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Ben Stokes hopes England’s positive style of Test cricket can persuade spectators to “fall in love with it again.”Stokes believes that, with Joe Root as captain, England will wholeheartedly embrace an entertaining approach that can not only produce victories but inspire a new audience.While accepting that England – currently fourth in the ICC Test rankings – were in something of a “transition,” Stokes felt that Root was the perfect man to “take the team forward.””Test cricket is the pinnacle of the game,” Stokes said, “and we need people to fall in love with it again.”We need to win, but we want to perform in a manner that makes people want to come and watch us.”Every team goes through transition but I hope we can be influential in taking the team forward. Cooky started us on that path, Rooty was part of that as vice-captain and now we can carry that on. We have the same direction of where we want to take the team.”I’ve always believed that Rooty was going to be captain. Rooty and I have known each other for years, from county age group, England age group, Lions and now England. We have the same direction of where we want to take the team”He’s the right person and the best person to do it. He’s a colleague but also a close mate and I was chuffed to bits for him. I couldn’t be more pleased for him.”The biggest thing is having respect of the people you are in charge of. He has that and respect goes a long way.”Stokes also expressed his delight at his own appointment as England’s vice-captain, but insisted the added responsibility will not change him on or off the pitch.”Getting the news that I would be his vice-captain made me ecstatic,” Stokes said. “It’s a real honour. It’s England vice-captain, it’s supporting Rooty, but it’s also the recognition from him and the people at the top of the ECB.”Everything I do is to win and being vice-captain won’t change me as a person or as a player. I want to be involved in all aspects of the game, whether it’s hitting the winning runs or taking the final wicket. I have always wanted to be in the middle of it.”Being vice-captain I will have to bring a mental and supportive side too. If I am not involved in the game then I will have to add my tactical input.”I have been more vocal over the last year but I only speak when I think something needs to be said. I’m not one for cliches. Just being vice-captain doesn’t give me the right to say whatever I want. There are still some areas I can get better at but hopefully I can improve and we can win more games for England.”

In his first innings since July 2016, AB de Villiers helped himself to an unbeaten 134 off 103 for Northerns in the CSA Provincial One-Day Challenge. The knock comes as he prepares for a likely South Africa return in the third T20I against Sri Lanka in Cape Town.At the end of a week where de Villiers’ plans for his international future have been a major topic, he was finally able to return to run-scoring after overcoming the elbow injury he picked up at last year’s CPL.Even taking into account the lower standard of his comeback match, it was a notable return for de Villiers given his lack of cricket. Batting at No. 3, he was given the maximum chance for a lengthy innings when opener Jonathan Vandiar was lbw first ball of Northerns’ chase.De Villiers proceeded to reach a century off 87 deliveries – his second fifty needing 37 balls – and finished the match with consecutive sixes. In total he struck 19 fours and three sixes in just over two hours in the middle.The final T20I against Sri Lanka had been earmarked for de Villiers’ return ahead of the one-day series and the limited-overs leg of the New Zealand tour. He has already made himself unavailable for Test cricket for most of 2017, suggesting a comeback will come at home against India late in the year should that series be confirmed.Morne Morkel, who has been out of action as long as de Villiers with a back injury, was also due to play in the game but doubt was cast on his availability when he showed some symptoms of the same issue last week. Morkel did not play the match and there is continued uncertainty over when he will make his return.

Australia have left open the possibility of playing four fast men and leaving out offspinner Nathan Lyon at the Gabba, choosing not to name their XI on the eve of the match.South Australia swing bowler Chadd Sayers would be in line for a Test debut if the selectors went down that path, and he has recent pink-ball form on his side, having claimed eight wickets in his most recent Shield game against New South Wales in Adelaide.”We want to have another look at the wicket today and determine which way we want to go from there,” captain Steven Smith said on Wednesday. Asked if that meant four fast bowlers could be included, Smith replied: “It’s possible, yes.”On Tuesday, Lyon had said he was confident of being part of the XI at the Gabba, which is second only to Adelaide Oval on his list of most productive Test venues.”I’ll tell you one thing, this is my sixth [Gabba] Test and every year you guys seem to write that,” Lyon said on Tuesday. “So I’ll leave you guys to write that, that there’s going to be four quicks and stuff. I’m confident of playing, I’ll put it that way.”Not only has Lyon been successful at the Gabba, he has also had plenty of bowling to do, averaging nearly 19 overs per innings there in his five Tests at the venue. The Gabba was also the ground at which Shane Warne took more Test wickets than any other.But Smith said the preponderance of right-handers in Pakistan’s line-up – opener Sami Aslam is the only left-hander in their top seven – could also play a part in Australia’s selection decision.”I need to have another look at the wicket to determine how much grass there is on the wicket,” Smith said. “It’s obviously a different opposition, Pakistan have a lot of right-hand batters, which might come into the equation. But we’ll wait and see.”However, one thing that does not appear to be on the cards is the inclusion of Sayers in place of Jackson Bird. Bird picked up three wickets against South Africa at Adelaide Oval and looks set to retain his spot for another pink-ball Test.”I daresay Jackson will probably play,” Smith said. “He played the last game and played pretty well, so I daresay he’ll be in.”Gabba curator Kevin Mitchell jnr said on Wednesday that he would be cutting the grass down to a height of two millimetres for this Test, well down on the six millimetres left on for the Adelaide Test but a standard height for the Gabba. He did not expect the pitch to perform especially differently to a day Gabba Test.”I’m expecting there will be some life in it early but in saying that it’s out under the elements till one o’clock so maybe not as lively, maybe it will dry out a touch more before the start of play,” Mitchell said. “But it won’t behave too much differently to our normal Test deck.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMohammad Shahid took 3 for 21 in Dhaka Dynamites’ crushing win•BCB

Mehedi Maruf’s unbeaten 75 lifted Dhaka Dynamites to an eight-wicket win over Barisal Bulls, helping them chase down 149 with four overs to spare. He dominated an 88-run opening stand with Kumar Sangakkara and saw the job through, with five fours and as many sixes in his 45-ball knock.Maruf, whose reputation has been growing steadily in domestic cricket in the last few seasons, started the chase with two sixes off Al-Amin Hossain, the first swivel-pulled over deep square leg and the next a flick over midwicket. He smashed Dilshan Munaweera over midwicket for his third six, and peppered boundaries through point and cover. He reached 50 off just 30 balls, before landing Taijul Islam and Monir Hossain beyond the long-on boundary for his fourth and fifth six.Sangakkara supported his younger partner with a 24-ball 30 before falling to a Taijul in the ninth over, off a delivery that kept very low. But by then Dhaka needed 61 runs to win. Shakib made 20, before Mosaddek Hossain chipped in with an unbeaten 10 off 5, wrapping up the victory with a four steered past backward point.Earlier, Barisal started disastrously with the bat when Shamsur Rahman was caught at slip, though replays were inconclusive as to whether the ball had carried to Maruf. Nasir Hossain then took a brilliant catch at point to remove Munaweera before Dawid Malan’s dismissal in the eighth over made it 44 for 3.Shahriar Nafees and Mushfiqur Rahim rescued Barisal from that point through a fourth wicket stand of 82 off 51. Nafees made most of the running with his fourth T20 fifty, the first since February 2013. He struck seven fours and two big sixes in his 34-ball 55, many of them crisp hits past point, midwicket and square leg.Barisal however couldn’t accelerate after Nafees’ dismissal, adding just 22 runs in the last 3.4 overs, despite Mushfiqur reaching his fifty off 36 balls. Mohammad Shahid was Dhaka’s standout bowler, with 3 for 21.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details1:23

‘We played Test cricket today’ – Samuels

Having enjoyed the first two days of their 400th Test, piling on the runs on another Dubai featherbed, Pakistan were made to toil for their gains for much of the third day. Those gains came gradually in the first two sessions, before a hostile spell from Wahab Riaz after dinner helped Pakistan make quick inroads into West Indies’ middle order. Darren Bravo’s resolute 87 and Marlon Samuels’ attacking 76 led the resistance, but Pakistan’s bowlers were able to maintain control and ultimately leave West Indies on 315 for 6 by stumps, trailing by 264 runs.Starting the day on 14, Bravo was content to proceed at a stately pace, exhibiting patience, determination and a very solid defensive game. He brought up his fifty off 176 balls and showed no inclination to accelerate thereafter. His concern was in occupying the crease as long as possible. While he occasionally took his eye off the bouncer and edged a full-blooded cut shot past first slip off Yasir Shah, Bravo’s knock was largely chanceless. He provided a fine counterpoint to Samuels and was barely ruffled by the fall of wickets either side of the dinner break. It was only within half an hour of stumps that Bravo’s long vigil ended, when debutant Mohammad Nawaz had him caught at short-leg to claim his maiden Test wicket.Samuels, for his part, was not quite as convincing as Bravo, but played the dominant role in the pair’s 113-run third-wicket partnership. Having announced his arrival with consecutive fours off Yasir, he continued to pepper the off-side boundary with excellent cuts and drives. He hit 13 fours in all, the best of which was probably an exquisitely timed on drive after skipping to the pitch of a ball from left-arm spinner Nawaz.But Samuels’ habit of staying leg side of the ball and his general lack of foot movement caused him occasional problems and ultimately led to his downfall. He had an early slice of luck when an outside edge off Mohammad Amir’s bowling fell short of Babar Azam at second slip. In the second session, he played a loose drive against Wahab, throwing his hands at the ball, and was lucky the edge did not carry to the wicketkeeper. Eventually Sohail Khan bowled an indipper that wrapped Samuels on the pads in front of middle; he was rooted in the crease and falling over. It was the first wicket by a fast bowler in the Test match.After the dinner break, bowling with the second new ball, Wahab cracked the game open for Pakistan with a venomous short-ball barrage. Jermaine Blackwood was given an intense working over, before he gloved an attempted pull to Sarfraz Ahmed behind the stumps. In Wahab’s next over, Roston Chase fended a well-directed bouncer to Azam, who had just been moved to leg slip. West Indies were 266 for 5 at this stage and suddenly looked vulnerable once again. The late wicket of Bravo, just after West Indies brought up 300, capped off a good day for Pakistan.That said, they might have anticipated an easier day when Yasir dismissed Brathwaite in just the second over. He got a flighted delivery to drift into middle stump before turning away slightly to beat the outside edge and hit off stump. While it was a good ball, it was made to look even better by the batsman, who lunged forward and played down the wrong line.Thereafter, Samuels and Bravo frustrated the bowlers with their third-wicket stand for 43.3 overs. Pakistan’s concerns were exacerbated when Nawaz was warned twice for following through in the danger area shortly after tea. They grew even further in the next over when Samuels drilled the ball back at Azhar Ali, who took a blow to his right hand and had to go off for treatment.But Sohail broke the century stand, Wahab inflicted further damage after dinner, Azhar came back to take up his position at short leg and Nawaz went on to take a crucial late wicket. Pakistan ended up with most boxes ticked.

Alastair Cook has kissed a few frogs in his search to find a new opening partner, but will now be hoping that either Haseeb Hameed or Ben Duckett turns out to be his prince.If all goes to plan, one of them will become his 10th opening partner since the retirement of Andrew Strauss (at the end of the 2012 season) when the first Test against Bangladesh starts in Chittagong on October 20.They are far from like-for-like selections. While Hameed is a fairly classical looking player – he is no blocker, but he has a solid defence and pleasing armoury of conventional strokes – Duckett is a bold choice in the modern sense that he seems naturally inclined to attack and has every shot in the book, as well as several that are not. While he has scored his 1,338 Championship runs this season at a strike-rate of 79.45 – a rate that, not so long ago, was considered respectable in List A cricket – Hameed has scored his 1,154 at a strike-rate of 39.33. Hameed, however, has been opening in Division One, while Duckett has been opening in Division Two.Duckett will have the first opportunity to impress. He is expected to open in the ODI series that precedes the two Tests and it is possible that he will convince the management in those games that he has the character as well as the skills to win selection for the Test side. James Whitaker, the national selector, is clearly a huge admirer, referring to Duckett as “a special player” and “a point-of-difference player”. Not since the elevation of Joe Root as a debutant been spoken of in such terms.After the ODI series, the pair will go head to head in the red-ball warm-up games. With Cook absent on paternity leave, they will open in both the two-day warm-up games that precede the Tests, and though the captain is expected to return in time for the first Test, there has to be a possibility that Duckett and Hameed will open together; the first pair of debutant openers for England since 1937 when Jim Parks senior and Len Hutton did so against New Zealand at Lord’s.While it has been presumed that Hameed is in pole position to open – testament to his incredible ascent, really, given his age and lack of first-class experience – it may prove that Duckett is more Trevor Bayliss’ type of player. Bayliss has gone on the record previously as stating his preference for quick-scoring players and, while he has retracted that a little, he may be hesitant at positioning Cook and Hameed together at the top of the order. While Cook has certainly increased his scoring range and Hameed is not the out-right blocker some suggest, it is not impossible to envisage a scenario where progress becomes sluggish with the two of them together. Whether that should matter is another point entirely.Duckett, speaking shortly after his selection was announced, promised to continue to play his natural, positive game and suggested his aptitude against spin bowling might play to his advantage.”I do play aggressively in first-class cricket and that has worked for me at the minute,” he said. “But there is plenty for me to learn in the Test game.”I’m still learning with the red ball stuff and haven’t nailed my game in that format just yet. To watch the likes of Cook out in Bangladesh it will be amazing for me to learn a few things.”One thing I do have is my ability to play against spin. I think in Bangladesh they could bowl spin first-change so that is something I’d be confident in facing and if I was given a chance then I’ll try and be as positive as I can be and, fingers crossed, it pays off.”I played hockey at school so the sweeps, reverse sweeps and quick hands might have come from that.”The main thing about playing spin is that a spinner wants to bowl six balls in the same spot and you could just block it. But my main thing is about putting them under as much pressure as I can and whoever that guy is bowling at me, whether it is Shane Warne or whoever, I just have to put them under as much pressure as I can.”If you can find ways of scoring then they’ll be on the back foot straight away.”Hameed’s skills are, perhaps, not as obvious, but they are substantial nevertheless. Blessed with an apparently unflappable technique, he has made a huge impression at Lancashire in recent months. Not only is he their leading run-scorer in the Championship season – an astonishing achievement for a teenager – but he has become the youngest man to be capped by the club since World War Two. He has, as Whitaker put it, “run-scoring in his DNA.””We think he’s got loads of technical qualities,” Whitaker said. “He has a really good, solid technique and a great temperament.”We’re excited. I’m sure he’ll bring lots of quality to the team. He’s passed every test so far in his young life, and he’s really hungry for success.”He plays the ball late. He’s got good discipline and defence as well. But make no mistake, he’s got the shots. We’ve seen him take on some good-quality county bowling, with cuts and pulls. He’s got the shots in the locker; he’s just very shrewd as to when he uses them.”Whitaker also confirmed that a decision had been made to drop Hales from the Test squad before it became apparent that he was unwilling to tour Bangladesh. While he is likely to return for the ODI series in India – there has been no date set for when the India squads will be named, but it is expected to be a 16-man Test squad – he will not be considered for the Test series there.It seems the non-selection of Jack Leach, Somerset’s left-arm spinner, owed something to the experience of Simon Kerrigan in the Oval Test of 2013. While Kerrigan had played some A team (or Lions as it is now known) cricket before that Test, he was still something of an unknown quantity and perhaps hadn’t spent enough time around the rest of the squad to feel completely comfortable.As a result, it is thought Kerrigan was not in the best position to do himself justice. He conceded 53 runs from eight first-innings overs and did not bowl again in the match. The experience seems to have scarred him and he has never quite recaptured the excellence of his bowling before it. The selectors are keen not to expose Leach to the same experience. It was noticeable that his county captain, Chris Rogers, said earlier this week he felt Leach “emotionally still has a bit of a way to go” before he was ready for the top level.The flaw in such an argument comes with the realisation that Hameed has not played any Lions cricket, either. Is the discipline of spin bowling so different mentally to that of opening the batting? Perhaps. Or maybe Hameed is simply a more phlegmatic character. Either way, expect Leach – and Ben Foakes, who was another to narrowly miss out on selection in the Test squad – to feature in performance squads named on Monday.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details2:10

Manjrekar: India didn’t seem to have a Plan B

There is a lot to be said of Roston Chase. He’s languid at the crease. He plays late and close to his body. He wasn’t perturbed by a tough situation. And his timing stood out. Fifty years since it was last done for West Indies and a few days after the 80th birthday of the man who did it, Chase achieved the double of a century and a a five-for in the same Test. In the process he helped pull off an improbable draw: batting for survival, West Indies had lost four wickets in 15.5 overs on day four, but on the final day they gave up only two.Chase looked correct when he defended, graceful when he attacked and bloody determined all through. Sir Garry Sobers would’ve enjoyed a fellow Bajan emulating his feat with an innings like that.On a wet day four, along with 82.1 overs, it appeared West Indies’ fight had gone missing too. Their openers fell early, and in ungainly fashion. One senior player fell for a duck and another was a sitting duck against a short ball. It had become a walk in the park for India. This morning, however, they were stuck in the mud. The first 25 balls cost 40 runs. The fast bowlers were hit through the line and over the top. The spinners were hit against the turn. Chase had finally made it a contest. At tea, he had the favourites sweating. An hour and a half later, he made Virat Kohli concede and take the draw. The first draw at Sabina Park since 1998.India tried to bounce Chase, he pulled them away. India used reverse swing, he kept them out shortening his backlift. India tried to spin him out, but his open stance showed him exactly what was coming at him. On 99, he flicked a ball on his pads right through the man at midwicket, completed the single and celebrated his first Test hundred in his second Test match by crossing his hands in the shape of an X over his head. His coach and team-mates were clapping with gusto. Sir Viv Richards was up on his feet screaming “Roston!”From the other end, Jamaica’s own Jermaine Blackwood smashed 63 off 54 balls and the man who replaced him at the crease, Shane Dowrich, applied himself beautifully. He fell 26 short of what might have been a maiden Test hundred when umpire Ian Gould adjudged him lbw to Amit Mishra not spotting an inside edge.This was only the third time over the last 12 Tests that a Kingston crowd got to watch cricket on the fifth day. And while their numbers could have been better, their investment in the match couldn’t be faulted too much. One fan implored Dowrich to “come again” – meaning restart – after he turned his nose up at the turn a Mishra legbreak got. The outside edge evaded a diving Ajinkya Rahane at slip. Another boomed “good shot, good shot” when Chase drove R Ashwin down the ground. Among the fans was Sheldon Cottrell, who had completed his CPL stint last week, with a little girl next to him. They were all watching history.India bowled 88.1 overs. They conceded 340 runs and could get only two wickets. For the first time in nine days, their opposition was willing to give, well, opposition. Kohli began to chirp at Chase to see if he could be unruffled. Mishra fielded a ball that was pushed back at him and flung it back at the batsman in frustration. Things were getting out of hand. More accurately, West Indies were not giving anything away under the the kind of pressure where giving away an inch was as good as a mile. Chase and Dowrich raised the team’s first hundred partnership of the series at the rate of 3.77 runs per over. Chase and Blackwood had added 93 runs at 5.26 an over. This was not backs-to-the-wall batting. This was special.Those in the know say batsmen need to switch on and switch off. But it was difficult to say if Chase ever switched off. The smallest of smiles broke through when he secured his century; it was only his third in first-class cricket and this was only his 31st first-class match. He was batting like he had a 100 of each.Chase defied India when they had secured a lead of 304 runs, and then taken four wickets in only 15.5 overs on a rain-hit fourth day. With 98.1 overs on the final day, they were supposed to get back-to-back Test victories in a series away from home. Something that has not happened since 2005, against Zimbabwe. Dilute the equation to the top-eight teams, and you end up at 1986, against England.The bowlers did try. Mohammed Shami made the old and the new ball swing. Ishant Sharma kept squaring batsmen up. Ashwin couldn’t have one of his days – 30-4-114-1. Umesh Yadav and Mishra were disappointing, a combined 37-8-134-2.West Indies saw every ball that came down, inspected them carefully and then put them in their place. As good as the strokes themselves was the batsmen’s belief they could measure up.Blackwood showed it when he lifted Shami over his head for a six. When he leapt back, stood tall and hit Ashwin despite the extra bounce to the cover boundary. He became the first West Indian since Shivnarine Chanderpaul in 2014 to hit two half-centuries in the same match.Dowrich showed it when he lofted Ashwin over the long-on fence. When he used Umesh Yadav’s reverse swing to his advantage and flicked through midwicket and when he topped that by pulling the next ball to the boundary.Holder showed it when he blunted a brutal short ball from Shami, dropping his wrists but keeping his eyes on it to make sure he could control where it fell. He got to his fifty with a six against Ashwin.It was only the first time in West Indies’ history that their Nos 5 through 8 had scored 50 or more in the same innings. That’s so rare it has only happened five times in all of Test history.The man who inspired it all walked away unbeaten after an entire day’s play.

The Supreme Court has asked the Lodha Committee to re-examine the recommendation relating to the presence of two franchise representatives on the IPL Governing Council. The BCCI had strongly objected to the recommendation, saying that the presence of franchises’ representatives would amount to conflict of interest as the Governing Council takes influential decisions that directly affect the teams.”The BCCI contends that the induction of the nominees from the franchisees is impermissible because important matters like players-retention policy, posting of umpires for IPL matches, etc are deliberated upon and decided by the Governing Council itself,” the two-judge bench of the court said in its judgement on Monday, which made it mandatory for the BCCI to implement virtually all the recommendations proposed by the Lodha Committee. “There is therefore an evident conflict of interest between the nominees of the IPL franchisees on the one hand and their role as members of the Governing Council on the other.”In May, former BCCI president Shashank Manohar had expanded on why the BCCI felt the presence of the franchises’ nominees on the Governing Council amounted to clear conflict of interest. Manohar pointed out that one big reason the BCCI got itself embroiled in a slew of legal issues was the presence of former BCCI president N Srinivasan, the owner of Chennai Super Kings, on the IPL Governing Council. “I should not judge on a matter when I have an interest in it. That is the basic rule of law,” Manohar said.Having the franchise nominees on the Governing Council would amount to violating the principles of “institutional integrity”, the BCCI legal counsel had said during the court hearings.The objective of this particular recommendation, the Lodha committee had said, was to bring more independent voices to the Governing Council. The council, it said, should comprise of nine members: three ex-officio members (the BCCI secretary, treasurer, and the CEO), two representatives of the members of BCCI to be elected by the General Body, two nominees of the franchises, one nominee who is the Comptroller and Auditor General’s representative on the Apex Council (the proposed body that would replace the Working Committee, the BCCI’s highest decision-making body), and one nominee from the players’ association. It was also recommended that the nominees of the franchises rotate annually.The court pointed out that “independent voices” was the objective, but contended that the Lodha Committee was not definitive on whether the IPL franchises needed to have a seat on the Governing Council. “All that is said is that the Governing Council [so far] has denied any role to the franchisee companies, and that there is no independent voice in the Governing Council which is dominated by the full members of the BCCI and two former cricketers,” the court said.The court did concede, however, that there was an element of conflict, as raised by Manohar and BCCI. “The Committee does not appear to have addressed the question of conflict of interest in the event IPL franchisees place two nominees in the Governing Council. There is prima facie a possibility of conflict of interest arising out of [this]. Be that as it may, we do not consider it necessary to finally pronounce on this aspect, which can be better left to the Committee to re-examine in the light of what has been observed earlier.”The court made it clear that if the Lodha Committee were to rule out the possibility of conflict of interest on re-examing the recommendation, it would accept it. “We make it clear that if upon reconsideration of the matter the Committee takes a view that the induction of the nominees of the franchisees will not result in any conflict of interest, it shall be free to stick to its recommendations in which event the recommendations shall be deemed to have been accepted by this Court to be formalised and carried out in such manner as the Committee may decide.”

Match facts

Sunday, June 19
Start time 1300 local (1700GMT)1:15

South Africa riding high before Australia game

Big Picture

The points table for this series would be best read by Richie Benaud: 2-2, 2-2, 2-2. That is to say, Australia, South Africa and West Indies have each won two and lost two. Not only that, but after the first two legs of the series in Guyana and St Kitts, every team has beaten every other team once and no more. That will change in Barbados on Sunday, when either Australia or South Africa will jump ahead on the points table and give themselves a strong chance of qualifying for the final.South Africa enter this match buoyant after posting 343 for 4 in their most recent match, a thrashing of West Indies at Warner Park. It was a win centred around Hashim Amla’s century, although Imran Tahir ended up Man of the Match for his seven-wicket haul. Australia are coming off a loss to West Indies in St Kitts. During that match the captain Steven Smith tweaked his quadriceps, and he did not train on Thursday or Friday in Barbados. However, the Australians are confident Smith will be available for Sunday’s game.As a side note, remarkably this is the first ODI to be held at Kensington Oval for more than five years. The most recent was played on May 2, 2011, when West Indies beat Pakistan in a rain-affected game. In fact, if you were to look at the results of the five most recent ODIs at Kensington Oval, Australia’s World Cup final win over Sri Lanka in 2007 would be part of that list. Only four ODIs have been played in Barbados since that final nine years ago. This is Australia’s first one-dayer at the venue since that final with its bad-light fiasco.

Form guide

Australia LWLWL (last five completed games, most recent first)
South Africa WLWLW

In the spotlight

It is only this year that Usman Khawaja has finally been given a decent run at ODI cricket, and his numbers keep growing. A maiden 50 came in New Zealand in February, then 59 against South Africa in St Kitts, then 98 against West Indies at the same venue. Opening in the absence of the injured David Warner, Khawaja has the perfect opportunity to build innings of substance. He just needs to shake off the fielding woes that afflicted him in the previous game, when he dropped two straightforward chances in the first 10 overs.Imran Tahir not only claimed the best figures by a South African in an ODI on Wednesday, he also became the fastest South African to reach the milestone of 100 ODI wickets. Nobody in world cricket has taken more ODI wickets in the past three years than Tahir’s 91 at 24.60, and it is perhaps surprising that he is not ranked higher than No. 5. Given Australia’s well-documented struggles against spin, Tahir will fancy his chances of adding a few more victims to his collection in this game.

Team news

Nathan Coulter-Nile will make way for Mitchell Starc, as Australia continue to manage his workload. Glenn Maxwell, too, is set to return after he was picked in the 12-man squad on the eve of the game in place of Travis Head. Maxwell was dropped for Australia’s two matches in Basseterre after scores of 0 and 3 at the start of the series. The Australians appear confident that Smith will play but if he were to miss out, George Bailey would likely captain the side.Australia (possible) 1 Aaron Finch, 2 Usman Khawaja, 3 Steven Smith (capt), 4 George Bailey, 5 Mitchell Marsh, 6 Glenn Maxwell, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 James Faulkner, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh HazlewoodSouth Africa’s bowling coach, Claude Henderson, floated the idea of playing three spinners in Barbados, but after their comprehensive win in the previous match they may wish to use the same XI.South Africa (possible) 1 Hashim Amla, 2 Quinton de Kock (wk), 3 Faf du Plessis, 4 AB de Villiers (capt), 5 JP Duminy, 6 Farhaan Behardien, 7 Wayne Parnell, 8 Chris Morris, 9 Kagiso Rabada, 10 Tabraiz Shamsi, 11 Imran Tahir

Pitch and conditions

There was some grass evident on the Kensington Oval pitch in the lead-up to the match, but it is expected to be a good batting surface. The players will also need to adjust to the bigger boundaries after the much smaller Warner Park in St Kitts.

Stats and trivia

• No team in this tournament has yet won consecutive matches
• Mitchell Starc needs five wickets to reach 100 in ODIs, and if he does so in his next four games he will be the quickest man in history to the milestone

Quotes

“I know it’s all precautionary and he’ll be ready to go for Sunday’s clash. I’m sure he’s raring to go and to hit a few cricket balls.”
“Barbados, I’ve been told, is a better batting wicket with a bit more bounce. I also believe the boundaries are also a bit bigger. Who knows, do we go in with three spinners, is that an option?”

Match facts

Saturday, May 21, 2016
Start time 1600 local (1030 GMT)

Big Picture

As the race for the playoffs intensifies, there’s going to be a race at the bottom of the table too – for who will not finish last. Kings XI Punjab and Rising Pune Supergaints will kick off the weekend double-bonanza with their last games of the season. Both sides’ journeys have had several similarities, but there was contrast in their respective previous matches.Supergiants created a cavity in Delhi Daredevils’ chances of qualifying with a 19-run win in a rain-hit match. Ashok Dinda’s swing fetched him three wickets in a frugal spell, Adam Zampa and R Ashwin found substantial turn, and Ajinkya Rahane scored at the top, as usual. Supergiants handed an IPL debut to Deepak Chahar, and might consider giving chances to their other unused players – Ishwar Pandey, B Aparajith and Ankush Bains.Going by form, Kings XI appear weaker, and their confidence would have been dented further after being pummelled by Royal Challengers Bangalore. Kings XI’s batsmen were never the incisors of their jaw and they were blunted further by almost being bowled out in a 15-over match. Bowling had been their core competence and that too took a beating in their previous two matches. Kings XI will now need more than a root canal to rise from the bottom.Apart from pride and the two points to play for, both teams can bring out their fearless and unrestrained games to ensure they don’t finish last.

Form guide

Rising Pune Supergiants WLLLW (last five matches, most recent first)
Kings XI Punjab LLWLW

In the spotlight

Adam Zampa, in his first IPL season, has chewed his way to the top 15 wicket-takers’ list despite having played just four matches. He has extracted turn, flighted the ball and hasn’t given batsmen much room. He also has the only five-for of the season; his best of 6 for 19 coming against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Zampa has 11 wickets in all at an economy rate of 6.38, and has struck every seven balls. He could prove to be dangerous against Kings XI too, who have only one frontline left-handed batsman – David Miller.Hashim Amla has batted five times in IPL 2016, but has only one substantial score. Even that 56-ball 96 was eclipsed by a solid show by the Sunrisers Hyderabad batsmen in Mohali, only five days ago. With an in-form M Vijay as his opening partner, Amla would want to end his first IPL sojourn with another strong show before heading to the West Indies for a tri-series.

Team news

After giving Chahar a chance in their previous match, Supergiants could draft in a few more of their inexperienced players, or even consider bringing back Peter Handscomb or Albie Morkel.Rising Pune Supergiants (probable): 1 Ajinkya Rahane, 2 Usman Khawaja, 3 Saurabh Tiwary/B Aparajith, 4 George Bailey, 5 Thisara Perera, 6 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 7 Irfan Pathan/Rajat Bhatia, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Adam Zampa, 10 Ashok Dinda 11 RP Singh/Ishant Sharma/Ishwar PandeyAs if to give competition to Supergiants’ injury list, Kings XI recently bid goodbye to Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis, who are back in Australia. They could bring back Anureet Singh after KC Cariappa leaked 55 in three overs against Royal Challengers.Kings XI Punjab (probable): 1 M Vijay (capt), 2 Hashim Amla, 3 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 4 Farhaan Behardien, 5 Gurkeerat Singh, 6 David Miller, 7 Kyle Abbott, 8 Axar Patel, 9 Mohit Sharma 10 Sandeep Sharma, 11 Anureet Singh/KC Cariappa

Pitch and conditions

Cyclone Roanu, which is causing devastation in Sri Lanka, is hovering around the Bay of Bengal, not far from Visakhapatnam. Even though the sun is expected to come out on Saturday, rain interruptions cannot be ruled out.

Stats and trivia

• M Vijay is only the second Kings XI captain to hit three 50-plus scores in a season after Adam Gilchrist in 2011
• Adam Zampa’s bowling average of 7.54 is the best for any bowler to take at least 10 wickets in an IPL season