The Dodgers secured back-to-back World Series titles over the weekend with a thrilling Game 7 win over the Blue Jays. The 2025 Fall Classic was an awesome series and Los Angeles emerged the victor. It writes the franchise into the history books as a true modern dynasty and leaves Toronto absolutely heartbroken after coming within two outs of a championship.

It was a wild ride. But it’s over. Which means it’s time for one last celebration of the 2025 MLB season—the championship parade, slated for Monday, November 3.

As is tradition the Dodgers get to enjoy a championship parade as a reward for all their work. The entire roster, coaching staff, front office, and accompanying family members will pile onto a large group of buses and take a slow tour through downtown Los Angeles. Hundreds of thousands of Dodgers fans will attend and cheer on their favorite team after a playoff run for the ages. It will produce plenty of viral moments and lifelong memories for those involved.

Here’s how you can follow along, whether you’re watching from home or planning to trek alongside Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and the other Dodgers stars on the ground in Los Angeles.

What time is the Dodgers’ World Series parade?

The Dodgers’ World Series parade is slated to kick off at 11 a.m. PT, or 2 p.m. ET. This is about the standard start time for a championship parade and it’s slated to last about 45 minutes.

How to watch the Dodgers’ World Series parade

Those living in Los Angeles have a multitude of options to enjoy the parade on television.

On the local station front, on Fox 11 will be live at the parade throughout. Other local stations covering the parade will be NBC 4, KTLA 5, ABC 7, KCAL 9, CBS 2, Spectrum SportsNet LA and Spectrum News 1.

For those around the country who want to watch but don’t enjoy such easy access to local programming, Major League Baseball has ensured a multitude of viewing options. The parade will be streamed live on Dodgers.com, MLB.com, MLB Network, and the MLB App.

Dodgers’ parade route

Hundreds of thousands of fans will choose to celebrate in person. For many it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, even if the Dodgers have won multiple World Series titles recently. For those fans, the parade route will be a key piece of information for Monday’s showcase.

The Dodgers will begin the parade at the intersection of Temple Street and Broadway in downtown Los Angeles. After two blocks west the buses will turn south onto Grand Ave, which will be the longest single stretch of the parade. The Dodgers will slowly drive down Grand Ave and wave to the adoring fans for several blocks until they reach 7th Street, at which point the buses turn west until they hit Figueroa Street. Then the Dodgers turn north; the parade will finish at the intersection of Figueroa and 5th Street.

The team will then head on into Dodger Stadium for more celebrations. Fans can purchase tickets to that separate showcase, which is slated to begin at 12:15 p.m. PT.

Enjoy the parade!

India have gone unbeaten in 11 straight youth World Cup games, spanning two editions of the tournament

Bharath Seervi04-Feb-20201 – India’s 10-wicket victory against Pakistan in the semi-final in Potchefstroom is the first by such a margin by any team in knockout matches at the Under-19 World Cup. Before this, there have been two nine-wicket wins in the knockout games – one each by Australia (2006) and South Africa (2014).4 – Number of ten-wicket wins for India in U-19 World Cup matches. All four wins have come in the last two editions – two in 2018 and two at this year’s World Cup. India had defeated Japan by 10 wickets in their second match of this tournament.11 – Number of consecutive wins for India in U-19 World Cup matches. Their last defeat was in the final of 2016 edition against West Indies. Since then they have won all their games – six in 2018 and five in 2020.ESPNcricinfo Ltd156 – Yashasvi Jaiswal’s average in this tournament. He has scored 312 runs in five innings and has been dismissed only twice. At present he is the highest run-getter of this year’s edition, with scores of 59, 29*, 57*, 62 and 105*. His average is the highest by a batsman in an U-19 World Cup tournament (minimum 300 runs scored).9 – Batsmen to have scored centuries in the semi-final or final of U-19 World Cups. Incidentally, the last five batsmen to do so have all been Indians – Cheteshwar Pujara (2006 semi-final), Unmukt Chand (2012 final), Shubman Gill (2018 semi-final), Manjot Kalra (2018 final), and now Jaiswal. Overall, six of the nine batsmen who have scored hundreds in the semis or final of U-19 World Cups have been Indians.176* – The partnership between Jaiswal and Divyaansh Saxena – it is the second-highest for any wicket for any team in knockout matches at the U-19 World Cup. The only bigger stand was 177 by Imam-ul-Haq and Sami Aslam for Pakistan against Sri Lanka in 2014 quarter-final. For India, it is the second-biggest opening stand at the Under-19 World Cup and the fourth-highest opening partnership in U-19 ODIs.5-5 – Results between India and Pakistan in U-19 World Cup matches. India have won the last four games between these sides, from 2012 onwards, while the four matches before that were all won by Pakistan. In their previous game before today, the 2018 semi-final, India had won by 203 runs.

All the FAQs for the 2023-31 cycle and its bidding process answered here

Nagraj Gollapudi21-Feb-2020Despite reservations from powerful boards, such as the BCCI, the ICC has started the process to finalise the host countries for several global men’s and women’s events in the next cycle of 2023-2031, by the end of 2020. As a first step, the ICC recently asked all its members to send in expression of interest (EoI) by March 15. The ICC will then use a bidding model to finalise the host country for each of the events.To work out how the entire process works, ESPNcricinfo sought answers from the ICC on several key questions and put together the following FAQs based on the answers:How many tournaments are there in the 2023-31 FTP cycle for which EoIs have been sought?Twenty-eight overall. This includes eight men’s, eight women’s and eight Under-19 events (four men and four women) along with four World Test Championship finals.What is/are the timeline(s) for releasing the EoIs?The ICC has requested that all members, both Full Members and Associates, make their submissions by March 15 so the EoI responses received can be collated and presented to the ICC Board for their consideration during the next meeting in the last week of March. Post that meeting, the ICC intends to follow this up with a formal request for proposal (RFP) process, for which all interested members will have six months to make their formal submissions.ALSO READ: T20 ‘Champions Cup’ part of ICC events for 2023-2031Will the calendar be worked out first – listing which tournaments at what time of the year – before the EoIs go out?No. The ICC believes it is better to first get the feedback from the members on their choices and use that to shape the timing and location of the global events. The EoIs will help the ICC construct a draft calendar for hosting its events based on the responses received. This will give the ICC the starting point for members to develop a full international calendar. According to the ICC, this approach to plan the full FTP programme has been successfully employed over the last two cycles (2007-15 and 2015-23).ESPNcricinfo LtdCan a country bid for more than one ICC event?Yes. According to the ICC, the EoI is the first step. It will also allow the members to work with their respective governments on long-term planning and evaluate what will work best for the development of their sport in their respective markets. The ICC has stressed that the joint effort between the host countires and their respective governments is a must to accrue full benefits of hosting an event.Why was bidding felt to be a better option?The model provides an equal opportunity to all members, if they meet the criteria to bid for hosting the events. The ICC has said this is a very common model used globally for a number of other sports and global events. The ICC also said it had used this model previously and is a “central plank of our ambitions to grow the game globally.”How does the bidding process work?Once the EoIs have been submitted and shared, a formal RFP process, which will run for six months, will be opened. Interested members will be asked to respond to the RFP and submit proposals to host ICC events based on the RFP criteria which will then be considered for approval.Is the ICC expecting bidding for a tournament to be a revenue-generator?The ICC has said its preference is to stage events where there is support from the government in hosting the event and development of the sport in the country. Revenue is “just one of the many criteria” which will be detailed in the RFP that will be considered along with a range of other things including infrastructure, growth in the market and development of the sport.What are the various eligibility criteria? There will be a host of eligibility criteria including the required infrastructure to stage the events, which differs depending on the size of the event, the current cricketing eco-system in the market, the growth potential and development of infrastructure in place. Guarantees in relation to visas, tax exemptions, customs, security will also be a requirement.

The team has lost every single match on tour in Bangladesh and looks in need of a lot of improvement

Mohammad Isam in Dhaka11-Mar-2020Problem with the basicsTwice during the course of the limited-overs leg of this tour, captain Sean Williams called for improvement in the basics. He said that their approach in the field has been concerning and was also less than impressed with the way the bowlers planned their overs.It was also noticeable that batsmen struggled to cope with pressure. In Bangladesh, it is clear that spin is the major threat, but despite that knowledge they folded quite quickly against Nayeem Hasan in the one-off Test, while in the ODIs and T20Is, Bangladesh’s basic discipline was enough to knock them over too. One must wonder what the bowling, batting and fielding coaches are doing about it. What’s the plan, really?Uncharacteristic seniorsBrendan Taylor and the rest of the Zimbabwe senior players formed the backbone of their tours to Bangladesh in the past, but this wasn’t one of those tours. It began well after stand-in captain Craig Ervine struck a century on the first day of the one-off Test. But with Williams missing, Zimbabwe didn’t have the middle-order glue.Even after Williams’ return, their fortunes didn’t change. Taylor continued to struggle in the ODIs and only managed a fifty in the second T20I. Sikandar Raza batted aggressively in the T20Is, struck two fifties in the ODI series and was steady in the Test as well, but it wasn’t enough in the end.Pace attack without spearheadWhatever the format, exactly who led their pace attack remains a mystery. Chris Mpofu was their most experienced bowler but he looked rusty. Donald Tiripano played in all three formats but never looked like a wicket-taking pace bowler. Charlton Tshuma and Carl Mumba hardly made a dent on Bangladesh’s batting, too. They are clearly missing Kyle Jarvis and Tendai Chatara, both recovering from injury, and need them back.There are rumours that Blessing Muzarabani could come back into contention because of Brexit and its effect on Kolpak contracts. A tall guy who can bowl quick, and has control, will be very helpful to this team.No specialist spinnerRaza displayed several of his variations during this tour, including a fine googly that got Liton Das in the first T20I. But apart from him, no other Zimbabwe spinner stood up to the Bangladesh batsmen.Ainsley Ndlovu and Tinotenda Mutombodzi should have bowled better in helpful conditions. Young Wesley Madhevere bowls steady offspin, which will be handy if he has an attacking option from the other end. But the thing is it is quite apparent that batting is his stronger suit.Questions must be asked of the selectors about Brandon Mavuta and the in-form Tendai Chisoro being overlooked for this tour. Both men took plenty of wickets and scored runs in domestic cricket, which selectors said was their criteria when picking the team.Captaincy riddlePerhaps the biggest question they face. Who is Zimbabwe’s best captain in limited-overs cricket? It was strange to see the selectors bring back Chamu Chibhabha after he had not played at the highest level for 19 months. Even the regulars struggle to keep pace with international cricket after missing action for a few months, so when he did go out to bat in the first ODI in Syhelt, it was only natural that Chibhabha looked out of sorts. No one should blame him.Williams is their Test captain and after Chibhabha’s hand injury, he stepped up to lead in the ODIs and T20Is. There are a few senior cricketers in the side who can easily lead the limited-overs side if they want to free up Williams. All of these decisions must be taken quickly, as Zimbabwe have Ireland coming up in less than three weeks.

And how do we resolve the matter of who should be captain, and whether Imran Khan and Kapil Dev both deserve a place in the XI?

Sreshth Shah18-Apr-202029:50

Who makes it to our Asian World Cup-winning dream team?

Few things tickle the imagination of cricket fans like conjuring up fantasy XIs, with the liberty of letting the mind wander across generations, eras, borders and nationalities. And what better time to indulge ourselves with a dose of fantasy than now? Welcome to , a new series where we let our writers loose on a theme.First up, an all-Asian dream XI to be picked from the World Cup-winning sides of 1983, 1992, 1996 and 2011 by an all-Asian selection panel of Sharda Ugra, Osman Samiuddin and Andrew Fernando. You can watch the full discussion in the video above.2:16

Does Imran Khan make it? Or Kapil Dev? Or both?

Kapil Dev or Imran Khan?
Should that even be a question? Shouldn’t both just waltz into the team? Just like India wouldn’t have qualified for the knockout stage without Kapil’s epic solo against Zimbabwe in 1983, it’s hard to imagine Pakistan’s 1992 campaign without the towering presence of Khan. But remember, our selectors have to balance the side and they also have to judge each player on the basis of their performance in one World Cup. So not so clear-cut then.5:10

Who will captain the Asian World Cup-winning dream team?

The captaincy conundrum
We are spoilt for choice here. MS Dhoni, Arjuna Ranatunga, Khan and Kapil – all iconic leaders, inspirational in their different ways, and each of them had critical hands in their campaigns. Two of them – Kapil and Ranatunga – led teams with underdog tags to the title, while Khan roused his players from the brink of elimination, and Dhoni kept his side insulated from the noise as India went on to become the first team to win a World Cup at home.The Yuvraj Singh dilemma
Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir all scored more runs than him in 2011, but Singh took 15 wickets, second only to Zaheer Khan’s 21 in the World Cup and was the Player of the Tournament. However, the question is: does this team need him? Where will he bat? And will he be needed to bowl his ten overs? Dream Teams,

Five times when the smarts, the skills and that slower ball came together to produce magic

Sreshth Shah26-Aug-2020Chennai Super Kings v Mumbai Indians: Eliminator, IPL 2012Bravo’s 14-ball 33 at the death looked like it would be the match-winning performance of the evening as the Super Kings posted 187. But he returned with the ball to do even better in a high-stakes match in Bengaluru.Although Mumbai were struggling at 96 for 5, they still had big hitters James Franklin and Kieron Pollard – who had been in prime batting form through the season – in the middle, and Bravo was struggling with a hamstring issue that forced MS Dhoni to hold him back until the 14th over. With the allrounders looking to keep up with the steadily rising required rate, Bravo brought out his full bag of tricks. Franklin bottom-edged his third ball to Dhoni, and Bravo raced away in celebration as if the hamstring problem simply didn’t exist. He closed out a two-run over with a bouncer that hit Harbhajan Singh on the helmet, a single, and a yorker that Pollard couldn’t put bat to.After keeping Pollard off strike for the first three balls of the 16th over, Bravo conceded just the solitary boundary from the last three, putting the required rate well beyond Mumbai’s reach. Off the last ball of the 18th over – which had till that point only gone for four runs – Pollard mis-hit a short ball and holed out to long-on. As Pollard walked back, Bravo made sure to give him a send-off. With the match all sealed up, Dhoni opted not to risk Bravo’s hamstring further, and allowed Ravindra Jadeja to bowl the 20th over instead.Chennai Super Kings v Dolphins: Champions League, 2014On a flat batting deck in Bengaluru, the Super Kings posted 242 courtesy a 43-ball 90 from Suresh Raina. But on that pitch, and on one of the smaller grounds in the country, even that total was in danger as the Dolphins raced away to 115 for 3 in ten overs. On came Bravo for his first over, and out came his unhittable slower ball. He made an immediate impact, conceding just three runs and taking out the set batsman Cody Chetty in his first over.Two expensive overs from the spinners followed, and Bravo returned from the other end. He struck with another slower ball, getting Vaughn van Jaarsveld caught at long-on, and conceded just one run off that over. Only one run came off the first five balls of that over, and the pressure duly produced a run-out.Having swung the match comprehensively in the Super Kings’ favour, Bravo closed out his performance by conceding just 13 off his last two overs. He finished with an economy rate of 4.25 from his four overs. The rest of the Super Kings attack went at a combined 10.69.Trinidad & Tobago Red Steel v Jamaica Tallawahs: CPL 2015That Bravo is one of West Indies cricket’s most reliable T20 cricketers was on show in this game. Red Steel scored just 145 in 20 overs despite losing only three wickets; and if it wasn’t for Bravo’s 30-ball 49, their score would’ve been much lower, considering they were 76 for 3 after 13 overs when he walked in.During the chase, watching the Tallawahs’ Chris Gayle bat seemed like both sides were batting on different wickets, with him racing away to 27 runs in just 12 deliveries. To stop the run flow, Bravo was brought on earlier than usual. He came into the attack in just the third over in a gamble that meant the Red Steel would have to make do with one less over from him at the death. But Bravo struck off the final ball of the over, having frustrated Gayle for most part, after a slower ball was mistimed to long off.Having crippled the Tallawahs with a flurry of dots at the death, Bravo was now hda to keep Andre Russell quiet in the 19th over. He passed that test with distinction, though, dismissing Russell with a slower ball that was cut to deep point when the Tallawahs needed just 16 runs in ten deliveries. That wicket and three further dots meant the Tallawahs still needed 16 off the final over, enough for Kevon Cooper to close the game out without much trouble and hand Red Steel a win.Dwayne Bravo dismissed MS Dhoni off the last ball to eke out a one-run win against India at Lauderhill in 2016•AFPChennai Super Kings v Kolkata Knight Riders: IPL 2015The Super Kings’ task was cut out while defending 134 against defending champions Knight Riders in Chennai. With five overs left, the visitors needed 45 more to seal the win, with six wickets in hand. That’s when Bravo kickstarted a middle-order choke that eventually led his side to a two-run win.Yusuf Pathan, batting sedately, looked to take Bravo on in the 16th over, but ended up inside-edging a slower ball onto his stumps. When Pat Cummins tried to clear deep midwicket in the 18th over, all he could do was find the fielder on the boundary. And four balls later, Piyush Chawla skied a slower ball that eventually dropped into Dhoni’s gloves.With the Knight Riders needing 17 off the final over, Dhoni gave the ball to Bravo, who at that point had figures of 2-0-8-3. He began the over with three dot balls, two of which Ryan ten Doeschate couldn’t put bat to. Ten Doeschate finally got hold of Bravo in the end, smashing the last three balls for 6, 6, 4, but that wasn’t quite enough, and the Super Kings ended up on the winning side in one of the best games of the season.West Indies v India: Lauderhill, 2016It wasn’t a day for the bowlers. An Evin Lewis century powered West Indies to 244, and KL Rahul replied in kind for India, to leave them 238 for 3 at the start of the final over. Rahul was still at the crease, with MS Dhoni, and it seemed there was only one way this game could end. But Bravo – who had conceded 32 in his first three overs – had other ideas. A mixture of slower balls and yorkers, delivered with clever changes in line, left MS Dhoni needing to score two off the last ball to seal the win.It had come down to this: a great death bowler, a great finisher, and one ball. Bravo went for his trusted offcutter, and Dhoni looked to dab it square on the off side for the double India needed. But the ball gripped, took a thick edge, and lobbed towards short third man, where Marlon Samuels – who had dropped Dhoni at the same position at the start of the over – completed the catch. For once, Dhoni had failed at the finish, and Bravo broke into his trademark dance.

The legspinner talks about the concerns of losing his rhythm, working on new tricks with Adam Zampa, mentoring younger players, and more

Shashank Kishore02-Oct-2020Yuzvendra Chahal showed off his dance moves on TikTok, tickled many funny bones, and bantered with Rohit Sharma and Virat “” on Instagram during the lockdown. But all along, he was, just like KL Rahul, worried about his “rhythm”. Would he able to land his stock ball properly? Will he be able to deliver those “googles” with pin-point accuracy as he usually does?He resumed training in July with moderate intensity, but it wasn’t until he landed in the UAE – “heaven” in his own words, because of the bigger boundaries – that he actually tried to work on his concerns. Two months on, he’s happy with where his game is at. All the hard work in the nets, he says, is paying off.”During the lockdown, I practised for just ten days and before the first match, I was just worried about my rhythm,” he says, sipping a hot latte in his plush hotel room in Dubai. “For the past six months, I didn’t bowl in the match and I was a little bit nervous before I played the first match.”Compared to the earlier matches, there were 20 to 30% more nerves because I didn’t know how my rhythm will go. When I bowled my first over, then I was like ‘okay, my rhythm is there only where we stopped six months back’. I was worried especially about my googlies, the variations, whether they will be there or not. But I was very happy the way I bowled in the first match and that gave me so much confidence.”In the three weeks leading up to IPL 2020, Chahal was identified to be part of Royal Challengers Bangalore’s leadership group, alongside Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers. Mike Hesson, the director of cricket, has been particularly impressed with Chahal’s game sense, his ability to read different situations and adapt to different scenarios.

“I was worried especially about my googlies, the variations, whether they will be there or not. But I was very happy the way I bowled in the first match”Chahal on his concerns during the lockdown

He often referred to “big heart” while talking of Chahal, a striking feature of the wiry bowler who has in many ways been programmed to tailor himself to the shorter boundaries at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. He tosses the ball up again and again with a “no fear” attitude. After all, he has been conditioned all these years to not worry about being hit for sixes. Wherever else he bowls, it naturally “feels like heaven”.This “flighting the ball” generously allows him to disguise the googly well. Unlike Anil Kumble’s or Rashid Khan’s, his is a lot slower through the air. And when the training resumed, Chahal was only focused on landing them at the same spot he lands his stock ball. In his first game of the season, against the Sunrisers Hyderabad, he waited until his third over to bowl one.

****

Jonny Bairstow is deceived in the flight as he swipes only to get beaten. Josh Philippe, the rookie Australian wicketkeeper, doesn’t read it off the pitch and misses it altogether. It goes away for four byes. Chahal grimaces before going back to his run-up with a wry smile. He knows he has won that contest but the match is still to be won. The Royal Challengers are on a sticky wicket having started poorly with the ball in defence of 162. Eventually, it’s Chahal only who gets Bairstow by messing with his mind and deceiving him in the air with a superb legbreak. All Bairstow can manage is an ugly hoick against the turn. He misses it completely and is bowled.Now as he gears up to bowl to Vijay Shankar, Kohli has a quick word with him. He lands the ball on the fourth stump. He gets it to dip on Shankar, who lunges forward to play what he believes is a legbreak. This one fizzes back in to beat the inside edge. Gone, first-ball duck. The game has been turned. The Sunrisers are in trouble. Chahal is back in full rhythm. The lengths, the wrong’uns don’t seem to be a worry anymore. His natural instincts have taken over.”When I got Vijay’s wicket, I think that was very important because it’s always a dream for a legspinner to bowl that delivery,” he says with a smile. “That gave me more confidence. Before that, I bowled it two-three times in the nets. I spoke to AB sir and even he told me he is not able to pick my googlies, so he told me ‘please use your googlies, but depending on the situation. Batsmen are not able to read you.'”Vijay Shankar loses his stumps to Yuzvendra Chahal•BCCISo when does he plan what delivery he’s going to bowl? If Chahal is to be believed, his mind is blank until he goes to his run-up, and firms up only as he runs in. Again depending on the match situation. If he’s bowling in the powerplay, he likes to mix them up. In the middle, he gives it good air and loves to bowl his googly, as he did against the Sunrisers, or the Kings XI Punjab when he dismissed Mayank Agarwal with a superb wrong’un. At the death, he likes to fire them wide, bowl sliders or tossed-up deliveries out of the hitting arc. This didn’t work in his final over – the 18th – against Kieron Pollard, though, in the game where the Mumbai Indians nearly chased down 90 in the final five overs. Anyone else would’ve been worried, not Chahal. Because he has the clarity of thought.”I think you should understand the situation very well,” he says, when asked about how he plans to unleash what kind of delivery. “In one over, you may want to flight [the ball] or you may want to go flatter. You should know which weapon [to use], which batsman you want to give singles to and who you want to attack. For me, I have three-four variations so, if you use them well, it becomes difficult for the batsman to judge.”Over the course of his time so far in the UAE, Chahal has made use of every practice session to learn new tricks. The funny man image that he portrays to the outside world is just one part of his persona. Behind all that, there’s a man behind nerdy spectacles who desires to be the best version he can possibly be. He came to the UAE in 2014 as a rookie wanting to prove himself. Six years on, he’s retention material, talked about as part of a core group. These days, he also mentors young players, leads team meetings and is happy to work on his game to get an edge.He’s been talking a lot to Adam Zampa, the Australian legspinner who has somewhat become a limited-overs specialist. “We chat all the time, at training and in the team room,” Chahal says. It was during one such conversation that Zampa asked Chahal if he’d ever considered bowling a quicker googly to the right-handers. It’s a suggestion Chahal took on board and has tried to work it out at the nets, bowling to Kohli and de Villiers.AB de Villiers has a chat with Yuzvendra Chahal•BCCI”We keep talking, not just at nets but also in the team room. We are together, we decided how we can bowl at grounds where one side has shorter boundaries,” Chahal explains. “So it becomes hard bowling stump-to-stump. I’m enjoying talking to him. I’ve learnt a couple of things with him, when we go to the nets, we discuss depending on how the wicket is. I watched him play for the Australian team. I’ve tried to bowl quicker googles in this IPL. It will give lesser chances for batsmen to hit sixes, and it’s easier to get them than out.”While learning and developing his game has been important, Chahal’s personality and easy-going attitude make him the go-to man for the young players in the squad. The Royal Challengers have consciously tried to veer away from their old habits – like having only the select 15 travel to match venue while the rest stay back at the hotel. They have tried to make the younger players open up at team meetings, karaoke nights and even at team dinners. One junior player is paired with a senior – and the two go about working together for the rest of the season. The primary reason is to get players to communicate better, and voice their thoughts without hesitation. This is a role Chahal is particularly enjoying.He has been working with Shahbaz Ahmed, who plays for Bengal in domestic cricket but hails from Haryana, Chahal’s home state. Ahmed is a tall left-arm spinner who has gained the reputation of being a consistent bowler in domestic cricket, apart from having the ability to hit big lower down the order. For Chahal, these small steps in mentorship have also helped him evolve as a cricketer and “take his game to the next level”.One of the first lessons from the Chahal’s rule book that he is trying to advocate his younger colleagues is to bowl without worrying about being hit. “You should always back your plans, no matter what,” he says. “Last match I went for some four overs, 45 or 48 something, but I was fine that because if it’s happening once in five-six matches then I’m fine with that. If it’s happening in three games out of six, then I’m doing something wrong. Then I’m not bowling well. I always back my strength and for me, I want to read batsman, what he’s thinking of my bowling. If he hits me for four or a boundary, then I’ll plan according to that.”The lessons, the mateship, the communication and vibe have all left Chahal dreaming of the possibilities of doing something special. “Our aim is to win the trophy and this year we have a more balanced side, especially in the bowling [department],” he says. “We’ve won two matches out of three and we are very positive. This year, not me, everyone’s saying… AB sir, Virat … there is some different feeling. We are getting that feeling after 2016. Something is there this year, one positive energy from all of the group, from the management side and we are very excited. For me, whether I’m playing or not playing, my goal is to win the trophy for RCB.”

In Asia, they’re great. In India, sightly less so. Will they bring their best game this time around?

Alan Gardner02-Feb-2021Steve Waugh famously called it the “final frontier”, and you could certainly think of easier assignments. When you are a mid-to-late-30s English fast bowler, four-Test tours of India presumably rank high on your personal list of thankless tasks. Yet, as England’s prologue in Sri Lanka demonstrated, James Anderson and Stuart Broad remain (relatively) old dogs of the highest pedigree, and still capable of new tricks.Broad, in particular, would doubtless point out that he is only 34 and arguably in his prime – 38 Test wickets at 14.76 in 2020 giving him the most-potent calendar year of his career to date. And while it’s probably safe to say this will be Anderson’s fifth and final tour of India, well… just don’t do so within his earshot.The most-prolific pace portmanteau in Test history, Broaderson just keeps coming (even when England have tried to manage the decline) and two spotless individual outings in Galle raised the question of whether Joe Root ought to make room for both in his preferred XI to take on India. Chris Silverwood, the head coach, suggested it was “great just to have the options”, and there are various ways in which England’s allrounder jigsaw could allow for Anderson Broad to be picked.Related

Anderson doesn't expect reverse swing to play a part in day-night Test

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First day, no show – Chennai braces itself for a closed-doors first Test

How often have James Anderson and Stuart Broad combined to bowl out the opposition?

The end of the Anderson overseas debate? It should be

But what are the prospects for success? Can England overcome a perceived weakness in the spin department by placing additional faith in their venerable seam-bowling pair – particularly if Chepauk sports a greenish tinge come match day? Time to boldly go and take a look at the numbers.Green seamers
The first thing to say is that, of the seam-bowling options available to Silverwood and Root, there is a huge gulf in experience between Anderson and Broad and the rest. That is true of most settings but particularly in Asia, where England’s next most-successful fast bowler is allrounder Ben Stokes, followed by another big gap to Mark Wood (who has been rested for the first two Tests). Jofra Archer will likely get his first taste of bowling in the subcontinent, because of the extra pace he can provide, while batting ability adds to the claims of Sam Curran (also rested for the Chennai Tests) and Chris Woakes.ESPNcricinfo LtdSecondly, while Broad has had the edge form-wise since a resurgent 2019 Ashes summer, it is Anderson who stands out for his impeccable record in this part of the world – never mind what the “Clouderson” critics might have you believe. His Galle six-for upped the ante once again, making him the oldest seamer in Test history to claim a five-wicket haul in Asia and adding to a remarkably robust catalogue of work.All-weather Anderson
An average of 29.10 seems steady, and puts him roughly mid-table among quicks to have taken 40 wickets in Asia since 1990. But narrow it down to bowlers from overseas and he’s in good company – not to mention above a host of those with local knowhow, such as Wahab Riaz, Ishant Sharma, Lasith Malinga and Zaheer Khan. No current seamer can compete with his miserly economy rate of 2.61.ESPNcricinfo LtdIn fact, since the turn of the millennium, only one fast bowler from outside the subcontinent has been more successful than Anderson – and as Andrew Fidel Fernando has previously established on these pages, very few in history can compete with Dale Steyn. Among quicks to have taken 40-plus wickets in that time, only Glenn McGrath and Shaun Pollock were more economical.ESPNcricinfo LtdDifferent spin
Anderson was, of course, described as “the major difference between the two sides” by MS Dhoni after the 2012-13 Tests – India’s last series defeat on home soil. It is perhaps the level of control he offers that makes Anderson England’s key seamer once again, a decade later. His recent injury record means he will need looking after – and may add weight to the idea that he and Broad should be rotated – but his reliability and enduring fitness levels, as well as the apparent flaws in England’s spin attack, mean he is just as likely to fulfil a holding role as to cut a swathe with the new ball; in the first innings in Galle last month, only Jack Leach delivered more than Anderson’s 29 overs.Looking specifically at his record in India, it is almost more instructive to draw a comparison with visiting spinners: Anderson’s average and economy compare well against the likes of Shane Warne, Daniel Vettori and Muttiah Muralitharan (albeit if he ends up with the same workload as Murali, there’s no doubting he will break).ESPNcricinfo LtdHe may be famed for expertly harnessing the swinging Dukes ball, but Anderson has some of a spinner’s guile, too. His success in 2012-13 included removing Sachin Tendulkar for the eighth and ninth time in Tests (no bowler did so more), and Tendulkar recently revealed his admiration for Anderson’s ability to bowl reverse swing – essentially taking the old ball away from a right-hander despite the wrist position indicating an inswinger. More recently, Anderson spoke of his enjoyment in Galle after removing Niroshan Dickwella with an offcutter that the batsman, on 92, miscued after being suffocated by a tight off-side field.Broad walks the talk
It was Broad, however, who got the nod at the start of England’s six-Test subcontinental odyssey, and figures of 26-14-34-3 on a classic Galle dustbowl suggested he has added a dimension to his game. That haul doubled his career wicket tally in Sri Lanka, from three previous visits, and took his returns in Asia to 44 at 36.31 – though most of his success has come on skiddier surfaces in the UAE. In India, his record to date is not pretty – ten wickets at 53.90 – but late-stage Broad has shown an unstinting appetite for honing his cutting edge.ESPNcricinfo LtdWhether it’s his reinvention as a tormentor of left-handers – just ask David Warner – or working on the legcutter that has become a significant part of his repertoire, Broad is comfortable going back to the drawing board. His ability to transcend the conditions in Galle drew praise from Angelo Mathews, and Broad also went into some of the subtleties of his approach. “I concentrated on making the batsman play as much as possible, and also varying my pace in little ways. Maybe not 6-7mph at times but going up two miles an hour, coming down three or four miles an hour, and that was the plan I stuck to.”Similar plans for Chennai and Ahmedabad are doubtless already in the works. If England are to frustrate India’s strokemakers – players such as Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant, who score a high percentage of their runs in boundaries – then it is likely Anderson and/or Broad will have to set the tone. Even so, frontier life may prove inhospitable. In 2016-17, England’s two senior seamers each played three Tests out of five, but could do little to avert a 4-0 defeat.Beating a Sri Lanka team low on confidence is one thing, competing with India on their own terms quite another. You don’t need to have been around the block to know that.

Mathews, Mendis, Perera among local talent; Steyn, Russell, Amir lend overseas glamour in five-team T20 tournament

Andrew Fidel Fernando24-Nov-2020You’re not dreaming. This is not a fantasy. After years of announcements and cancellations, years in which Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) officials lumbered into organisational walls and stumbled into logistical potholes, Sri Lanka fans will finally get to watch a homegrown franchise T20 league. The build-up has been chaotic. Players have pulled out late, others have contracted Covid-19, replacements have been hastily found, payments have been demanded, quarantines completed and a flight has even been missed. It’s been an anarchic whirlwind, but in a way, there is no better precursor to cricket in Sri Lanka. It’s less than 48 hours until the first game begins. So here, have a preview.

Colombo Kings

Coach: Herschelle GibbsCaptain: Angelo MathewsHow good are they looking? (With the caveat that as most Sri Lanka players have not had high-level competitive cricket since March, form is going to be almost impossible to judge.)For starters, Colombo Kings have the two biggest names in the tournament, and from the looks of it, were the biggest spenders. Andre Russell’s presence gives the whole league a sheen of desperately needed glamour, while they also have Mathews, who is the most recognisable Sri Lankan player following the exit of Lasith Malinga. But these are not just names. If both Russell and Mathews are available to bowl, the Kings give themselves versatility with the ball, as well as solid firepower through the middle order, which could be the makings of a fine T20 side.There’s also a strong spin department. Afghan legspinner Qais Ahmad, and local spinners Tharindu Kaushal (offspin), Amila Aponso, and Jeffrey Vandersay each have varying strengths. The top order will likely feature Daniel Bell-Drummond, who topped the run-scorers’ list in England’s T20 Blast tournament this year, where Laurie Evans racked up impressive numbers from the middle order.This is not to say there are no serious challenges. Dinesh Chandimal, who will almost certainly keep wickets, hasn’t been a top T20 performer in years, and despite the presence of Isuru Udana and Dushmantha Chameera, the seam-bowling contingent seems a little shaky. But, this is a solid outfit.Notable mishap (LPL should find sponsors for tournament gaffes): Dav Whatmore was originally slated to coach this team. He was then replaced (for reasons not known) by Kabir Ali. Kabir, though, tested positive for Covid-19 in England last week, and couldn’t make the trip across. So Gibbs, who was flying across to Sri Lanka to work as a commentator for the tournament, was nominated as coach, and was informed of this on his arrival.Shahid Afridi will have to undergo a three-day isolated quarantine once he gets to Sri Lanka•Pakistan Super League

Galle Gladiators

Coach: Moin KhanCaptain: Uhh…maybe Bhanuka Rajapaksa for now? But Shahid Afridi when he gets to Sri Lanka…that’s unless he misses another flight.How good are they looking?If Malinga had turned up relatively fit and firing, Gladiators might have reasonably claimed to have the best attack of the tournament. Now, with Malinga having pulled out last moment, Gladiators will hope Mohammad Amir has a great tournament, with Asitha Fernando also likely to be a key fast bowler.On paper, Gladiators have Sri Lanka’s best spinners, with Lakshan Sandakan and Akila Dananjaya both in the squad, but there is a little asterisk here. Dananjaya’s just coming back from a one-year ban, which he copped due to an illegal action. He is understood to have brought his elbow up to code during that layoff, but how effective will the new action be?Batting-wise, Danushka Gunathilaka and Hazratullah Zazai seem an imposing pairing at the top of the order, with Rajapaksa, Shehan Jayasuriya and Ahsan Ali also around. What might worry Gladiators is that they are light on seam-bowling all-round options. The middle order seems shaky as well, unless Afridi has a stellar tournament.Notable mishap: Sarfaraz Ahmed was originally supposed to be the captain of this team, just as he captains the PSL’s Quetta Gladiators – the team owner’s other team. But then he went and got himself picked for Pakistan’s tour to New Zealand. The captaincy subsequently went to Malinga, who clearly took the responsibility quite seriously and waited for the week before the tournament to announce that he wouldn’t be playing. Afridi then inherited this chalice, and promptly missed a flight to Sri Lanka.Niroshan Dickwella goes for a scoop•AFP

Dambulla Viikings

(Yes, Viikings with two ‘i’s. It’s the brand name of the business that owns the franchise.)Captain: They promise they will let us know when they decide.Coach: Owais ShahHow good are they looking?There is a decent locally nurtured batting order here. Niroshan Dickwella, Upul Tharanga and Oshada Fernando are likely to take up residence in the top four, and will most likely be joined by the biggest foreign name in Viikings’ ranks – Ireland opener Paul Stirling. For middle-order firepower, they’ve got Dasun Shanaka, Angelo Perera (a long-time domestic performer), Ramesh Mendis (a rising star in the domestic scene), and Afghanistan’s Samiullah Shinwari.Lahiru Kumara, who may be the quickest bowler in the tournament, headlines the attack, with Kasun Rajitha, Aftab Alam, and Sudeep Tyagi, the former India pacer who retired from all forms of cricket last week, for company. On the spin front, Samit Patel arrives fresh from a PSL runners-up stint with the Lahore Qalandars, while domestic stalwart left-arm spinner Malinda Pushpakumara is also on board.On the surface, Viikings don’t look the most promising team in the tournament partly because they seem light on superstar talent, and there aren’t a lot of consistent T20 performers here either. But if their local batsmen fire, there is no reason they couldn’t put up a strong campaign.Notable mishap: Initially, when coach Jon Lewis drafted the majority of this team, they were known as the Dambulla Hawks. Then, a couple of weeks later, after Lewis had been jettisoned, they became the Dambulla Lions for a bit. Eventually, the Viikings group (who own a brewery in Goa, plus a bunch of other stuff probably), bought the franchise, and slapped their brand name on the team.Dale Steyn takes a photo with young fans•Getty Images

Kandy Tuskers

Captain: Kusal PereraCoach: Hashan TillakaratneHow good are they looking?Tuskers have perhaps had the rockiest road into the tournament, having hit a serious speed bump last week when Chris Gayle withdrew, citing injuries. It had been hoped that between Gayle and captain Kusal Perera Tuskers could produce some serious top-order ballistics, but they will now have to do with the more staid kinds of innings that Brendan Taylor tends to produce. Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Afghanistan), Kusal Mendis and Asela Gunaratne are also likely to bat in the top six.The team did get a late boost, when Dale Steyn was announced as a replacement for Sohail Tanvir, but beyond this there’s not a lot of bankable talent, and Steyn will probably miss the first week in any case. It’s been two years since Tuskers’ Indian seamers – Irfan Pathan and Munaf Patel – last played a T20 game. Fast bowler Nuwan Pradeep has been known to deliver good death-bowling performances, but the remainder of the prominent local bowlers – Vishwa Fernando, Dilruwan Perera, and Lasith Embuldeniya – have made their names as Test bowlers.Notable mishap: Initially, Tuskers had picked Wahab Riaz and Liam Plunkett to lead their attack, before Wahab got picked for Pakistan’s tour of New Zealand, and Plunkett pulled out citing injury. Then they chose Tanvir to beef up their pace stocks, but Tanvir tested positive for Covid-19 soon after arriving in Sri Lanka, and now has to be sequestered away in a separate hotel until he gets better.Thisara Perera goes on the front foot to drive on the up•Getty Images

Jaffna Stallions

Captain: Thisara PereraCoach: Thilina KandambyHow good are they looking?Jaffna Stallions’ strategy in the draft was obvious: to select a core of dynamic local players, around which to build the franchise. They were so committed to this strategy that two of their three marquee players were locals (Thisara Perera and Wanindu Hasaranga), when most teams opted to pick just one local marquee player. The result is a dangerous outfit. In addition to Hasaranga and Thisara, who can contribute with both bat and ball, Stallions also have Dhananjaya de Silva, and Chaturanga de Silva. Avishka Fernando, the most exciting top-order talent in Sri Lanka, and promising wicketkeeper-batsman Minod Bhanuka are in the squad as well.Kyle Abbott, the former South Africa fast bowler, is the most notable name among the foreign players, with Usman Shinwari – the left-arm quick from Pakistan – and Duanne Olivier – Abbott’s fellow Kolpak-deal maker also around. West Indies’ Johnson Charles will probably open the innings, and Stallions have the experience of Shoaib Malik to call on in the middle order.There are no notable specialist spinners here, though. Stallions are banking on Hasaranga and Dhananjaya de Silva having good tournaments with the ball.Stallions were also the only team to run a training camp for their local players long before the foreigners began showing up. In general, they seem the most organised of the franchises so far.Notable mishap: Stallions have avoided the worst of the upheaval that has characterised the lead-up to the tournament. But they did have one late withdrawal: Ravi Bopara pulled out after the franchise could not agree to providing him his full payment up front.

Bob Willis Trophy and County Championship already in possession, and a new responsibility looming

Alan Gardner30-Mar-2021It is natural for any county cricketer scanning ahead on the fixture list at the start of summer to make note of a Lord’s final – all the more so if you are the captain of the defending Bob Willis Trophy champions. Essex know their way around the business end of the season and will hope to still be in the mix come September 25, though team success could leave Tom Westley juggling more than just matters of form and selection, with his wife, Rosie, due to give birth to their first child the day before.”It’s going to be touch and go,” he admits, though for now Westley is happy to park thoughts of fatherhood and focus on the rather more familiar challenge of leading Essex in their defence of not one, but two first-class titles, given the resumption of the County Championship after it was forced into abeyance by Covid-19 last year.In its absence, Essex lifted the inaugural BWT in late September after a truncated county season, adding to the Championship triumphs of 2017 and 2019, and meaning they will go into this summer’s restructured competition – in which a conference system will eventually lead to the Division One winners taking the pennant before contesting “the Bob” against the team that comes second – as the team to beat twice over.These are “exciting times, new times”, Westley tells ESPNcricinfo. “The first time a county has had to defend two red-ball trophies. But that’s testament to Essex last year, the preparation wasn’t spot on because of what happened with the pandemic. Winning the Bob Willis showed how strong we are, how much depth we have and how resilient we can be in testing times. So we’re going to have to show that again this year defending two trophies, and wanting to compete and win the T20 again, and the 50-over comp. We set out to win every game we play, so I can’t see that changing.”Related

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The pandemic is, of course, still an unavoidable fact of life, and Essex were among the last counties to return to training at the end of February, as the club took a cautious approach to the safety of players and staff. Understandably, Westley and his team-mates are “buzzing” just to have the opportunity to get back out on the field.”It’s been quite a challenging winter, I think the final lockdown really did deplete everyone,” he says. “As cricketers we’re just desperate to get back and try to regain some form of normality, but that wasn’t to be at Essex particularly. I think we were the only county that weren’t training at one stage, which was tough.”[But] Essex have traditionally always been good at making the best of a bad situation. We’ve shown that in games where we’ve started poorly and managed to bounce back strong and go on to win. That’s similar to our preparation, it hasn’t always been ideal but we’ve been able to get some top-quality work in with the time available.”This will be Westley’s second season as captain, having succeeded Ryan ten Doeschate last year. Given his impending life event, an eagerness to embrace the role and pour his efforts into helping the team should stand him in good stead when it comes to adding parenthood to his list of responsibilities.”I think the captaincy came at a nice time, because there is an emphasis placed on what I can do, what I can give to other people,” he says. “It’s not all about individual performances, even though I want to score the most runs and score hundreds. There is a more holistic approach to my cricket now, the wellbeing of the other players, the decision-making and inputs from them is massive, and I want them to be as successful as they possibly can.Alastair Cook is one of the elder statesmen on whom Tom Westley can lean as captain•Getty Images”I take a lot of pleasure in the fact it’s not just about myself any more, I have to think about the others. I want to be as good to those younger guys as Tendo was to myself and others during these last three-four years. I’ve been at Essex my whole career and I think we’re a fantastic cricket club. I think we play cricket the right way, I think we have fun, I think we’re entertaining, and there’s a lot of history at our club. It would be amazing to be a part of that and put your own stamp on it, so you can look back and think we were part of something special.”The strength of Essex’s team spirit, built around a strong core of homegrown players supplemented by high-quality additions like ten Doeschate and Simon Harmer, has been a feature of their rise in recent seasons – from Division Two winners in 2016, to sustained red-ball success and a maiden T20 title in 2019.There is, as Westley says, “very big family feel to the club”, with former captains Keith Fletcher, Graham Gooch and Ronnie Irani all still involved at Chelmsford and rooting for further triumphs. The current squad is strong and settled, with nine of the players who contested the Championship decider at Taunton in 2019 likely to be involved against Worcestershire next week, and arguably a match for any in the club’s history – although they are still a few pots shy of the 12 won under Fletcher and then Gooch between 1979 and 1992.”We are quite mindful about wanting to create a bit of a legacy, we want to be part of a very special era – like Essex have had in the past, the Fletcher era, the Gooch era,” Westley says. “It’s common knowledge as an Essex player that you hear about those times, a kind of golden period for the club. I saw Fletch this week and I was quizzing him on how many Championships he’d won, and statistics aren’t his strongest suit – he told me he’d won eight Championships and that’s definitely a lie, because I think Essex have only won about eight in their history.”I said to him, I can’t wait to hopefully win a couple more and win more than yourself Fletch, and he said: ‘Nothing would please me more than for you guys to carry on winning’. You do want to create a bit of a dynasty, your own legacy as a group of players. Because in the first half of my career at Essex we didn’t win anything.”The same can’t be said of recent years. And the Westley era has only just begun.