Kayes double ton puts South Zone on top

South Zone's Imrul Kayes lit up a dull day in Mirpur with his maiden double-hundred in first-class cricket. His 204 pushed North Zone virtually out of the contest on the third day of the BCL final.

South's lead has now swelled to 446 runs, and they are in position to dictate terms, with seven wickets and two days remaining. They batted out the entire third day, making 410-3 with Imrul's double and Mithun Ali's eighth first-class hundred.

Early morning rain delayed the start of play by 45 minutes, but it hardly deterred the South Zone openers. Anamul Haque fell after adding 57 for the first wicket, followed by an 80-run second wicket stand between Imrul and Soumya Sarkar, who made 41. The latter was needlessly run out in the 38th over, after Imrul called for a single and Soumya hesitated before he was caught well short of the crease at the striker's end.

Imrul batted with less patience than Mithun, who hardly put a foot wrong. The pair had to constantly tackle the in-form Taijul Islam and Sanjamul Islam, both left-arm spinners bowling in tandem in the afternoon session. Imrul smashed nine sixes and 20 fours in his stay at the crease, lasting one minute short of six hours, while Mithun struck 13 fours and five sixes in his unbeaten 111.

The 254-run stand between Imrul and Mithun hardly had a glitch, except for Imrul popping half-chances close to short-leg, cover and long-on. The last of those didn't make North Zone captain Nasir Hossain happy and he expressed himself quite loudly, with Imrul batting in the 190s at that point.

Soon, Mithun reached his hundred with a cover-driven four and Imrul tucked the ball around the corner to reach his first double-hundred. His previous best score was 138. Imrul said he always had a dream to reach the milestone, and that his team's dominance on the third day had taken them to a great position.

"I am feeling really good," Imrul told the media. "I had a target to score a double century for a while now. Actually, not being able to score a double-century in the current scenario, being a top order batsman, one isn't able to get that acceptance so this was required. When another batsman scores a double hundred, it feels bad. I tell myself, 'why can't I do it?'

"The match is completely in our hands. If we can bat for two sessions tomorrow we will give them the bat. We know that if we draw we will win the game."

Imrul's dominance of Taijul looked risky at times, but he was always in control with his shots along the ground, even when he struck them straight to mid-on or mid-off. He struck five of his nine sixes off this left-arm spinner, never letting him settle for too long. He struck two sixes off Sanjamul and one each off Subashis Roy and Nasir Hossain.

He explained that since the left-arm spinner was bowling with some flight, he took it upon himself to use his feet. "Actually I played to the situation," Imrul said. "If he gave me flight, any batsman will automatically go down the wicket.

"Taijul has been bowling well in the last year. There are many quality left-arm spinners so in four-day cricket if we get in an attacking mode and play him normally, we can easily negotiate him. First I saw that if a batsman stretches out to play him on the front foot it will be very dangerous for him. If you use your feet against him, it will be easier."

Taijul ended with figures of 1 for 109 off 27 overs while Farhad Reza took the wicket of Imrul late in the day, when the batsman hooked the ball straight to deep fine-leg.

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'Started pondering Test future after NZ series' - Sammy

Darren Sammy, the West Indies all-rounder who announced his retirement from Test cricket yesterday, has said his decision wasn't a fallout of his being replaced as captain by wicketkeeper-batsman Denesh Ramdin.

Sammy, whose decision to call time on his Test career came hours after he was axed as captain, said he had been thinking about it for a long time. "After the New Zealand series [which West Indies lost 2-0] I sat down with the team management and the selectors and then told myself that we cannot continue like this. Probably my career is on the line. I was very serious about it," Sammy told ESPNcricinfo.

"It was a difficult decision. If you have been playing cricket as a kid, all you have been dreaming of is to represent your team in Test cricket and I have been fortunate enough to do it. But I thought it was the right time for me to move on. I feel it's time the West Indies Test team continues to move in a new direction, under a new leader."

Extending his support to Ramdin, who led Trinidad and Tobago into the semifinals of the regional four-day championship, Sammy had a word of advice for him as well. "Denesh has been captaining regional teams with distinction but it (leading West Indies) is a difficult job," he said. "Leading guys who come from different cultural backgrounds and getting the best out of them. I wish him all the best as he tries to the lead West Indies Test cricket forward into a new era."

Despite marking his Test debut with a seven-wicket haul in the second innings at Old Trafford or having been heckled as perhaps the slowest-ever West Indies new-ball bowler, Sammy, the first cricketer from St Lucia to play Test cricket, will be most remembered for having led the West Indies when a player revolt marred Caribbean cricket in 2010.

"When I was asked to lead the team when it was in disarray, it was the most challenging phase for me," Sammy said. "There was no way I could not have accepted the job. To get the bunch to play as a unit, earn their respect and then lead them towards a new direction has been a memorable journey. From what I have contributed, I hope I have done my bit and it's time for somebody else to carry on."

Sammy, who has had a moderate run in the IPL for Sunrisers Hyderabad this year, stressed that his best as a limited-overs cricketer was yet to come. "I am sure we all have a part to play to take West Indies cricket forward in whichever format we are playing in," Sammy said. "I am pretty much available in one-day and T20 cricket and hope my services will be utilised. I have my best years of cricket ahead of me and look forward to contributing to West Indies cricket. I am still fit. Probably I might not look fit but I am fit. I wish I can keep on playing my role in West Indies cricket."

Sammy thanked the West Indies cricket fraternity and his family for their support. "I respect this great game a lot and I have always given my best, whether it was in the dressing room or when I have trained," he said. "I thank all my teammates and support staff and administrators for all their support. I would also like to thank all my friends and family for standing beside me, especially my wife Cathy."

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India to tour Bangladesh after IPL

India will tour Bangladesh for a three-ODI series during the window between the IPL final on June 1 and their departure for England on June 22. The three ODIs will be played in Dhaka on June 15, 17 and 19.

ESPNcricinfo understands India will have a new captain in all likelihood, with MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli unavailable for the tour. Dhoni has planned a family vacation and the BCCI is inclined towards resting the captain for a rigorous season starting with the England tour and culminating with the 2015 World Cup.

Similarly, Kohli, who led India during the Asia Cup in March in the absence of the injured Dhoni, has also indicated to the BCCI hierarchy that he would prefer a break going into the hectic season. The other three players who have led India in the recent past are Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Suresh Raina. None of them were part of the Asia Cup campaign. As a result, the selectors could be forced to choose a new captain, with Rohit Sharma and R Ashwin the main contenders to lead.

India's tour to Bangladesh was in principle agreed upon between the boards at the time of FTP negotiations in February, and the dotted line was signed on the sidelines of last month's ICC executive board meeting in April.

ESPNcricinfo had learned last week that the BCB was waiting to hear from the BCCI and also waiting to confirm the six-year TV broadcaster's deal, for which they had asked for bids from April 24. The main selling point for the BCB was the two India tours to Bangladesh during this period, including the series in June. The open bid to determine the broadcaster is on May 16.

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Wright latest to send England reminder

Sussex 441 for 5 (Wright 183*, Brown 152*) v Durham
Scorecard

With England seeking a new start under Peter Moores it is the opportune time for players to push their name forward. Luke Wright was the latest to do so with a century against defending County Champions Durham as Sussex moved into a strong position at Hove.

Having missed the first few rounds of the season to be with his wife and new-born child in Australia, Wright endured a low-key return for Sussex last week against Lancashire but here gave a strong reminder of his ability after a lean winter with England.

Wright closed the day five short of his first-class best and in league with wicketkeeper Ben Brown, who went past his career-best score, set a new record for the sixth wicket for Sussex and for anyone against Durham. The pair added 326 to haul their side out of a sticky patch at 115 for 5 to close well on top.

At that stage, Durham's decision to insert Sussex looked a good one as they chase a first victory of the season. Chris Nash was the first man to go, edging Chris Rushworth behind for 10, and Michael Yardy then fell for just five when he was caught by Kumar Sangakkara off the bowling off Graham Onions.

Wickets continued to tumble - Ed Joyce bowled by Usman Arshad for 21 before opener Luke Wells gave wicketkeeper Phil Mustard a second victim. And when Matt Machan also edged behind, Sussex looked in some trouble.

But little did they know by the close of play Wright and Brown would have guided them to 441 with no further wickets lost.

Durham did have a chance to snare Brown relatively early but Mustard dropped his fellow wicketkeeper. His misery was then compounded the following ball when Brown stole a single, Mustard shied at the stumps and conceded four overthrows, allowing Brown to reach his 50 in 76 balls.

By that stage Wright had gone to his own half-century, also in 76 balls, and the hundred partnership was raised in the 58th over. Wright went on to notch up three figures with a four off Usman Arshad and five overs later Brown was also celebrating his century.

The pair survived the second new ball and played out the remainder of the day to complete a remarkable turnaround and leave Durham wondering how it all slipped away from them.

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South take lead after Al-Amin four

South Zone toiled hard to take the first-innings lead against North Zone on the second day of the Bangladesh Cricket League final in Mirpur. Al-Amin Hossain's four wickets were crucial, but the sluggishness of the North Zone batsmen also contributed to the position of the two teams.

North Zone were bowled out for 235 runs in 97.5 overs, being set behind by 36 runs. According to the points system, South Zone have already collected five points, one ahead of their opponents.

Resuming the day on 15 for no loss, Junaid Siddique fell in the 11th over of the morning when he edged Al-Amin after making 25. The second-wicket stand between Maisuqur and Farhad Hossain put North Zone back in the game, as they took up more than 35 overs to add the 60 runs.

On a flat batting track, this approach, however, was ill-advised as Farhad and Maisuqur let go of several scoring opportunities as they looked to stretch the innings. The breakthrough eventually came just before lunch when Farhad was caught behind off Shuvagata Hom for 32.

Naeem Islam was quickly sent packing by Al-Amin who produced a snorter to make the batsman fend to gully, giving substitute Salman Hossain an easy catch. Maisuqur was also undone by a short-of-a-length delivery by the same bowler, falling for a painstaking 42 made in just over four hours.

Thereafter, captain Nasir Hossain held on to one end, making 69 off 110 balls with nine fours and a six. Towards the end Taijul made 29 off 24 balls but it could not quite earn North Zone a lead.

Apart from Al-Amin's four, Sohag Gazi, Abdur Razzak and Shuvagata took two wickets each.

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Shivam Sharma grabs his ticket out of obscurity

Last July during his first major coaching assignment, Sanjay Bangar, the Kings XI Punjab head coach, and three other experts spent three weeks with 20 talented youngsters at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore. It was a camp for those who had impressed in the previous season's domestic Under-19 competition but were no more eligible to compete at the junior level.

Shivam Sharma, the little-known allrounder who made his debut for Kings XI on Friday, was one of them. Shivam had a superb junior record in that season, with a batting average of 82 and bowling average of 20, besides captaining Delhi Under-19.

Most of the other players from that camp in Bangalore went on to play in the 2013-14 Ranji Trophy. But thanks to a chaotic selection policy in Delhi cricket, Shivam wasn't even picked in the Ranji probables or in the Delhi Under-25 side.

While Shivam was disheartened due to the lack of recognition, Bangar had marked him as one for the future. As a result, despite Shivam having only played Delhi club cricket all through the previous season, Bangar called him for a Kings XI selection trial in Chandigarh.

"That camp has been a turning point in his cricketing journey so far," Naresh Jain, Shivam 's coach, told ESPNcricinfo a day after Shivam marked his IPL debut with the prize scalps of Yuvraj Singh and Albie Morkel. "Having been sidelined from the bigger assignments for no fault of his, Shivam was very disappointed, but the Kings XI selection trials gave him the much-needed confidence that he was as good as anyone else of his age."

Hailing from a lower middle-class family in Delhi, Shivam has been training in the Vidya Jain Cricket Academy in the north-western suburb of Rohini. Jain was coach of Shivam's school and has been mentoring him since then. Jain stresses that Shivam is "a genuine allrounder". "You cannot conclude whether he is a better batsman or a bowler. He is special," Jain said. "He has a great ability to read the game and is a natural leader."

After Shivam was picked up by Kings XI Punjab for his base price of Rs 10 lakh, Jain was constantly reminding his favourite ward to be patient. "Not that he needed to be told but we were just discussing that he needed to wait for the first opportunity to showcase his talent."

When the opportunity came, it was against one of the most destructive batting line-up, the Royal Challengers Bangalore. That too at one of the smallest grounds in India, which is not known to assist spin. But Shivam first foxed Yuvraj with a classical offspinner's dismissal - forcing a left-hander to edge one that goes away from him straight into slips - and then enticed Morkel into a false stroke to finish with notable figures of 4-0-26-2.

"You have seen how clean his action is and how skilful he can be with the ball. I am sure he will show his prowess with the bat in the coming days. Let's hope he gets an opportunity to show his worth."

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Bell must shape new England

Ian Bell's fifty against Scotland, and the match as a whole, will not linger long in the memory but calmness and maturity were just what England needed

Ian Bell's breakthrough innings did not come against South Africa. It did not come against Australia. It did not even come against Sussex. It came against Shropshire.

It was May 2004. Bell was 22 years old and, though his talent was undoubted, his lack of progress was beginning to frustrate the management at Edgbaston. John Inverarity, at the time the Warwickshire director of cricket, even considered dropping Bell from a strong battling unit that was struggling to find room for the abundance of talent the club possessed at the time. "It's all very well having talent," Inverarity said in exasperation at the time, "at some stage you have to shape games."

As it was, the team that contested that second round game of the Cheltenham and Gloucester Trophy did not contain either Michael Powell or Jim Troughton and Bell was given another chance to prove himself.

He responded with a Man-of-the-Match winning performance. On a damp, two-paced wicket which reduced every other batsman to ugly swipes and ineffective heaves - Nick Knight, at the time arguably the most successful ODI batsman England had ever had, battled his way to an unbeaten 22 from 57 balls - Bell timed the ball with a grace granted to very few and made an elegant, unbeaten 58 from 37 balls. While he caressed 12 boundaries, his team-mates contributed just six between them. He looked a class apart.

With confidence - and position - restored, he went on to score an unbeaten 262 against a strong Sussex attack a couple of weeks later. It was an innings that gained the attention of the selectors and the media and, by the end of the summer, Bell was playing Test cricket. Sometimes, what seems trivial at the time can have far grander consequences.

There were echoes of that innings against Shropshire in Bell's half-century against Scotland. While the bowling was not especially demanding, the pitch conditions were. No-one else in the match made a half-century; no-one else timed the ball as sweetly. This was a situation that had all the ingredients for an upset - the shortened match, the damp pitch and sodden outfield, the tension of a team beaten more often than a snare drum finding their way under a new coach - but thanks to Bell's class and calm head, the accident was averted.

It says much for Bell's limited-overs career that he became, during his innings in Aberdeen, the second highest run-scorer in England's ODI history but that for most of that career, his place in the limited-overs teams has been questioned. Perhaps because of the apparent ease with which the runs have flowed, more is often expected of him. But since his return to the ODI side in the summer of 2012 his record - 1,451 runs at an average of 46.80 - is excellent.

We should not have been surprised by Bell's contribution in Aberdeen. The days when he might be considered a luxury player - pretty but inconsequential - are long gone. If he had not proved his backbone with defiant contributions in South Africa, he surely did so with his Man-of-the-Series winning efforts in the Ashes of 2013.

Bell would be the first to admit that his reputation was forged, in part, on the back of some pretty runs on flat tracks. As he put it following his Championship century against Sussex a few weeks ago: "In my early days, maybe I scored a lot of nice runs that looked good on the eye but really didn't change the course of the game. But in the last two, three or four years, I've started to score those [important] runs a lot more often. The way last summer went against Australia really gave me a lot of confidence - I came in at 20 for 3 a lot."

Now with most of the senior figures of the England dressing room gone - Andy Flower, Graeme Swann, Jonathan Trott and Kevin Pietersen - Bell will assume more responsibility. He will be expected to lead, on and off the pitch. He will be the man England turn to in trouble; the man who will shape games.

He is batting better than ever. It is not that he is timing the ball anymore sweetly or has discovered a new range of strokes; he had most of them anyway. And it is not that he is any more likely to make ugly runs; he is hardly capable of an ugly stroke. It is that he has fully embraced his role and responsibilities. He is prepared to graft and wait and work and fight.

It was a message he reiterated following Friday's victory in Aberdeen. Asked about the upheaval in the England camp over recent months, Bell responded with comments that showed much of the talk of coaches and team environment to be, to him at least, largely irrelevant.

"The players have to stand up and score runs and take wickets no matter who's coaching," Bell said. "That's the important thing.

"Giving responsibility to the players is going to be important. It's about the players standing up and winning games for England.

"In any sport the management can only do so much. They can get you ready but they can't do anything once you've crossed the line and responsibility comes down to the players. It's a big challenge for the senior players now helping the young guys come through and getting this team gelled. We saw with Australia how quickly a team can turn things around and we've got to believe we can do it, too."

It was the talk of a man who will not hide behind excuses, who will not hide behind potential and hope in the future. It was the talk of a man who knows that his own future and that of the England team is now entwined. If England are to prosper, Bell will have to shape a lot more game over the next few years. And he is revelling in the responsibility. Aged 32 and with a fine career behind him, it may well be that the best is yet to come.

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Mumbai's home streak ended at 10

Chennai Super Kings 160 for 6 (Smith 57, Malinga 2-15) beat Mumbai Indians 157 for 6 (Rayudu 59, Ashwin 3-30) by four wickets
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Hattangadi: Pollard and Anderson not utilised well

It's a tight Saturday prime-time IPL match involving the two highest profile franchises in the tournament. Guess who delivers when it's a big game? MS Dhoni is perhaps the best finisher in the limited-overs game, and when Chennai Super Kings needed a big hit in the final over, he duly obliged, as he has so many times in the past. It came down to 11 off the last over, and Dhoni responded by calmly whacking a six over deep midwicket before wrapping up the victory with three balls to spare.

The last time Mumbai Indians lost an IPL game at the Wankhede Stadium was back in 2012, so long ago that their openers were Sachin Tendulkar and Herschelle Gibbs. The 10-game winning streak at home was built on muscular batting and depth in the bowling, neither of which were in evidence today.

After the peerless Lasith Malinga had produced another superb Twenty20 burst to drag them back into the game, Mumbai had to turn to Kieron Pollard for the final over. #BreachTheFortress Super Kings had been tweeteing all day, and when the fortress had to be defended from Dhoni in the final over by amiable medium-pace, there was only going to be one winner.

Mumbai didn't help their cause by again keeping their biggest guns in the holster too long - Rohit Sharma came in towards the end of the 12th over, Kieron Pollard got a look-in only in the 18th, and Corey Anderson even later. When Rohit walked in, the run-rate was still hovering around six. The inclusion of Lendl Simmons worked better than the ill-fated experiment with Ben Dunk, but they will still expect quicker innings than a run-a-ball 38 from their specialist overseas batsman.

On a surface where Super Kings brought in an extra spinner in Samuel Badree, and on which R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja got plenty of assistance, Mumbai's spin department featured only Harbhajan Singh. Though chances of qualification for the play-offs are becoming remote, there were a couple of heartening things for Mumbai fans - Praveen Kumar showed he can be venomous with the new ball, and Ambati Rayudu shrugged off a run of lean scores with a half-century that anchored the innings.

Super Kings looked to be in control for much of the chase, helped along by a stop-start Dwayne Smith half-century, though they were rocked by a couple of woeful umpiring decisions. Brendon McCullum was sent on his way though the ball was clearly headed down the leg side, and the third umpire decided Suresh Raina was stumped though the replays suggested otherwise. They were also helped by the umpiring in the 17th over, just as the nerves were beginning to jangle: Jadeja was dead plumb to a full slower ball from Malinga, but the umpire somehow thought the ball would miss the stumps. He wasn't misled by Jadeja waving the bat as if to suggest he hit the ball, and the call of leg-byes only made the decision even more inexplicable.

Before the late drama, perhaps the highlight of the match was the astonishing range of boundary catches and drops - Mithun Manhas put down a sitter at long-on, Harbhajan Singh misjudged the line and could only get one hand on a midwicket six at a crucial juncture of the chase, Samuel Badree judged the ball perfectly at third man but could only push the ball over for six early on, Jadeja caught the ball at deep midwicket but failed to let the ball go before crossing the line, Simmons juggled three times before pocketing the ball at long-on, Raina took a couple of difficult tumbling efforts at midwicket, and the biggest wow-moment was Faf du Plessis flying across to catch a brutal hit at long-on before releasing the ball mid-air as he headed for the rope.

While the packed house roared on all that athleticism, they had come to see a Mumbai win. They got the second best thing - seeing the biggest name in Indian cricket do what he does best.

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Tahir banks on subcontinent experience

South Africa legspinner Imran Tahir is confident the experience of playing on subcontinent tracks during the World T20 will hold him in good stead as he prepares for his first IPL stint with Delhi Daredevils. Tahir, who was the leading wicket-taker in the World T20 in Bangladesh, was brought in as a replacement for the injured pacer Nathan Coulter-Nile.

"The wickets are looking the same. Even in Bangladesh there were no spin-friendly wickets. I have that experience and it would help," Tahir said. "Spinners have a main role whether in the IPL or world cricket. But it's hard to be a legspinner, you have to be accurate. The Kotla wicket suits spinners, I will try to do something special."

His addition is important for Daredevils who are currently struggling at the bottom of the table with six losses in eight games and need to win most of their remaining games for a shot at the play-offs. Slow-bowling is one of Daredevils' glaring weaknesses with frontline spinner Shahbaz Nadeem struggling for wickets. JP Duminy, a part-timer, has had to chip in to balance a bowling attack that has relied largely on pacers.

Tahir comes into the squad with 12 wickets in five games at the World T20 at an average of 10.91. He has 99 T20 wickets from 91 games with a strike rate of 19.5 and an economy rate of 6.42. Moreover, he also has the experience of having played in T20 leagues in Pakistan, South Africa and England. He also said that while he did not have a lot of experience of bowling in the Powerplay overs, he would be willing to do so for Daredevils.

"I know the team is not doing well. I want to do something for the team," Tahir said. "They are working hard, [it's] just things are not going their way. But you can't do much about it. Destiny, too, has a role to play in it. Even if we can win four out of six games, we will be able to justify.

"I have not bowled in Powerplay but if the captain asks me then it has to be considered in the interest of the team. I would like to put myself in that situation. If not, then I would like to bowl after six overs."

The presence of his South Africa team-mates, Duminy, Quinton de Kock and Wayne Parnell has made the transition smoother for Tahir.

"It is an advantage. They know how I play and they also know what they can to do help me as I am new in the side," he said. "I have also played against some of the Indians in England."

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PCB defends Waqar appointment

The PCB has defended its decision to name Waqar Younis as the national team's head coach, a day after Mohsin Khan blasted the appointment process. Mohsin, one of the contenders for the coach's job, had called the process a 'total farce', questioning why he had not been interviewed.

Zaheer Abbas, the former Pakistan captain who is now principal advisor to the PCB chairman, explained why Mohsin had not been interviewed. "The procedure is that we usually interview candidates about whom we have no or little information," Abbas said. "But Mohsin's case was different; he is quite familiar to us and we are aware of his strengths and weaknesses."

Mohsin had previously been Pakistan's coach in 2012, when he guided them to a famous 3-0 Test series sweep against then No. 1 England. Mohsin and Waqar were in the race for the top role and on Tuesday, the PCB appointed Waqar, who returned for a second term after his previous stint between March 2010 and August 2011.

Another former Pakistan captain, Intikhab Alam, who is now PCB's director of domestic cricket, also defended Waqar's appointment. "For the position of head coach we took a lot of other factors into account," Alam said. "We looked at an applicant's ability to be inclusive and take players along with him. After reviewing all seven applications on merit, we recommended Waqar Younis."

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