Test coach has ended bookmaker association but will face no action

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Apr-2023Brendon McCullum, England men’s Test head coach, will face no action from his employers at the ECB after questions were raised about his advertising arrangements with a bookmaker.The board said last week that it was “exploring” McCullum’s relationship with Cyprus-based betting company 22Bet India after appearances in YouTube adverts and posts on social media came under scrutiny in his home country, New Zealand.New Zealand’s Problem Gambling Foundation had filed an official complaint to the country’s Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), with the DIA confirming that 22Bet’s adverts are misleading because “they are not a registered New Zealand sports bookmaker, nor are they licensed or regulated in New Zealand by the DIA”.The ECB said it had looked at the matter from a “regulatory and employer perspective” and concluded that McCullum had done nothing wrong. It is understood that the anti-corruption code signed up to by players and coaches does not prohibit such brand ambassador roles.However, McCullum is reportedly set to end his association with the bookmaker.An ECB spokesperson said: “Discussions have been ongoing with Brendon over the last few days, and the matter has been considered from an employer and regulator perspective. We can confirm that no further action will be taken.”

Joe Denly and a belligerent Jordan Cox canter past meagre target at Canterbury

ECB Reporters Network24-May-2023A near full house at Canterbury saw the Kent Spitfires rout Gloucestershire by seven wickets in their opening Vitality Blast fixture of 2023.The 2021 Champions cruised home with 6.3 overs to spare, closing on 116 for 3 in reply to the visitors’ meagre 113 all out.Michael Hogan took 3 for 13 while Grant Stewart, Jack Leaning and Kane Richardson all took two apiece as the visitors collapsed from 82 for 3 in 16.3 overs. Chris Dent was the visitors’ top scorer with 55, but none of his team-mates made more than 12.Tom Smith claimed 3 for 22 but it was a chastening evening for Goucestershire. Joe Denly anchored Kent’s reply an unbeaten 35 before Jordan Cox stole the show by clubbing 39 from 17 balls, including a huge six for the winning runs.With more than 3700 spectators packed into the Spitfire Ground and standing room only on the bankings, Gloucestershire chose to bat.Hogan struck early, getting Grant Roelofsen caught on the boundary by Joey Evison in the second over, although the momentum was back with the visitors when Kane Richardson’s first over as a Spitfire went for 19.Leaning then bowled Miles Hammond for 9 but Dent hit successive sixes in George Linde’s first over, only for Gloucestershire to lose their last seven wickets for just 31 runs.Leaning had Ollie Price caught at long off by Richardson for 12 and although Dent reached fifty when he glanced Leaning for four, Hogan started the collapse when he took two wickets in the tenth over. Dent fell to an acrobatic catch by Sam Billings, who was back behind the stumps after handing Cox the gloves for the last two Championship games, before Jack Taylor offered the wicketkeeper a dolly.Denly ran out Zafar Gohar for 8 before James Bracey swiped Stewart to the square leg boundary, where he was caught by Leaning for 7.Two balls later, Stewart bowled Paul van Meekeren for a duck and although Smith just survived the next delivery, he was out for four when he chipped Richardson to Cox.Richardson then wrapped up the innings with 21 balls to spare when he had David Payne caught behind for a golden duck.There was an early hiccup in the run chase when Tawanda Muyeye tried to drive Price and was caught by Hammond at mid-off for six but Kent were almost halfway to the target by the end of the powerplay, at 55 for 1.When Daniel Bell-Drummond was lbw to Smith for 27 it broke a 52-run partnership and Billings was then out for 6 when he tried to reverse-sweep Smith and fell to a juggling catch by Zafar, but that was as close as Kent came to a wobble.With the required run rate under four they didn’t need to take any risks but Cox seemed to be in a hurry, taking 17 from van Meekern in the 12th over, including a flicked six over backward square leg. He scrambled a single of the next ball to keep the strike and then smacked Zafar for a huge six over into the Cowdrey Stand to win the game.

Head coach believes new regime shouldn’t carry the can for racism scandal

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Jun-2023Ottis Gibson, Yorkshire’s head coach, has questioned the logic of punishing the club’s new regime for past failings, after the ECB recommended a £500,000 fine and points deductions at Tuesday’s hearing of the Cricket Discipline Commission (CDC).Gibson, the first Black head coach in Yorkshire’s history, was appointed in January 2022 following the sacking of 16 members of the club’s back-room staff, including his predecessor Andrew Gale and the director of cricket, Martyn Moxon.That decision was taken by the since-departed chairman, Lord Kamlesh Patel, whose own appointment had come in the wake of Azeem Rafiq’s explosive testimony before a parliamentary select committee in November 2021, at which he had laid out his experience of institutional racism at the club.The fall-out from the scandal left Yorkshire facing bankruptcy, with the ECB suspending their major-match hosting status (a move since reversed), while a swathe of leading sponsors also severed ties with the club – including Emerald, Headingley’s title sponsors, and Nike, the kit suppliers.And while Gibson acknowledged that some form of punishment was inevitable, he described the proposed sanctions as “harsh” – not least because the club, currently in the bottom three of the County Championship but in contention for a knock-out berth in the T20 Blast – has already played a significant portion of the season while knowing that their fate had yet to be decided.Given that promotion back to the top flight of the County Championship already seems unlikely, the ECB’s proposed hit of 48-72 points might not affect the club’s status much beyond prize money. However, the proposed 4-6 point deduction for the T20 Blast would almost certainly prove the difference in the race for the quarter-finals. Yorkshire are currently fifth on 13 points, just one point behind their arch-rivals Lancashire in second place, whom they play on Friday.Related

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“If you remember when I came here in March last year and this whole investigation was going on, I said, ‘It would be nice of them to let us know before the start of the season what sanctions there were going to be’,” Gibson told the ECB Reporters Network.”We’re sat here the following June and we’re still not sure what it is or isn’t. It’s frustrating because a lot of change has taken place here at Yorkshire, including myself being here.”I feel like when this thing all started many years ago, long before I got here, the club was stripped of international cricket because of what had gone on.”Then the ECB said, ‘If you want international cricket back, you have to satisfy us that you’re doing these things’. They gave the club a list of things, and Lord Patel came in and made some tough and uncomfortable decisions I would imagine.”We got our international cricket back, which would seem to me to suggest that we’d satisfied the ECB and done the things they asked us to do in the first place.”So to sanction a group of people who are trying to move the club forward doesn’t seem to me to make sense. It would be naive to think that we’re not going to get some sort of punishment, but it does seem a bit harsh.”That’s my position as the coach of a fairly new group of players.”

He added 212 for the second wicket with Mahmudul Hasan Joy, as Afghanistan paid for too many no-balls and wides

Mohammad Isam14-Jun-2023Stumps Bangladesh 362 for 5 (Mehidy 43*, Mushfiqur 41*, Masood 2-67) vs AfghanistanNajmul Hossain Shanto’s attacking 146 – his first Test century at home – gave Bangladesh a high-scoring opening day in the one-off Test against Afghanistan in Dhaka. Shanto made 146, his third century overall – and the first since 2021 – as the hosts reached 362 for 5 at stumps. The total was Bangladesh’s second-highest score on the first day of a Test, only behind the 374 they put against Sri Lanka in Chattogram in 2018.At stumps, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mehidy Hasan Miraz were unbeaten on 41 and 43, respectively, after Bangladesh had lost 3 for 34 in a mini middle-order collapse from 256 for 2. That came after Shanto and Mahmudul Hasan Joy had added 212 for the second wicket, Bangladesh’s only third 200-plus second-wicket stand. Incidentally, Shanto had been involved in their last four 100-plus partnerships for this wicket too.On Wednesday, Mahmudul complemented him with a steady 76 of his own, although his innings was cut short due to a lapse of concentration against part-timer Rahmat Shah. That broke his partnership with Shanto in what would turn out to be a forgettable day for Afghanistan, who bowled 15 no-balls – one of which saw Shanto getting bowled on 143 – and seven wides on the day, apart from often misfielding and overthrowing. The heat also played a part, as only 79 overs were bowled in the day.Shanto had started the third session just like he had started the previous one – with boundaries. He swatted two bouncers from debutant Nijat Masood for a four and a six in the 51st over, but two overs later, the bowler retorted with Mominul Haque’s wicket. Come the 55th over, Masood had Shanto chopping on to his stumps, before the delivery turned out to be a no-ball.But luckily for Afghanistan, Shanto could add only three more to his score, with Amir Hamza having him caught at deep midwicket. Shanto’s innings of 146 took only 175 balls, and included 23 fours and two sixes. The day ended with Mushfiqur and Mehidy’s partnership unbeaten on 72, although Bangladesh’s dominance had began once Shanto was at the crease in the second over of the innings.Nijat Masood struck with his first ball in Test cricket•AFP/Getty Images

Masood had taken a wicket with his first ball in his Test career when Zakir Hasan was undone by a ball which jagged away sharply, taking the outside edge on the way to wicketkeeper Afsar Zazai. Thus, Masood became the seventh bowler in the 21st century to strike first ball in Tests, and the first from Afghanistan to do so.However, Shanto attacked with a plethora of boundaries in the first hour itself. He hardly gave fast bowlers Masood and Yamin Ahmadzai any room to relax, even as left-arm wristspinner Zahir Khan was welcomed with three fours in his first spell. An enterprising Shanto reached his fifty in the first session, while Mahmudul held up one end.Shanto accelerated further in the post-lunch session, reaching his third century with another flurry of boundaries. After hitting 11 fours in the morning, Shanto began the second session with three fours in the same over off Masood. He struck him through the covers twice, and pulled him once. Two more fours off Hamza in the next over was followed by driving Karim Janat down the ground.Meanwhile, Mahmudul reached his fifty in the 35th over, shortly before Shanto got to his hundred, benefitting from the five runs resulting due to an overthrow. Three overs later, Shanto reached his century with a quick single.Shanto’s innings saw most of the boundaries coming down the ground, crashing nine fours through cover and mid-off. Seven of his fours came through midwicket, while both his sixes were hit over square leg. His heavy scoring on the leg side had much to do with how poorly Afghanistan bowled to him.Mahmudul struck the ball to his preferred areas of covers and midwicket. He fell before the tea break to Rahmat, as Ibrahim Zadran took a stunner at slip.

From coaching badges to Steve Smith bunny memes, seamer reflects on how far he’s come

Matt Roller24-Jul-2023Josh Tongue would have spent the 2023 summer coaching but for a specialist diagnosing a nerve problem in his shoulder last year. Instead, he has made his England debut, played an Ashes Test and been sent memes depicting Steven Smith as his bunny.”I don’t think it’s really sunk in at the minute,” Tongue said. “Being out for so long with my shoulder, having two operations on it, not knowing what I was going to be doing and maybe retiring, then getting that call-up for the Ireland Test, words can’t really describe how I felt. Now, being in the Ashes squad, it just feels so surreal.”Tongue qualified as a Level 2 coach early in his career and, if the shoulder issue which kept him out of the game for 14 months between June 2021 and August 2022 had not been resolved, he would have quit the professional game and followed a different career path.Related

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“I would have gone into coaching,” he said. “I’d have kept doing my badges.” He suggested he would have tapped into “a few contacts” at his old school, King’s Worcester, or worked with the former Worcestershire batter Gavin Haynes, whose son Jack has played alongside Tongue at the county and for England Lions.”It’s a bit different: doing a bit of coaching or playing for England in an Ashes series. It’s very weird. I don’t think it’s really sunk in at the minute. It’s just crazy: where I was two years ago to now. Obviously as a young kid, I dreamed of being in an Ashes series. Now I’m in one, it’s just an amazing feeling.”Tongue grew up watching James Anderson and Stuart Broad bowling; now, he is in contention to replace one of them in the fifth Test at The Kia Oval, starting on Thursday. “It’s just amazing to be in the training, training with them and learning from them,” he said, speaking before the fourth Test at a #Funds4Runs session organised by LV= Insurance at Stockport Georgians Cricket Club.”The first couple of weeks in the squad, I was trying to find my feet, not asking too many questions as the new kid on the block. I feel like now I’m getting to know everyone, getting a bit more confidence with everyone in the squad, I can ask those questions.”It’s different when you’re in competition. There’s not much training between each Test match, so I try and take as much out of it as I can. Being on the pitch with Jimmy and Broady at Lord’s, them being at mid-on and mid-off, [I tried to] just tap into anything they can offer.”Josh Tongue at a #Funds4Runs session at Stockport Georgians Cricket Club•LV= Insurance/#Funds4Runs

Tongue finished the Lord’s Test with figures of 5 for 151 in the match, bowling a prolonged spell of bouncers on the fourth day and dismissing David Warner and Steven Smith in both innings. “I didn’t think I’d play at Lord’s and that first day, coming through the Long Room and hearing the national anthem, I thought, ‘Wow! I’m actually playing in the Ashes.'”Having earlier trapped him lbw in a County Championship game, Tongue has dismissed Smith in three innings out of three this summer. “I did see a little picture of him in the corner, me, and then a rabbit – something like that,” he said, laughing. “I have seen some funny stuff on Twitter.”The one at Worcester, I did a bit of analyst work against him and tried to mix up the angles. He does draw you in and goes off his stumps. I tried not to play to his strengths which is obviously when you try to bowl straight, he’ll clip you through the leg side.”I feel like bowling that fourth or fifth stump and trying to bore him and force him to do something wrong [is the way to go] and obviously that happened in the first innings. Then, in the second, he was bumped out. It’s just so good to bowl against him, really.”Tongue generally bowls in the mid-80s mph but has touched 90mph/145kph at times this summer, and has enjoyed the novelty of looking up at his speeds on big screens. “I was trying not to look too much but you naturally look sometimes and it was great to get up to that sort of speed,” he said.”It’s a nice feeling. Growing up as a kid, you want to bowl as fast as you can so getting up to 90mph is a nice little achievement. I’m a big rhythm bowler: when I’m bowling at my best, I don’t try too hard. My skills, my height, my bounce, my pace… when I don’t try to bowl too quick, and my attributes kind of sink in.”He has only played at The Oval once before, in a high-scoring draw in 2018, but fresh from a five-wicket haul in Worcestershire’s win against Leicestershire, Tongue is confident that he can make an impact there if selected this week. “From Lord’s, knowing I bowled nicely there, I’ll take confidence for maybe playing at The Oval.”Josh Tongue was speaking on behalf of LV= Insurance, title sponsors of this summer’s LV= Insurance Ashes Series. Head to https://www.lv.com/gi/cricket to find out more

Pakistan’s IPC ministry asks for “immediate termination of services of all heads of institutions appointed on political basis”

Danyal Rasool23-Aug-2023Political developments could make their impact felt on the PCB yet again after Pakistan’s Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) ministry sent a note to the Prime Minister’s office that places the spotlight on the future of PCB head Zaka Ashraf.The letter references guidelines issued by the Election Commission of Pakistan, asking to “ensure immediate termination of services of all heads of institutions appointed on political basis and to send all such cases to the commission for approval of termination or otherwise”. Ashraf is highlighted as the first such case worthy of consideration, denoting him as a political appointee with the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).The letter was signed off by the secretary of the IPC, Ahmed Orakzai, on August 15, and was addressed to the caretaker government, but only came to light a week later. The caretaker Prime Minister, Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar, was appointed the day before the communication was written. It is worth noting that the IPC, the ministry which sent the note to the PM’s office, does not currently have a sitting minister and in such cases, the PM assumes temporary charge of the ministry; effectively, Kakar is head of the ministry that issued the letter, as well as the one that received it.While caretaker governments have historically shown little desire to interfere with the workings of the PCB, there are reasons to believe it could be different this time around. The primary task of caretaker governments in Pakistan is to facilitate conditions for elections to be held within 90 days. But days after the caretaker government was set up, the Election Commission of Pakistan announced that elections scheduled for no later than November would be postponed by several months. That means this caretaker government could take on the role of a regular government, and make decisions on a wider remit of things beyond just election preparations.While the note was issued over a week ago, serious ramifications have not yet been felt at the PCB. The board officials are confident that Ashraf’s position remains safe, and ESPNcricinfo understands that the government had offered the current PCB setup assurances they were not looking to bring about changes at the top. A PCB source criticised what it called “the recent campaign against the PCB’s head” as “malafide”, and said it was intended “to destabilise Pakistan cricket”.It has been pointed out that Ashraf resigned from the PPP on June 19, and therefore could not be considered a political appointee. It was also pointed out that the PCB has never played any part in Pakistan’s national or federal elections, and thus no caretaker government had any cause to make changes at the board.Ashraf was approved as head of a management committee by former PM Shahbaz Sharif to take charge at the PCB for a period of four months in July, after Najam Sethi resigned from the position. At the time, the political implications of the move were significant, with Sethi specifically citing a desire not to cause a rift between the PML(N)’s leader Shahbaz Sharif, and the PPP leader Asif Zardari, with the latter preferring Ashraf to Sethi as PCB head.In the coalition between the two parties, the sports ministry was held by Zardari’s PPP government, who insisted that meant they had the right to appoint a PCB head of choice. Two weeks later, Ashraf assumed charge at the helm of the PCB.

They are the only team without a win in the World Cup so far, having lost their first three games

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Oct-2023Allrounder Angelo Mathews and fast bowler Dushmantha Chameera will join Sri Lanka’s World Cup squad as travelling reserves.They are expected to link up with the team on Friday, ahead of Sri Lanka’s fourth league game against Netherlands in Lucknow on Saturday, but can only be drafted into the squad in case of an injury to a player. Fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana had missed their previous game because of a shoulder niggle.Sri Lanka are presently at the bottom of the points table, having lost their first three games against South Africa, Pakistan and Australia; they are the only side without a win in the tournament so far.Their captain Dasun Shanaka has already been ruled out of the tournament with a quadriceps tear, an injury that needs a recovery period of around three weeks, and he was replaced by allrounder Chamika Karunaratne. Kusal Mendis captained Sri Lanka against Australia in Shanaka’s absence.Chameera, 31, would have been a first-choice pick in Sri Lanka’s World Cup squad but was not fit enough for selection by the deadline. He last played for Sri Lanka in June against Afghanistan and in the warm-ups of the World Cup qualifier. After that, he was initially out with a torn pectoral muscle, which he suffered ahead of the World Cup qualifier in Zimbabwe. And, after recovering from that, he injured himself again in the Lanka Premier League in August.Mathews has not played an ODI since the first game of the home series against Afghanistan in June, and he last played for Sri Lanka in the Colombo Test against Pakistan in July. Sri Lanka are also without legspinner Wanindu Hasaranga, who was ruled out of the World Cup with an injury.

Tasmania also made late inroads with the ball leaving them well-placed for a three-day win

AAP and ESPNcricinfo staff19-Nov-2023Jake Doran, Beau Webster and Bradley Hope scored centuries to put Tasmania within striking distance of victory just two days into their Sheffield Shield clash with New South Wales at Blundstone Arena.In reply to NSW’s substandard first-innings total of 181, Tasmania plundered 493 on the back of trio big knocks from the middle order including Hope’s maiden first-class century.The 312-run first-innings lead for Tasmania looked even more daunting by stumps on Sunday after NSW limped to the end of the day at 46 for 3.Daniel Hughes, edging to the safe hands of Webster at second slip, Blake Macdonald and nightwatchman Jack Nisbet were the batters to depart, leaving opener Ryan Hackney and Matthew Gilkes with a huge mountain to climb.Tasmania had been struggling at 48 for 4 in their first innings on Saturday before the three centurions dug them out of trouble on Sunday and set the home side up for victory. In all, their last six wickets added 445 runs.”It’s been a poor day for us today,” NSW coach Greg Shipperd said.  “Not enough penetration with the ball right across the day. To Tasmania’s credit, they batted wonderfully well.  Disappointingly for us, we’ve not found any rhythm in this game.”We’re in a tough spot, but we’ll fight and see what we can bring in terms of a second-innings total and keep the game alive.”Hope was brutal on the way to posting his maiden first-class century, cracking 21 boundaries during his unbeaten innings.”It’s pretty special,” Hope said. “It hasn’t quite sunk in yet. I’m just happy to get it done for the boys. I think [my aim] was just to bat as normally as possible. Dorsy and Beau had done all the hard work.”Webster’s century continued an outstanding Shield season which now sees him average 97.40 alongside side claiming 11 wickets and catching superbly in the slips.For the left-handed Doran, his hundred was a fourth in first-class cricket.

India offspinner also raises concerns over the quality of the white Kookaburra ball used for bilateral series and IPL, as compared to the ones used in ICC events

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Nov-2023R Ashwin was almost certain that India would win the World Cup on November 19. But the “tactical brilliance and tactical execution” of Australia captain Pat Cummins meant India finished as runners-up, as Australia won their their sixth World Cup. This was Ashwin’s review of the final, which he spoke about vividly on his YouTube channel this week.”Pat Cummins was struggling as an ODI bowler heading into the World Cup. But in the last four or five games leading into the final, nearly 50% of the balls he bowled were cutters,” Ashwin said.”In the final – I don’t know how many people explained it on TV – Cummins bowled to a four-five leg-side field like an offspinner, bowling the stump line. But he bowled only three balls in the six-meter mark or further up on the pitch in his entire ten-over spell. [He] knocked off crucial wickets in the final. The five fielders on the on side were square leg, midwicket, mid-on, deep square leg and long leg, and he bowled his ten overs without a mid-off.”Related

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Despite having a predominantly leg-side field without a mid-off in place, Cummins did not concede a single boundary and finished with figures of 2 for 34. The two wickets were those of Shreyas Iyer and Virat Kohli; Iyer was done in by the low bounce on a length ball while Kohli played one on while trying to steer a back-of-a-length ball to deep third. Those strikes went a long way in restricting India to 240 in Ahmedabad.”Cummins’ execution should be applauded,” Ashwin said. “It is easy to plan to bowl to a leg-side field. It is easier to bowl that way in a Test match because the umpires will not call a wide even if you bowl a couple of balls down leg.”But to not bowl a wide down leg in an ODI, execute the plans with that field and not allow batters to drive the ball is brilliant. In my experience, I have seen bowlers go for at least one or two fours with such a field.”It was the first time I saw a fast bowler bowl to an offspinner’s field without a mid-off in a one-day game. Tactical brilliance, tactical execution. They had us there.”Cummins’ decision to bowl first in the final caught many by surprise•ICC via Getty Images

Why Australia put India to bat

A key factor behind Cummins and other Australian fast bowlers deploying the cutters was the slow pitch for the final. The strip had already hosted the India-Pakistan match on October 14, and Australia, on the eve of the final, had feared it would help the Indian spinners. Having called right at toss, Cummins elected to field, leaving everyone surprised.Ashwin would later understand the exact reason behind Cummins’ decision when he ran into Australia chief selector George Bailey at the halfway mark.”I was looking at the pitch in mid-innings break when Bailey came around. I asked him why they chose to bowl first when Australia generally bat first in finals,” Ashwin said. “[Bailey] said, ‘we have played IPL for many years, toured here for bilateral series. As per our experience in India, red soil disintegrates but black soil becomes better to bat under lights. It is tough [to bat] in red soil under lights, too.”In Lucknow against South Africa, the pitch was a red soil one. Under lights, the ball not just seamed but also spun. Even dew does not have much impact on red soil whereas on black soil, the ball turns in the afternoon but becomes (flat) like concrete [under lights]. That is our experience’.”

‘Need same Kookaburra balls in bilateral series and IPL like in ICC events’

Ashwin also raised concerns over the quality of the white Kookaburra ball used for bilateral series and IPL as compared to the ones used in ICC events. He said that the ones used in bilaterals and IPL lost shape easily and also absorbed moisture unlike the ones in ICC events.”I have observed in ICC events that whether the spinner rotates it or whether a fast bowler bowls, the ball lands on the seam and goes on. Whereas in bilateral series or IPL, the ball [loses shape and] becomes like a round vessel, a lemon or even an egg.”Sometimes when the ball is kept in a storeroom, it catches a lot of moisture and soaks water and changes shape and changes quality [easily]. If the ball is given in the same quality [as in ICC events] in bilateral series and IPL, it will make a difference, because selections are based on performances in these bilateral series and the IPL. It will be the right test for batters and bowlers.”

Deccan Gladiators, champions the last two seasons, fell well short after a below-par performance with the bat

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Dec-2023Deccan Gladiators’ hopes of a hat-trick of Abu Dhabi T10 titles were dashed by New York Strikers, who put in a fantastic bowling display led by Sunil Narine in the final to romp home by seven wickets with four balls in hand on Saturday.Big scores had gone down as the tournament wore on, but Gladiators’ 91 for 5 after being sent in appeared insufficient for the big occasion. It proved to be exactly that, despite Strikers being 7 for 2 in 1.1 overs, with openers Muhammad Waseem and Rahmanullah Gurbaz dismissed cheaply.Niroshan Dickwella and Asif Ali, the Player of the Match, put the innings back on track, before Dickwella was sent back by Andre Russell for a 12-ball 14. From there on, it was all about Asif and captain Kieron Pollard, who put up 56 runs together without much scoreboard pressure to weigh them down.Asif scored 48 not out in 25 balls with two fours and four sixes, and Pollard chipped in with 22 not out in 13, with a four and six, as Strikers won the title.The win was set up by the bowlers, though. Gladiators had a decent opening stand of 28 with Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Nicholas Pooran, the No. 1 and No. 3 on the tournament run-scorers’ list, but Narine broke through in the third over with Kohler-Cadmore’s wicket for a seven-ball 13. Pooran fell to George Scrimshaw two balls later, and Gladiators were suddenly 28 for 2, which became 36 for 3, 41 for 4, and 57 for 5 after 7.1 overs, with Narine returning 2 for 6 from his two overs without conceding a single boundary.Russell, who finished with an unbeaten 30 from 18 balls with two fours and two sixes, and David Wiese, 20 not out from 11, with a four and two sixes, completed the innings with some momentum, but it was too few for Gladiators to defend on the night.