All posts by n8rngtd.top

Shohei Ohtani has played two seasons in Los Angeles with the Dodgers, and he already has two World Series rings to show for it. These past two seasons are the only two years the three-time MVP has competed in the postseason in general, too. That’s a pretty impressive run.

The Dodgers’ three-peat chances have already become a talking point heading into the 2025 season. While it would mark the fifth time in MLB history for a team to at least win three World Series in a row, it would be the Dodgers’ first time achieving that feat. And, Ohtani’s already imagining what that celebration would be like.

During the Dodgers’ World Series championship parade on Monday, the L.A. superstar was asked if it would be difficult for him to not win the World Series next season as that’s all he’s ever known with the Dodgers.

“I’m already thinking about the third time we’re doing to do this,” Ohtani simply replied.

We’ll see if the Dodgers can deliver on this dream next season.

Los Angeles overcame a tough World Series vs. the Blue Jays to win the title. Game 7 appeared to be in Toronto’s reach until the Dodgers tied up the contest in the top of the ninth. The game went to 11 innings, but Los Angeles came out on top thanks to Will Smith’s homer that inning. Then, Mookie Betts delivered a game-winning double play at the bottom of the inning to seal the deal.

It's fair to say the New York Yankees are in the middle of a slump. They're 6-17 in their last 23 games dating back to the middle of June. Despite their slump, the Bronx Bombers still sit at 55-38, firmly in the postseason picture and just 3.0 games back from the Baltimore Orioles atop the AL East.

While some Yankees fans are starting to lose faith, there's one bettor who desperately needs New York to prove it is still the cream of the crop in the American League.

According to Ben Fawkes, a bettor placed a $150k wager on the Yankees to win the AL pennant back on June 5. Despite being in a major slump since then, oddsmakers still have their odds set at +250.

Let's take a look at the latest odds at BetMGM Sportsbook.

AL Pennant Odds

• Yankees +250
• Orioles +300
• Guardians +600
• Astros +750
• Twins +800
• Mariners +850
• Royals +2000
• Red Sox +2200
• Rangers +4000
• Rays +6600
• Blue Jays +12500
• Tigers +17500
• Angels +50000
• White Sox +50000
• Athletics +50000

To the relief of the bettor who laid six figures on the Yankees, they're still the +250 favorites. If you translate those odds to implied probability, they have a 28.57% chance of winning the ALCS and representing the American League in the World Series.

Despite the lack of odds movement in their odds, the Yankees bettor should have at least a bit of concern about the direction of this club. The Yankees rank 20th in the Majors in OPS over the last 30 days. Things are even worse when you look at their pitching. They have an ERA of 5.47 over the same time frame, with only the Rockies sporting a worse number at 6.16.

With that being said, there's plenty of time for the Yankees to figure things out and fight themselves out of this slump. For the sake of the bettor who wagered $150,000 on them, I hope they do.

Lourdes Gurriel Jr. enjoyed a productive night despite the Arizona Diamondbacks' 10-5 loss to the San Diego Padres on Tuesday night. Gurriel helped the Diamondbacks jump out to a lead with a two-run home run in the bottom of the first inning, then later tied the game with a clutch, two-run shot off of Padres flamethrowing closer Mason Miller in the bottom of the eighth inning.

But Gurriel's homer was more than just clutch.

It was historic. The round-tripper came off of a 103.9 mph fastball from Miller, making it the fastest pitch homered on in the pitch-tracking era, which dates back to 2008.

Miller, who has thrown the fastest pitch in MLB this season, spared no velocity in the at-bat with Gurriel, as the Padres reliever hurled two other pitches clocked at 103 mph or higher, both of which were fouled off by an on-time Gurriel.

The Diamondbacks outfielder's unique homer ended up being a footnote after the Padres put up a five-spot in the top of the 11th inning, leading to their eventual victory and Arizona's loss.

As the Dodgers put a sudden end to Game 6 of the World Series in Rogers Centre, beating the Jays 3–1 on Friday night, the first question on everyone's mind: Who is pitching tomorrow?

For Toronto, we've known for some time that Max Scherzer would be the starter. As Joel Sherman reported Friday night Shohei Ohtani will start. The Dodgers made the decision official Saturday afternoon.

There were at least two options to consider. Tyler Glasnow was due up in the rotation, but Ohtani was the leading option, especially after Friday night.

Glasnow came in for the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 6. Ordinarily, that would tilt the scales of decision entirely to Ohtani, but he only threw three pitches.

For what it’s worth, Glasnow did tell reporters after the game that he’ll be available to pitch in Game 7.

Immediately after the game, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was asked about his thoughts on Ohtani pitching in Game 7.

"Right now there's no wrong answer. [Ohtani is] certainly going to be a part of the pitching plan. With Shohei, it could be two innings, but it could be four innings. I'm not sure where we're going to slot him. We're going to have to talk to him first and see where he feels most comfortable."

Another consideration for Roberts and the Dodgers was that if Ohtani enters in relief and comes out of the game, Los Angeles will lose its designated hitter position. Using him as a starter is the only way to get the Dodgers DH flexibility while working him into the pitching plan.

Scherzer vs. Ohtani in Game 7. Get your popcorn ready.

A new book sheds light on the lives of the 20 cricketers and the aftermath of their historic decision to play for apartheid pay

Sharda Ugra17-May-2020A flash of déjà vu induced by the title was explained soon. About 13 years ago, ran an article about the West Indies rebels who toured South Africa, by Siddhartha Vaidyanathan, a reporter for ESPNcricinfo at the time, with that headline.Ashley Gray’s book is Unforgiven 2.0, or to give it its full name, Gray revisits the lives of the 20 West Indians who travelled on the two rebel tours (1982-83 and 1983-84) and tells of what became of them once the headlines quietened down.ALSO READ: The unforgiven (2007)In the ’70s and ’80s, sporting contact with South Africa was a subject of perpetual argument, the first and third worlds divided in opinion, the issue of race omnipresent and prickly. India had no diplomatic relations with apartheid South Africa, Indian passport holders were banned from travelling to the country. In 1974, India forfeited their only chance at a Davis Cup title, refusing to travel to South Africa for the final. News of debates about golf and rugby events in South Africa came as distant rumblings.There was an England rebel team tour starring Geoff Boycott and others. But when the West Indians turned up there in 1983, lured by the kruggerand, Mandela still in prison, there was disbelief in India because their powerful and popular team had always stood for black pride: they were a living negation of the apartheid regime’s belief in their own racial supremacy. How could they, we asked of those West Indians as young fans.Now, nearly four decades later, Gray provides a wider context to those rebel tours. His book is divided into chapters about each of the 19 cricketers and manager-player Albert Padmore. In order to meet and interview as many of these 20 protagonists as he could, and create life sketches of each, Gray seems to have put in plenty of legwork, research and travel miles. He tells us where they came from, how they grew into cricket, and why they went to South Africa.ALSO READ: The dirty dozen (2009)The book begins with an introductory chapter about the intrigue, secrecy and drama around the creation and success of the tours, and then dives into each man’s story. In the edition I read, there was no explanation offered for the sequence of the chapters. It started with the captain, Lawrence Rowe, but the rest followed in no particular order: not alphabetical by name of player or his country, nor batting order.The story of the “rebel curse” is a cricketing legend with plenty of legs. The article focuses on those cast aside, and Gray dives deeper. Two of the players died early, one from drugs (Richard Austin, the “right-handed Garry Sobers”), the other of a heart attack (Sylvester Clarke) after a successful first-class career. A third, Herbert Chang, had a nervous breakdown. David Murray pushed drugs on the beaches of Barbados, and Everton Mattis was shunned in Jamaica, spent time in prison in the US, and eventually shook a drug and alcohol habit. The rest have made their peace and found other careers, some having moved to the US or England. For some, their decision to travel to apartheid South Africa still haunts them. Rowe, who now runs a business in Miami, was almost welcomed back to the fold when it was proposed that the players’ pavilion at Sabina Park be named after him, but that decision was rescinded within days.Were these players mercenaries or missionaries, as the book’s subtitle asks? The question cannot be answered if we only look at it all through the eyes of the 20 who went. Most of them would like to believe their cricket changed the opinion of the white South African establishment about what black people could do. At a football match, a black South African said to one of the rebels, “You guys are black like us and they’re paying good money, so take it.” One of the players called the rebel tours Liberty Tours, and says, “We showed white people that black people could be more than miners and cleaners.”ALSO READ: A rebel without a redemption song (2011)Themes emerge through the individual profiles: the conservatism of the West Indian cricket community and the random arrogance of its selectoral process, the enormous personality and influence of Clive Lloyd (“not father, godfather”), national bickerings, social fissures. The biggest names from the ranks of the West Indies’ dominators of the ’80s and ’90s appear as figures in the background of the lives of the 20 rebels.There are times where feels as if it is the first draft of something enormously insightful. Gray has spoken to dozens – the players themselves, their friends, families, adversaries, contemporaries both home and overseas. We hear from scholars, commentators like Tony Becca, and from the broadcaster Fazeer Mohammed, who, when talking of “the whole Caribbean macho man thing” delivers this zinger: “It is typical about the Caribbean male because they only want to hear the positives. They don’t want introspection. They don’t want knowledge of their own faults.”Pitch PublishingThe language is largely sparse and effective, but there are also many overworked verbs to deal with, that seem to have been collected by shaking dozens of wire-service match reports loose. Wickets (“scalps”) are “gouged”, “bulldozed”, “collared”, “snared”; runs are “muscled” and “battered”; line-ups are “mangled”; even jobs are “nabbed”. Better editing could have infused real magic into a book that is rich with the most terrific back-room stories.ALSO READ: Stayin’ alive (2006) is riveting overall because of its depiction of an era of West Indies cricket and the world game when hypocrisies and inequalities were rarely spoken about. The voices of the rebels and those around them tell us that story. Many spoke freely to Gray, a few asked for money, others proved elusive in their replies. Only Colin Croft hung up, saying he wanted nothing do to “with you or your project”. also touches on the slow slide of West Indian cricket, the impact of which was felt late in the decade after the rebel tours. Two moments stick. Clive Lloyd, managing a late-1990s West Indies team, tells Hartley Alleyne, “Knowing you couldn’t get into the team back then, that made me sad. Look at what I have to work with now. These guys are no good.” The book ends with the words of Franklyn Stephenson, who now runs a coaching academy in Barbados, railing at the administration: “They don’t pay the price for losing because they’re sitting in administration. They say the players are no good. Imagine going from top to bottom and nobody’s going to prison. Crazy.”The Unforgiven

by Ashley Gray
Pitch Publishing Ltd, 2020
351 pages

Too few West Indies batsmen showed the application required in their bid to salvage a draw

Nagraj Gollapudi20-Jul-2020With an hour left in the game, as the final drinks break of this Test was called, Ben Stokes walked alongside Shannon Gabriel. It was a matter of time for an England victory with Gabriel and his new-ball partner Kemar Roach doing their best to avoid the inevitable. But Stokes did not want West Indies to relax: he said a few words in the direction of Gabriel, who just kept his head down. First ball upon the resumption, England got the breakthrough.Stokes plucked out two stumps and why not – he had flattened West Indies’ bowlers with the bat first and then broken the resolve of their batsmen twice via crucial breakthroughs with the ball. One of those was that of Jermaine Blackwood, just a ball away from tea.Blackwood was in the middle of a flourishing partnership with Shamarh Brooks in the second session. Their alliance had cleaned up after the farce that was the Windies top-order, which showed no fight, resolve or technique and succumbed at the first punch from England.ALSO READ: Sky’s the limit for ‘Mr Incredible’ Stokes – RootBlackwood had picked up three early fours off Sam Curran and had dominated Dom Bess from the word go. Playing his naturally attacking game, Blackwood felt comfortable. So much so in that final over before tea, bowled by – who else? – Stokes, Blackwood felt he could afford to smile and chirp back to the England allrounder.Stokes was attempting to expose Blackwood’s weakness: facing the short-pitched delivery. Bowling from around the stumps, wide of the crease, Stokes banged in the perfect short ball, that climbed sharply into the ribs of the airborne Blackwood. Instead of ducking it, Blackwood responded awkwardly to fend it off, but lobbed a catch that Jos Buttler took running to his left. Stokes did not waste the opportunity to say a few words in the direction of Blackwood.It was the turning point and West Indies never recovered. West Indies lost this Test because of many reasons, but the most important was their batsmen never showed the relentlessness of Stokes. With the bat, Stokes had shown the grit and determination to succeed – however ugly he looked, however slow he played. What mattered to him was the big picture, building a big total, and then forcing West Indies to follow-on. Allied with the belief of Stuart Broad, Stokes nearly had West Indies facing embarrassment on Sunday.Although England ultimately had to bat again, they did so from a position of strength. Then, for the second day in succession, Broad made the new ball talk. John Campbell had already spilled an easy catch from Stokes, and then further embarrassed himself by once again becoming a walking wicket.Shai Hope, too, has been hopeless. A nip-backer from Broad reared off a length from the fourth-stump line to hit the top of his off stump. Hope meanwhile squatted in response as if it was a grubber. Hope’s Test career now hangs in balance. He has been totally out of sorts, unable to find a rhythm and settle down. Unlike Kraigg Brathwaite, who has at least proved that he can play late and play time despite his string of failures in the second innings, Hope has looked like man with a head full of questions instead.Shamarh Brooks fell to Sam Curran for 62•Getty ImagesFor once the vigilant defence of Roston Chase failed, leaving the responsibility of saving the Test match with Brooks and Blackwood. With Blackwood showing intent, Brooks played second fiddle initially, and after the Jamaican left, he showed character to withstand the renewed pressure from England. Could he do what Blackwood did in Southampton to take West Indies to the finish line and secure a draw? He only had one specialist batting partner in his captain Jason Holder, after Shane Dowrich once again showed his weakness against the short delivery.With the ball getting softer, but staying low, in the final session Curran went round the stumps, and lured Brooks with slow cutters. The ploy was to draw the batsman forward with silly mid-off and a short cover placed as a trap. Brooks was attentive initially and watched the ball, playing late with soft hands. The margin of error was zero – if he failed, it was end of story. And that is what happened when Curran burst through, despite the watchful gaze of Brooks, who did not even review having been rapped on the knee, in front of off stump.They might have eventually taken the game into the final hour, but West Indies were not close to batting out the 80-odd overs they needed to for a draw that would secure the Wisden Trophy. West Indies made a cumulative total of 485 runs in the match, which was nearly what Engalnd made in the first innnings (469). No West Indies batsman has scored a century in the series so far. Brathwaite, Blackwood and Brooks have shown some resolve, but they will admit they have lacked the hunger and belief of Stokes.Despite the slow nature of the pitches and dry conditions, the tourists have been vulnerable against balls arriving on the stumps: so far this series they have lost 22 wickets in that fashion, at 10.50 apiece.Holder admitted it was a concern. “Many of our batters got caught on the crease, on a surface like this you need to commit forward or back,” Holder told Sky Sports after the defeat. “We’ve got to understand scenarios better. We fought through decent periods in the game but maybe need a little bit more grit, determination to get through challenging spells. It’s just about getting through those tough spells.”In the afternoon session the TV cameras caught West Indies head coach Phil Simmons stealing a few winks in the dressing room. That image captures nicely the state of mind of most of his batsmen. We all have taken a nap at work but in a Test match is a different thing: West Indies were caught snoozing by a relentless England.

Of his 108 IPL wickets so far, 62 belong to openers and No. 3s. This is his game

Alagappan Muthu03-Nov-20201:41

Agarkar: Sandeep looks innocuous but gets the big wickets

Did you know that Sandeep Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah have virtually the same record in IPL cricket?No seriously. They do.One of them is a simple medium pacer who, it might seem, requires helpful conditions to be at his best. The other is an all-format bowling force. A once in a generation cricketer. And they have the same record.So how come one gets superstar billing and the other – while being a staple of the IPL – is largely looked over.Well the simple reason is Bumrah saves his team when the whole damn game is on the line. He comes on when Andre Russell is starting to get hot. He comes on when AB de Villiers is looking to go 360. He comes on when they go into a Super Over. These are all viciously pressure-riddled scenarios and Bumrah succeeds in them time and time again.That expressionless walk back to the top of his mark. The breath he takes before starting to run in. The awkward action. The awesome pace. The breathtaking clarity of mind. The machine-like execution. It’s like Hollywood built a fast bowler and dropped him in Ahmedabad for India to enjoy.ESPNcricinfoSandeep can’t live up to that billing. For one, he can’t bowl fast. And that limits your options so badly. Bouncers can become hit-me-for-six balls. Batsmen have extra time to move around the crease and mess up your lines and lengths. You’ll have to arm yourself with variations. It’s a of work.Luckily, Sandeep loves that. He slogs through thousands of overs in first-class cricket. Even though no one watches that. It might seem a silly gripe. But wouldn’t you want everyone to know when you do something well? Didn’t you run over to every single one of our family members to show that exam in which you got 100/100? Recognition is important. In a world dominated by social media, it can even be life-changing.Sandeep deserves it simply because he does this one thing as good as anybody else. Even Bumrah.He pwns top-order batsmen in the IPL.Here is a sample of his work. He has dismissed Virat Kohli seven times in 13 matches. He has knocked over Rohit Sharma four times in 14 matches. The latest was the result of a ball that moved in just a smidge and just late enough to mess with the timing of a chip that was meant to carry over mid-off. He has even taken down T20’s greatest batsman four times in 11 innings. Chris Gayle averages an anaemic 10.25 runs against this mean old merchant of the dibblies and dobblies.Through the course of Tuesday’s game – one that the Sunrisers had to win to make the playoffs – Sandeep overtook a World Cup winner in Zaheer Khan to become the most successful bowler in IPL powerplays. Of his 108 wickets in the tournament so far, 62 belong to openers and No. 3s. This is his game. This is his value. This is his genius. Sandeep is the powerplay Bumrah.His round-arm action pushes the ball in the opposite direction to which he wants it to swing it so that the movement is both subtle enough and late enough to beat the middle and take the edge. But he knows if things don’t go for him, he will likely get pasted. Quinton de Kock launched him for four, six and six in the fifth over in Sharjah but the next ball he faced nibbled just far enough away from his reach that he inside-edged it onto his stumps.Sandeep isn’t Hollywood. But he’s still very very good.

We look at the reasons behind the selections of Kishan, Chahar, Ashwin, Axar, Varun and Shami

Saurabh Somani09-Sep-20218:24

Chopra: Chahal’s exclusion is shocking

The following nine names were certainties in India’s T20 World Cup squad: Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. The other six – or nine, counting the reserves – in the final squad had to beat stiff competition, understandably. The pitches in UAE are expected to have a fair bit of wear and tear, so the quality of spin bowling, as well as batting against spin, were deemed crucial. That probably played a part in the selection of Ishan Kishan, Rahul Chahar, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy and Mohammed Shami.R Ashwin
India have played 63 T20Is since Ashwin last appeared in white-ball cricket at the international level – he played in a T20I against West Indies in July 2017 – but he has been a force in the IPL. With Washington Sundar injured, Ashwin was the foremost offspin option available. Ashwin is a fantastic bowler in powerplays – since IPL 2020, no spinner has taken more wickets than Ashwin’s seven in the powerplay in the competition, and he’s done that while conceding runs at 7.34. He’s been a particular threat against left-hand batters, bowling 70 balls to them in the powerplay since IPL 2020 and conceding runs at just 6.77 against them while averaging 26.33. Finding the right match-ups is key to winning T20 games, and India may decide to play Ashwin against teams with multiple left-handers in the top order.Ashwin’s inclusion means India have five spinners and just three frontline seamers in their squad. Chetan Sharma, the chairman of selectors, explained that was because the pitches were expected to heavily favour spinners. “If the wickets are such that you can only play two fast men, there is no point then to bench (the extra fast bowlers),” he said. “Instead you have utility players who will come in handy at some point in the match and that is why you have spinners and allrounders.”Related

• Shardul Thakur replaces Axar Patel in India's T20 World Cup squad

• India's T20 World Cup squad: R Ashwin picked, MS Dhoni named mentor

• Varun's checklist: IPL playoffs, T20 World Cup

• Men's T20WC: India vs Pakistan on October 24

Ishan Kishan
Kishan became a contender after an impressive international debut against England earlier in the year, in which he smashed a 32-ball 56, and has been picked as a sixth batter ahead of other contenders such as Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Shreyas Iyer [in the reserves] and Sanju Samson because of his versatility. “Kishan can bat as an opener as well as he can fit into the middle order anytime,” Sharma pointed out, while mentioning that Iyer missing the first half of IPL 2021 with injury counted against him.Another thing that went in Kishan’s favour is that he is a left-hander – only the second, along with Pant, among the batters – which means he matches up well against legspinners and left-arm spinners. In picking Kishan, India have got a back-up keeper, a back-up opener, someone who can rotate well against spin in the middle overs (IPL middle-overs strike rate against spinners: 124.45) and can blast off at the death (IPL death overs strike rate against pace: 213.15).Rahul Chahar has impressed with his recent performances•Ishara S.Kodikara/AFP/Getty ImagesRahul Chahar
In terms of numbers, there’s little to separate Chahar from Yuzvendra Chahal, the other leggie who would have been in contention. They are neck-and-neck for wickets, averages and economy rates in the middle overs since IPL 2020. Where Chahal lost out is possibly his recent form: since the start of 2020, he’s played 13 games and taken 11 wickets at 41.36 and an economy rate of 8.92. Chahar has played just four T20Is in that time, but his average (18.33) and economy (7.33) have been markedly better. Sharma pointed to the greater rip and speed Chahar imparts on the ball as reasons for his inclusion. “You want a spinner who can deliver with more speed,” Sharma said. “Recently we have seen Rahul Chahar bowling with speed. The selectors’ view was we need a spinner who can find the grip off the surface on the wickets and deliver with slightly more speed, and while we had a lot of discussion on Chahal, we eventually went with Rahul Chahar.”Axar Patel
While he’s a natural back-up for Ravindra Jadeja, Patel is not just there as cover for one player. His all-round skills and bowling nous mean he can fit a variety of roles. His overall economy rate since IPL 2020 has been 6.55, with only two spinners going better than him, Rashid Khan and Washington, and Patel’s wicket-taking ability has been much better than Washington’s, with 15 wickets at 29.26. Left-arm spinners are traditionally more vulnerable to left-hand batters, but Patel’s economy against them is 6.83, far superior to any other left-arm spinner since IPL 2020. His batting is also potent. He’s hit at a strike rate of 190.47 from Nos. 8 to 11 since IPL 2020, clear of the other lower-order candidates India had to choose from.Mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy could be an X-factor•Sri Lanka CricketVarun Chakravarthy
Varun’s variations and unorthodox grips and releases set him apart from the other spinners in the pack. With India picking Chahar as the legspinner, two left-arm spinners and Ashwin, he could be the X-factor. Varun has made himself a contender through the IPL, in which he is among the top five wicket-taking spinners since 2020 in the powerplay as well as the middle overs. He can bowl to right or left-hand batters comfortably and maintains a good economy rate too. Most of the sides in India’s group don’t have too many batters in the IPL, so they would not have had a chance to work out Varun. As Sharma put it, “The world doesn’t know what Varun Chakravarthy is. If we ourselves cannot understand (how to read him) what will the batsman know?”Mohammed Shami
Shami fits the bill as a back-up pacer to either Bumrah or Bhuvneshwar because, like both of them, he can bowl in the powerplay as well as at the death. Bowling at the death is probably what gave him an edge over Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur [both in the reserves], who have had greater success up top. Shami has got 14 death-over wickets since IPL 2020, which is the same as Deepak Chahar, Thakur and Mohammed Siraj combined. He can move the ball both ways, as he’s shown ample times in the past, and as a bonus, he has the undefinable ability to be unplayable regardless of format when he gets into his rhythm.

Slippy conditions may encourage seam-dominant attack versus West Indies

Matt Roller21-Oct-2021″I actually think we’ve played really well there, we’ve probably had the wrong side of the toss. The dew, from about the eighth over [of the chase] was extremely challenging. I can’t fault anybody’s efforts.”Eoin Morgan’s reflections after a defeat in the 2020 edition of the IPL went against a fundamental sporting idea: if you play better than the opposition, you tend to win. But in floodlit games in the UAE, particularly in October and November, there is another factor to consider: dew.Generally setting in either side of the innings break in a game starting at 6pm local time, it has the effect of making the ball harder to grip for the defending team’s bowlers and fielders. That bias towards the chasing team has been apparent in the IPL: out of the 25 night games played after its mid-season resumption in the UAE, chasing teams won 17.The challenge of coping with the dew is heightened for teams who rarely have to worry about dew when playing at home, so it comes as no surprise to learn that England have been focusing on how to cope with it in their build-up to the tournament ahead of their first game – under lights – against West Indies on Saturday.Their first warm-up match against India highlighted the issue. Batting first, England had posted 188 against India at the ICC Academy in Dubai, but their attack as a collective struggled for control in the run chase. Chris Jordan bowled the 19th over with 20 runs still required, but a series of attempted yorkers ended up as full tosses after the ball slipped out of his hand; his six balls cost an eye-watering 23.”The amount of dew and sweat is something we’ve had to manage very quickly,” David Willey said on Thursday. “We’ve got to think about how we’re going to keep our hands dry, keep our arms dry, dry the ball, and also be able to bowl with a wet ball.”England’s players have employed some unusual methods in training: “dunking balls in buckets and catching, fielding and bowling with those wet balls,” Willey explained. “We’ll probably get some more towels on the way to change them every over for the lads that are heavy sweaters, and sweatbands and things. It’s never going to be perfect but it’s certainly worth putting things in place to make it manageable.”Related

• England's selection headache: To go batting-heavy or bowling-heavy?

• All-round David Willey, bowlers combine to leave London Spirit winless

• Can West Indies overcome recent form to defend their title?

• The Morgan era has been great for England, but is it coming to an end?

Temperatures have been in the mid-30s degrees celsius in the UAE in recent weeks – they will cool down slightly as the tournament wears on, which could mean dew forms earlier and evens conditions up – but the stifling humidity has meant that ‘feels like’ temperatures are above 40. “You start sweating and you just can’t stop,” Willey said. “Just saturated from head to toe.”England’s fixture list for the tournament, which sees them play four group games out of five under lights, exacerbates the importance of managing the dew – and may also justify their decision to pick a single specialist spinner in their squad in Adil Rashid, with Moeen Ali and Liam Livingstone generally used as part-timers by Morgan over the last 18 months.While England’s spin stocks are not exactly deep, there was some level of surprise to see Liam Dawson named only as a reserve and Matt Parkinson miss out on the squad entirely while spinners were enjoying success in the IPL, but England may well feel that their seamers will be more effective, particularly if dew is in play in both innings during the knockout stages.”There’s no denying that for spinners, if they’re trying to grip the ball, it’s going to be a challenge if it’s soaking wet,” Willey said, while Rashid added on Wednesday: “You’ve got to find a way, you can’t hide behind it, whether you’re a seamer or a spinner.”Willey himself is unlikely to be bowling at the death for England – though he has been working on a new slower ball – but is instead relishing the opportunity to face West Indies on Saturday. He is not a guaranteed starter but has been successful against them in the past – he took 3 for 20 in the 2016 final, and 4 for 7 in the sides’ most recent T20I – and the make-up of their batting line-up should play in his favour: West Indies may field as many as four left-handers in their top five, and Willey has a better economy rate (7.25 vs 8.09) and strike rate (15.9 vs 22.1) against left-handers than right-handers in all T20s since the last World Cup.”The ball swinging away from the left-handers in all formats can be dangerous, and in the white-ball game, when they’re looking to be aggressive, hopefully that goes in my favour,” he said. “I’ve been told I’ve got a decent record [against left-handers] and that might swing in my favour for getting the nod in that first game.”And having been left out of the 50-over World Cup squad on the eve of the tournament two years ago, Willey suggested that he has learned a lot from the experience. “It’s definitely made me a better person. To be part of it for four years and miss out was obviously disappointing but the personal growth from me thereon… has been massive. I’m playing every game as if it’s my last and really savouring the moment of pulling on that England shirt.”

It would be no surprise if England field an all-seam attack for the rest of this series, relying only on Root’s part-time spin

Matt Roller09-Dec-2021It was a red rag to The Bull. David Warner rode his luck against England’s seamers during his innings of 94 on the second day of the Gabba Test but as soon as Jack Leach came into the attack 25 minutes before lunch, he set about trying to take him down.Warner had never batted long enough to face Leach during his torturous Ashes series in 2019, but his intent off the first ball of spin in his innings revealed Australia’s plan to hit him out of the attack. He hit a half-volley straight back to the bowler on the bounce but with such power that Leach fumbled, smiling wryly after seeing Warner’s aggression.Related

• Malan and Root put up big third-wicket stand as England fight back

• Wood stands out as England tick all the wrong checkboxes

• Ben Stokes knee injury leaves England with nervous wait

• Travis Head grabs chance to make a place of his own

• David Warner rides his luck on way to 94

There were not many more smiles across the course of the day though. Leach conceded only a single from his first over but Warner hit two straight sixes off the first three balls of his second, using his feet to turn both balls into half-volleys and comfortably clearing the long-on boundary. Warner averages 60.40 against left-arm orthodox spin in Test cricket with a strike rate of 76.55, and batted like he had against Imad Wasim and Mitchell Santner in the knockout stages of the T20 World Cup, taking down a favourable match-up with the ball spinning into his hitting arc.Marnus Labuschagne was just as positive, giving himself room outside his leg stump and trusting his hand-eye coordination to flay him through the off side. He fell after lunch, mistiming a cut the ball after lofting him for a straight six, but Australia remained ultra-aggressive and threw him off his plans completely. He reverted to bowling flat at the pads with a packed leg-side field, yet Warner and Travis Head were still able to slog-sweep boundaries. By stumps, Leach had 1 for 95 in 11 overs.”We spoke about being positive against the spin,” Head said. “With it being hot, we wanted the [seam] bowlers to come back as much as possible. The guys had batted extremely well and earned the right to – in the right moments – take him on, and the tempo and the balance and the nature that they did that in was just fantastic. Marnus got out doing it – I know he was disappointed – but I felt like it set the tone for the series.”The result was that Joe Root had to revert to his seamers, even bowling a half-fit Ben Stokes ahead of Leach as the second new ball approached. Leach was described by Jon Lewis, England’s bowling coach, as a “resilient fella” – and has even responded from similar onslaughts in the past – but it is hard to see him playing any further part in this series barring a miraculous recovery.