TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 2016 SPORTS Joy, relief in Bangladesh after England series DHAKA: Bangladesh heaved a sigh of Dhaka on Sunday to level the series, ing a match in Lahore in 2009. tional event.” The first of the two matches, ban for match fixing. relief yesterday after successfully hosting Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) chief which England narrowly won by 22 runs, “We need more Test matches to England’s cricketers for a month-long executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury ‘PERFECT VENUE’ was Bangladesh’s first Test in nearly 15 improve,” Ashraful told AFP, saying the series despite security fears, hoping their beamed with joy. Nizamuddin said he hoped the months. While Australia’s refusal to tour series proved that Bangladesh could now gripping battle would persuade other “We’ve done everything possible to Australian board-whose chief security partially explains the dearth of Tests, the compete against the best. “I just hope our teams to follow suit. make the tour successful and it was a officer Sean Carroll visited Bangladesh bigger problem has been Bangladesh’s players will get this opportunity and they The tour was plunged into doubt after huge, a huge success,” Chowdhury told last week to witness the measures provid- poor record since gaining Test match sta- deserve it.” Even though the defeat will five Islamist gunmen attacked a restau- AFP. “A sense of great comfort and relief is ed for England-would be persuaded that tus 16 years ago. Their victory in the sec- have dented the mood in the England rant in Dhaka in July, killing 18 foreigners, prevailing everywhere.” The Bangladesh Bangladesh was a safe venue. ond Test was only their eighth in 95 con- camp ahead of their eagerly-awaited tour with England’s limited overs captain Eoin board, which has long struggled to per- “It was a big challenge for us to host tests-and the first against a full-strength of India, Bangladesh fans were swift to Morgan among those who ultimately suade teams to travel to what is Test crick- this event successfully on the field and off side from a major country. Before the praise skipper Alastair Cook and his team stayed at home. et’s newest nation, was dealt a major the field. And we think we have done match, skipper Mushfiqur Rahim had for making the trip. After watching a pre- But after being promised security blow last year when Australia scrapped a that. We have been praised by the pleaded for more teams to play ceding ODI series from the sidelines, Cook measures more usually accorded to heads planned tour at the last minute on safety England cricket board, their players and Bangladesh, saying that the only way they flew back to Bangladesh for the first Test of state, the bulk of England’s players did grounds. officials,” Nizamuddin said. would would improve would be if they only days after the birth of his second child agree to travel and played their part in a The BCB was wary that a major securi- “Given the circumstances there could could get more games under their belt. back in England. Writing on Facebook, nail-biting contest that fluctuated wildly ty incident involving England could con- not have been a better series on and off It was a point echoed yesterday by Bangladesh fan Rajib Hasan hailed Cook at times. demn it to the same fate of Pakistan, the field. It’s a clear message to the rest of Mohammad Ashraful, one of Rahim’s for agreeing to return to the fray even it After Bangladesh pulled off a 108-run which hasn’t hosted a major Test team the world that Bangladesh is an absolute- predecessors who just returned to meant he only had “his baby in his arms for victory in the second and final Test in since an attack on the Sri Lankan bus dur- ly perfect venue for hosting any interna- domestic cricket after serving a three-year a couple of minutes”. — AFP Cremer hits maiden ton but Sri Lanka dominate HARARE: Graeme Cremer struck his from the other end. “I think we bat quite maiden Test century but the Zimbabwe well together because PJ plays some big captain’s gritty knock could not prevent shots and keeps the scoreboard ticking, his side from closing day three of the and I know that I can block out a maiden first Test against Sri Lanka with a heavy if I need to and just get off strike,” said deficit. Cremer, who arrived at the Cremer. crease in Harare with Zimbabwe 139 for “So that helps me a lot, knowing six in reply to Sri Lanka’s 537 and facing there’s someone on the other end scor- the prospect of following on, hit 102 not ing.” Moor went on to score a career-best out to drag the home side to 373 all out. 79 in a 132-run stand with Cremer which By the close of play yesterday, Sri only ended when Lahiru Kumara pro- Lanka had reached five without loss in duced a fearsome bouncer that Moor their second innings to lead by 169. fended to slip. Cremer’s previous highest score in Test Kumara went on to knock Cremer’s cricket was 43, but he showed his bats- helmet off his head and rattle the men what was possible with a bit of Zimbabwe skipper, who was then fortu- application as he batted for over four nate to see a hook shot off Kumara hours. dropped at deep backward square-leg Zimbabwe’s collapse in the morning with his score on 58. Cremer went on to had owed more to a series of rash strokes add 92 for the eighth wicket with than trying conditions or outstanding Donald Tiripano as Zimbabwe’s tail con- bowling. They resumed on a promising tinued to wag, but nearly ran out of 88 for one, but soon saw opener Tino partners on 99 when the ninth wicket Mawoyo pull a short ball from Suranga went down. Lakmal straight to deep midwicket to Zimbabwe’s final batsman Chris depart for 45, and two overs later Mpofu managed to hold off Rangana Hamilton Masakadza prodded forward to Herath to give Cremer his chance, and edge Lakmal to slip for 33. the 30-year-old duly went to three fig- Sean Williams then picked out the ures to cap an impressive feat for a bats- man in the deep with a careless sweep, man who averaged 10.75 prior to the before Craig Ervine and Malcolm Waller Test. “I hadn’t got 50 before in Test crick- were trapped lbw by Dilruwan Perera. et and I don’t even have a five-for yet, so SHARJAH: Pakistani cricketer Younis Khan (L) drops a catch off West Indies’ batsman Shane Dowrich (R) as wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed (C) looks At 139 for six Zimbabwe were in danger it was quite special,” said Cremer. on on the second day of the third and final Test between Pakistan and the West Indies at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in Sharjahyesterday. —AFP of being shot out, but Peter Moor’s “When I got to 75, I started thinking, counter-attacking knock changed the ‘There’s a chance here.’ Then I thought I momentum of the innings. His two early might run out of partners. It was an awe- sixes forced the field back, while Cremer some feeling to get that one run to get Resolute Brathwaite foils was content to provide dogged support to a hundred.” — AFP SCOREBOARD Pakistan in third Test HARARE: Scoreboard at close on the third day of the first Test between Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka yes- SHARJAH: Opener Kraigg Brathwaite needed terday: five runs for a fighting hundred as he foiled SCOREBOARD Sri Lanka first innings 536 all out (K. Perera 110, (Masakadza), 4-111 Pakistan on the second day of the third and U. Tharanga 110, K. Silva 94, G. Cremer 4-142) (Williams), 5-134 (Ervine), 6-139 (Waller), 7-271 final Test in Sharjah yesterday. Brathwaite SHARJAH, United Arab Emirates: Scoreboard yesterday at stumps on the second day of the third test between (Moor), 8-363 (Tiripano), anchored the West Indian innings with a 206- Zimbabwe first innings 9-366 (Mumba), 10-373 (Mpofu). Pakistan and West Indies at Sharjah Cricket Stadium: T. Mawoyo c Gunaratne b Lakmal 45 Bowling: Lakmal 21.4-3-69-2, Kumara 22-3-90-1, ball 95 not out after they were struggling at 38-3, putting two solid stands of 83 each with Pakistan 1st Innings (Overnight: 255-8) Roston Chase 20-5-47-1, Devendra Bishoo 21-3-77-4. B. Chari lbw b Herath 5 Herath 37-5-97-3, D. Perera Sami Aslam c Holder b Bishoo 74 West Indies 1st Innings H. Masakadza c Karunaratne b Lakmal 33 18-1-66-2, Gunaratne 3-0-23-0, de Silva 2-0-10-0, Roston Chase (50) for the fifth wicket and with Azhar Ali c Brathwaite b Gabriel 0 Kraigg Brathwaite not out 95 C. Ervine lbw b D. Perera 12 Mendis 4-0-10-1. Shane Dowrich (47) for the sixth. Asad Shafiq lbw b Gabriel 0 Leon Johnson lbw b Riaz 1 S. Williams c Gunaratne b Herath 10 At close skipper Jason Holder was unbeat- Younis Khan c Johnson b Chase 51 Darren Bravo c Amir b Babar 11 M. Waller lbw b D. Perera 22 Sri Lanka second innings Misbah-ul-Haq c Dowrich b Bishoo 53 Marlon Samuels lbw b Shah 0 P. Moor c D.