Railways, who were sent in to bat, were driven by Arindam Ghosh(96*) to 259 for 5. The other vital contributor apart from Ghosh was Mahesh Rawat, who made 60, with Karn Sharma (26) and Ashish Yadav (22*) lending the finishing touches to the Railways innings.Gujarat lost Smit Patel for a duck, but captain Parthiv Patel, and Priyank Panchal steadied the innings with a 64-run stand. But Railways fought back courtesy Karn, who dismissed both batsmen in quick succession to leave them in a hint of trouble at 79 for 3. That became 126 for 4 when Yadav dismissed Manprit Juneja to bring the match back on an even keel. But Axar (75) and Rujul Bhatt (72) put together 120 for the fifth wicket to allay fears of a meltdown as Gujarat won with two balls to spare.

New Zealand fast bowler Tim Southee has been ruled out of the upcoming two-match T20I series against Sri Lanka after scans showed a bruise on the bone of his left foot

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Jan-20161:03

Sri Lanka seek revenge in T20s

New Zealand fast bowler Tim Southee has been ruled out of the upcoming two-match T20I series against Sri Lanka after scans showed a bruise on the bone of his left foot.Southee had sustained the injury during the third ODI in Nelson, and was subsequently replaced in the ODI squad by Matt Henry. An NZC release confirmed that Henry would stand in for Southee even in the T20s.”Tim was feeling really fresh after coming back from a break for the first two ODIs, so it’s certainly disappointing for him that this has happened now,” Mike Hesson, New Zealand’s coach, said. “Tim’s obviously a key member of our team and been a strong performer for us in all three formats, so he’s a big loss.”We haven’t set a date for his return at this point, but will continue to monitor him and work to get him back to full fitness as quickly as possible.”Incidentally, that Nelson match was Southee’s first ODI since June, as he had been rested for the limited-overs tour to Africa in August. Southee suffered from an irritated disc in his back during the first Test against Australia in Brisbane, but regained his fitness to play the remaining two matches, in Perth and Adelaide.He was also rested for the first two ODIs of the Sri Lanka series, in Christchurch, and in his absence, Henry, Southee’s replacement, went on to take four-wicket hauls in both games.

Yuvraj Singh, Angelo Matthews, Dinesh Karthik, Dale Steyn, Ishant Sharma and Kevin Pietersen are some of the big names released by their IPL franchises as the deadline for the first trading window closed on Thursday. A total of 101 players were retained, while 61 were let go by the six franchises.Yuvraj (INR 16 crores) and Mathews (INR 7.5 crores), who played for Delhi Daredevils, and Karthik (INR 10.5 crores), who was with Royal Challengers Bangalore, were the three most expensive buys at the IPL auction last year. All of them were dropped going into the new season.Yuvraj, who recently earned a recall into the Indian Twenty20 squad for the three-match series in Australia after a hiatus of close to two years, was anything but the catalyst Dardevils hoped for as they finished seventh in 2015. He scored 248 runs from 13 innings and averaged below 20, and bowled bowled only nine overs in the tournament as well. Mathews, too, proved a failure, tallying a mere 144 runs in 11 matches in which he bagged just seven wickets at an economy rate of 8.20.Karthik lasted just one season at Royal Challengers after he managed a paltry 141 runs at an average of 12.81 in 11 innings. His inability to bolster the lower-middle order worked against Karthik, who has played for close to a handful of franchises so far.Among the overseas players Pietersen and Steyn were left out by Sunrisers. Pietersen was bought at his base price of INR 2 crore but a shoulder injury kept the former England batsman out of the tournament. Aaron Finch, the top-ranked batsman in T20Is, was also released. He had played only three matches Mumbai Indians before he hurt his hamstring and was ruled out of the tournament last year.Kings XI Punjab released the recently retired Virender Sehwag, and George Bailey, who captained them in 2015.Sunil Narine, who has been suspended from bowling by the ICC, has been retained by Kolkata Knight Riders. He is still No. 1 in the ICC ODI and T20I rankings for bowlers. But they did not keep KC Cariappa, the mystery spinner who became the highest paid uncapped player from the 2015 auction.Maharashtra and India batsman Kedar Jadhav was the solitary trade after Royal Challengers Bangalore bought him from Delhi Daredevils for an undisclosed amount.The six franchises along with two new teams – Pune and Rajkot – will take part in the player auction, scheduled for February 6 in Bangalore. The second trading window will be open for the eight teams after the auction and will last till the beginning of the IPL. The ninth season of the IPL would be played between April 9 and May 23.