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“I wish to retire from T20Is to focus my energies on readying myself for the 2021 one-day World Cup”

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Sep-2019Mithali Raj has retired from T20I cricket in a bid to be at her best at the 2021 ODI World Cup, saying while announcing her decision on Tuesday that she wanted to focus on fulfilling her “dream” of winning the 50-over title.”After representing India in T20 internationals since 2006, I wish to retire from T20Is to focus my energies on readying myself for the 2021 one-day World Cup,” she said in a BCCI press statement. “It remains my dream to win a World Cup for my country and I want to give it my best.”I thank the BCCI for their continuous support and wish the Indian T20 team good luck as they prepare for the home series against South Africa Women.”ALSO READ: ‘Series win in Australia was a turning point in the journey of Indian women’s cricket’ – Mithali RajRaj had captained India in 32 T20Is, including those at the World Cups in 2012, 2014 and 2016. The 36-year-old batsman ended her career as India’s top-scorer in the format with 2364 runs at an average of 37.5 and a highest score of 97 not out.Last week she told that she “was definitely available” to play the upcoming T20Is against South Africa, but there were question marks over whether India still needed her.ALSO READ: Mithali Raj, the sleepy girl who woke up a generation, by Shashank KishoreRaj was at the centre of a great deal of controversy at the last T20I World Cup, where she claimed she was unfairly excluded from the XI for the semi-final, which India lost. The head coach at the time, Ramesh Powar, had said that she had gone as far as to threaten retirement if she wasn’t allowed to open the innings.Things, however, did calm down with time and Raj was picked for each of India’s last two T20I series, against New Zealand and England. But there was increased focus on her role with the team looking to groom players for the next World Cup in February 2020.

The 36-year-old, who went on to play in T20 tournaments across the globe after retiring from international cricket in 2015, indicated he would continue his association with the game by taking up coaching roles in the future

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Aug-2018Australia left-arm pacer Mitchell Johnson has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket. The 36-year-old, who went on to play in T20 tournaments across the globe after quitting international cricket in November 2015, last played in this year’s IPL for the Kolkata Knight Riders.”It’s over. I’ve bowled my final ball. Taken my final wicket. Today I announce my retirement from all forms of cricket,” Johnson said in a column on . “I had hoped to continue playing in various Twenty20 competitions around the world until perhaps the middle of next year. But the fact is my body is starting to shut down.”Johnson revealed he had been suffering from back problems during the IPL and added that it was an indication for him to call time. Snapped up by the Knight Riders for INR 2 crores (USD 286,000 approx) this year, Johnson did not have a memorable season as he gave away 216 runs in six games and picked only two wickets.”If I can’t play at 100 per cent then I can’t give my best to the team. And for me it’s always been about the team,” he said. “I’m ready to break clear of playing cricket and move on to the next period of my life. He has recently been through retiring himself and I think he understood that when you’re done, you’re done.”Johnson had called time on his Big Bash League career with Perth Scorchers last month and had pulled out of his commitments with Karachi Kings in the Pakistan Super League earlier this year. Since his international retirement, he has picked 31 wickets in 33 games at an economy of 7.28 in T20s.Contrasting to his IPL performance, Johnson was in good form this BBL season, taking 20 wickets in 19 games at an average of 22.75 and economy rate of 6.14. He had also led Scorchers to the title in the 2016-17 season, finishing with figures of 1 for 13 in the final against the Sydney Sixers. He had finished that season as their highest wicket-taker with 13 wickets from nine matches and an economy rate of 5.91.”When I sat down with new Perth Scorchers coach Adam Voges recently to discuss my future, he was interested in me playing on again this summer. I did believe I could still be helpful around the playing group with my experience. But I think mentally I’m done as well. I’d like to thank the Scorchers for the last two fantastic summers and the WACA for everything my adopted cricket home has done for me over the past decade.He indicated he would continue his association with the game by taking up coaching roles in the future. “My competitive urge hasn’t left me and hopefully that’s something I can use to channel into a coaching or mentoring role in the future. I’m a believer in sticking to your strengths and cricket is my strength.”I don’t know if I’ll be any good at it. I’ve got a lot of experience in cricket and no experience in coaching officially, though I did help out at Wanneroo last summer and I’ve always enjoyed working with young players.”

Neil Wagner kept bashing the ball into the middle of the wicket and kept getting wickets? What’s not to like?

David Hopps at Taunton15-Apr-2017
Scorecard”I don’t like things messy,” said the girl in the refreshments outlet as she wiped down the surfaces with uncommon zeal. It is fortunate she did not have a view of the cricket. “Messy” barely begins to sum up a second day at Taunton in which 18 wickets fell and a succession of batsmen were in suicidal mood.The upshot is that Essex, 10 for 0 at the close, need another 245 with all their second-wickets intact. It is by no means impossible, because this pitch is far better than the scores suggest, although an Essex victory would require no more of the batting tomfoolery that saw those 18 wickets tumble for 253 runs.Neil Wagner, New Zealand’s adopted South African, was the chief beneficiary of a haphazard day in which his persistent use of the short ball reaped more dividends than he could fairly expect even on a wicket which the batsmen had concluded was two-paced and did not trust as a result. But hell, if it keeps working, keep doing it. As he so often has for New Zealand.Wagner has found little swing in Taunton with his new-ball spells, when he pitches the ball up, but his old-ball tactic of bashing the ball into the middle of the pitch has brought untold joy. His burst of 5 for 17 in 34 balls saw Somerset decline to 124 for 9 before a last-wicket stand of 50 between Craig Overton and Jack Leach restored at least a semblance of responsibility. Wagner returned to end that, drawing Overton into an uppercut to third man, and finished with 6 for 48.Somerset’s batting coach Chris Rogers said; “I think a lot of the batsman will feel they have left a lot of runs out there. However, I do think this wicket is playing tricks. It is two-paced and it has become a bit of a lottery. But still, we could have tried to have seen Wagner off and we will need to address. The last pair valued their wicket and that will be a big lesson for the other guys.”A more pressing question is why Somerset dealt with it in such a ham-fisted fashion. Wagner, as a skiddy left-armer, is difficult to leave when he hammers the ball into a somewhat unreliable surface because of the angle he bowls and the height – or lack of it – he generates, but that barely begins to build a defence.Such tactics – as Wagner himself signalled afterwards – are exhausting and cannot be pursued with success before long. Five overs, 30 balls, 15 balls each, to see him off. Against an Essex side only fielding two frontline pace bowlers. Finally, it seems, the Internet age where nobody can concentrate for longer than two minutes has reached Taunton.Wagner’s assault began with Steve Davies, whose square drive off the back foot flew at catchable height to point. Peter Trego was strangled down the leg-side and, further down the scorecard, the shots got worse. Roelof van der Merwe attempted a one-legged whip and was caught at midwicket and Lewis Gregory top-edged a pull to long leg.That left Jamie Overton. Before lunch, Overton had bounced out Wagner: fast bowler bouncing fast bowler to warn him that fire could be fought with fire. Wagner therefore stepped up his short-ball assault and removed Alastair Cook from slip to strengthen the leg-side with the same intent. Blow me, if Overton did not top-edge a hare-brained pull straight up in the air. Perhaps an early contender for the daftest shot of the season. Utterly self-indulgent. There again, these days there is a lot of it about.Essex had not been much better. Resuming on their overnight total of 60 for 2, they lost eight wickets in barely doubling their score with only Cook providing any real resistance. Even Cook lacked his frolicsome approach of the first evening before he played on, 13 added in an hour to his overnight 39, pushing limply at Gregory.Left-arm spin will play a major part in Somerset’s attempt to win the game on the third day. Leach’s solidity will persuade Somerset that his simplified action – following the ECB analysis that deemed his action as illegal – will gradually pose the same threat that was such a central part of their Championship challenge last season. He took two wickets in Essex’s first innings, bowling Ravi Bopara behind his legs on the sweep in a solid introduction to the season. A simplified action looks as if little go wrong, but what he needs are the bowling figures to follow.Van der Merwe, his fellow slow left-armer, bowled the best deliveries of all, none better than the delivery which turned to strike Adam Wheater’s off stump. Perhaps he could have been further forward, but on a day of such batting inadequacies it would be harsh to complain too much.

Having survived a spitting cobra in Nagpur, New Zealand will be asked to do more thinking and acting on their feet when they meet “big brothers” Australia in Dharamsala

Sidharth Monga in Dharamsala17-Mar-2016Rhythm, momentum and form are words usually thrown around at world events, but try telling New Zealand that. As it is, momentum counts for little in Twenty20 tournaments, but New Zealand are just going from one set of extreme conditions to another. They have survived a spitting cobra in Nagpur, but they will be asked to do more thinking and acting on their feet when they meet “big brothers” Australia in Dharamsala.New Zealand have traveled 1524 km north, and 1.16 km in altitude. Everything in Nagpur felt like it had come out of a drought; here they could not even train because of the incessant rain. In the first week of the tournament, only two out of six matches were not shortened by rain. While New Zealand showed great reading of conditions that did not answer to the conventional definition of a good T20 pitch, they will have to do more of that in Dharamsala.To begin with, they will have their first look of the pitch only when they arrive for the game on Friday afternoon, because it rained all day on Thursday and the whole ground was covered. Australia captain Steven Smith reckoned New Zealand would go in with three spinners again once they have a look because it is quite dry and it played slow in the qualifiers too. It’s not going to be as straightforward, though. Given the weather, it is unlikely we will get a full game, which combined with a possible wet ball might make it difficult to use that much of spin.Ross Taylor said spin was likely to play a part based on what he gleaned from the earlier matches here, but there were other factors to be kept in mind. “We have to wait and see what the conditions are like,” Taylor said. “The boundaries are a lot smaller here. In Nagpur the boundaries were so big that you weren’t able to attack the spinners as much as you would have liked because if you didn’t hit the ball 100% you were going to get out caught at the boundary. Rotating the strike played a big part there but here mishits can still go for six even if it does turn. We just have to wait and see.”Given the slow nature of the pitches, though, New Zealand are likely to continue with their plan of hitting out while the ball is new. They did the same in Nagpur with Martin Guptill and Colin Munro looking for the big hits pretty early on although it might not have come off entirely there. It might also mean Taylor bats lower than Munro and Corey Anderson.”It is definitely easy to score upfront,” Taylor said. “But you still have to play fearless and aggressive cricket but smart cricket as well. Guptill and Munro’s job is to get us off to a flying start. Some days it will come off and some days it won’t. But this team bats right down to eight or nine, we still have the confidence to go out there and play shots. As I said, if we can assess the conditions batting first, it becomes easier while chasing as well, we understand how hard to go.”One of the trickier aspects of playing T20 cricket is to adjust on pitches that are not flat, to look at a 140 pitch for what it is and not underachieve while still going for 180. For instance, New Zealand knew as early as the seventh over in Nagpur that they were going to be in the game if they got to 130 or so.”I think communication becomes a big part of it,” Taylor said. “Guys running out drinks and players who have gone out there having a bit of an idea and passing information back. That becomes key whether you’re batting or bowling. Try and sum up the wicket and adapt as soon as possible.”Every game is totally different and we need to assess the conditions here and obviously with rain around it could be a shortened game and we might need to change the balance. May be we will not go in with three spinners when the weather is like that and different power options as well.”This is a short tournament with a lot of travel. New Zealand do not have the advantage of playing in the last match of their group should it come down to net run rate. Therefore the start that they had against India – not just a win but a massive win – was just what they needed, but they can not get carried away. Any chance of that happening would have been taken away by the position they are in: going into a big second match with hardly any training at the venue, only televised matches from last week to go by when it comes to the pitch, and an opposition that will be keen to remind them of the World Cup final defeat last year.

South Africa’s bowlers were largely to blame for the loss in the first ODI, but AB de Villiers was particularly enamoured of the prospect of fielding two frontline spinners

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Colombo22-Jul-2013South Africa sunk to their second-heaviest defeat ever, in terms of runs, on Saturday, but AB de Villiers said he would seek to employ a similar strategy against Sri Lanka in the second ODI. South Africa’s bowlers were largely to blame for the loss, conceding 320 for 5, and 137 in the last 12 overs, but de Villiers was particularly enamoured of the prospect of fielding two frontline spinners.Robin Peterson and Aaron Phangiso bowled only 14 overs collectively in the first match, taking 1 for 80 between them, but had done enough to persuade de Villiers they were both worth sticking with. Both frontline spinners are left-armers and Sri Lanka are likely to field five left-hand batsmen in the top eight. The part-time offspin of JP Duminy is also available to South Africa, though he did travel for 51 in his seven overs in the first match.With the R Premadasa pitch expected to play slower on Tuesday, having already sustained 82 overs of wear in the first match, de Villiers felt all his slow bowlers were capable of making an impact.”I’d like to have both of the spinners in there,” de Villiers said. “I enjoyed the fact that we played a lot of frontline spinners, even though they didn’t take a lot of wickets. It’s a nice style of attack for us. There are a few right-handers as well in the team. I think they both bowl well to left-handers. Aaron especially showed that against Kumar Sangakkara right at the death. Under a lot of pressure he bowled a really good over. I truly believe they have the experience and the skill – Robin, Aaron and JP, to adapt to certain batters whether they are right or left-handers, and I’ll try to bowl them at the right times.”JP is just a part-time bowler still, but he is handy, especially to left-handers. He’ll pretty much bowl in every game and he’s definitely part of our plans. We wouldn’t like to experiment too much with our side. I believe the best XI played two days ago. We’d like to stay as close as possible to that XI with the odd change here and there.”De Villiers also called for improvement from his side in the field, after a shabby showing in the first game. South Africa have built a reputation for being one of the best fielding sides in the world, but allowed the heat and humidity to affect their performance, de Villiers said, though the only dropped catch came as early as the first over.”We’re not the best fielding team in the world yet. We’ve got the potential, so it’s a bit frustrating to see us field like that. I think the boys have learnt from their mistakes. It was a long 50 overs in the field and the afternoon was quite hot, which is not an excuse, but something new to the guys, something they couldn’t adapt to. In this game they’ll hopefully know what to expect and take a few matchwinning catches and a couple of run-outs. The bowlers certainly need them.”Hashim Amla has not been declared fit after suffering from muscle spasms in his neck last Friday, but de Villiers said he had recovered smoothly since then, and hoped Amla would bring some much-needed experience into the top order. South Africa are missing their most seasoned batsmen in Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis, who have not come on tour.”Hash is still not 100% and we’ll have to reassess that at training, when he’ll have a light net and then final reassessments tonight and tomorrow morning. It’s important to start well, but also to stabilise the innings if we don’t start well, which we also didn’t do in that match. We got it wrong in both departments. I’d like to focus on the basics tomorrow and get that in place, even if we have a bad start.”

Damien Wright, the New Zealand bowling coach, will step down from the role at the end of the upcoming World Twenty20

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Aug-2012Damien Wright, the New Zealand bowling coach, will step down from the role at the end of the upcoming World Twenty20. Wright, in a New Zealand Cricket (NZC) release, said his decision to quit the job was influenced by his desire to spend more time with his family.”I have really enjoyed working with the New Zealand team and it was a tough decision to leave the position. The decision is related to time away from my family and a need to be based closer to home,” Wright said. “It has been a privilege to work with current crop of bowlers and I’m proud of the progression they have made over the past year.”Wright was appointed New Zealand bowling coach in mid-2011, after retiring from Australian first-class cricket. He played for Tasmania and then Victoria, and also doubled up as the Bushrangers’ bowling coach in his final season with them.NZC director of cricket John Buchanan said Wright had played a significant role in his short time with New Zealand. “Damien has done a brilliant job since he came on board and will be hard to replace. He brings a huge amount of passion and energy to the team. We have been particularly impressed with the growth and development of the young fast bowlers during his time in the role.”

Surrey lost their 100% record in Group B of the CB40 League when they had a wasted journey to face Durham at Chester-le-Street

17-Jul-2011
Surrey lost their 100% record in Group B of the CB40 League when they had a wasted journey to face Durham at Chester-le-Street. The match was washed out without a ball bowled following heavy rainfall in the north-east over the weekend. Durham began the day in third place with four wins from six matches.

Muttiah Muralitharan has said that retiring after taking his 800th wicket and helping Sri Lanka win his farewell Test, against India in Galle, was one of the greatest moments in his life

Sa'adi Thawfeeq in Galle22-Jul-2010Muttiah Muralitharan has said that retiring after taking his 800th wicket and helping Sri Lanka win his farewell Test, against India in Galle, was one of the greatest moments in his life. Murali’s 800th was the last Indian wicket in the follow-on, after which Sri Lanka chased the target of 95 without losing a wicket.”I am very happy that God has given me everything – eight wickets, a victory, basically everything. This is one of the greatest moments in my life, retiring this way,” Murali said. “I am not emotional in a way, frankly, I am happy that I have done it. I trained really hard. Even last week, I trained hard to play in this Test match and take it very seriously.”Murali had to wait and toil for his 800th wicket, that of Pragyan Ojha, but he said the landmark was just a number and achieving it was not a high priority. “Eight hundred is only a number. We wanted to get the wickets quickly. You never know in Galle, with the weather, winning the match was the important thing,” he said. “At that time I didn’t think about it, but it came in the end. I wouldn’t have minded if it didn’t come. My only scare was when Lasith Malinga had to go off the field.”I told my captain [Kumar Sangakkara] to somehow get the wickets. We knew the situation in Galle and had the match ended in a draw it would have been very sad. I badly wanted to win in my final Test. We all play for a win. At that moment we would have taken even a run out. It was hard work for the spinners. The wicket had something on it yesterday, and Malinga’s magnificent yorkers made the difference.”Murali also said that he had quit Test cricket at the right time, with Sri Lanka having younger spinners rising through the ranks. “I have played for 18 years and I thought that there are three other good spinners in the side,” he said. “They are 24-25 years old and I am 38. I thought it’s better to give them a chance. I have nothing more to achieve and I thought this is the right time.”I chose to finish my career at the end of the first Test because I know my knees are not going to last to bowl 50-60 overs. If I am there it will be four spinners and only two can play. I will be blocking the place of another young spinner.”Murali also had praise for the curator at Galle, Jayananda Warnaweera, and thanked him for helping make his farewell memorable. “Galle is one of my favourite grounds because there is always a result. Warnaweera prepares good wickets and we won the match in four days. He gave me a good farewell and the way he decorated the stadium was unbelievable.”

Former allrounder also believes India won’t miss Pujara given the impact of people like Jaiswal with the bat and Bumrah with the ball

Yash Jha08-Oct-2024What would India’s last two Test tours of Australia look like without Cheteshwar Pujara? The man who copped blow after blow, batted hours on end, and made Australia’s bowlers sick of the sight of him is no longer part of India’s set-up. But as far as former Australia allrounder Shane Watson is concerned, India’s newer-looking Test side, with its dynamic batting options, will continue to make life difficult for Australia when they make the trip for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy later this year.”I don’t see it [India’s batting dynamic] changing a lot,” Watson said on the sidelines of the launch of the International Masters League in Mumbai on Tuesday. “The thing when you talk about Pujara, for example, is he just doesn’t make a mistake. Whereas you’ve seen so many of these incredible batters for India – top-order batters, someone like [Yashasvi] Jaiswal, he’s scored runs very quickly, but he hasn’t made a mistake.”Pujara tallied 792 runs – and, more vitally, faced 2186 deliveries – in 15 innings across the two tours in 2018-19 and 2020-21, as India did in back-to-back visits what they had never done before: win a Test series in Australia. Although Jaiswal would appear to be from a very different school of batting – as evidenced by a strike rate of 71.67 after 11 Tests, and fifties at better than a run-a-ball in both innings of India’s most recent Test – Watson reckons the 22-year-old’s ability to bat long will challenge the Australian bowling attack.Related

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“He hasn’t really given the opposition a chance to be able to get him out,” Watson said. “I think if those type of batters come out to Australia and play aggressively – just put the bad balls away and put pressure on the Aussie bowlers – then they can still have the same effect, and they keep the game moving as well.”Watson clubbed Jaiswal and Rishabh Pant as the Indian batters who could pose serious threats to Australia over the course of the five-match series, which begins in Perth from November 22.”For me, with the calibre of batters that India have got and the skill they’ve got, there’s no reason why they can’t combine that: putting pressure on bowlers, score quickly, but also not make mistakes, which we’ve seen those Indian batters, in particular Jaiswal [do],” Watson said. “And we’ve seen Rishabh Pant come in and do it as well – take the game on, but also don’t give the opposition many opportunities to get them out.”Pant has 624 runs to his name from 12 Test innings in Australia – while maintaining a strike rate of 72.13 – and Watson, unsurprisingly, picked Pant and Jasprit Bumrah as the two players Australia need to be most wary of.Eoin Morgan, Brian Lara, Sachin Tendulkar, Jonty Rhodes, Romesh Kaluwitharana and Shane Watson at the launch of the International Masters League•PTI

“He’s [Pant] obviously got great memories from his last tour that he had from a batting perspective in Australia,” Watson said. “That innings he played at the Gabba was something very special. So knowing that he’s come through his challenges in the last couple of years to be able to come back as an even better player than what he left off, I think he’s going to have a big series.”Also, Bumrah is someone who in Australian conditions – well, in all conditions really – he’s so good. [With] his ability to be able to just take wickets and get batters out, he’s going to be very effective in Australia as well. So those two guys, if they have big series, they can really provide Australia some big challenges.”Bumrah has 32 wickets at 21.25 from seven Tests in Australia. He missed the last Test of the 2020-21 series due to an injury, but will head into his third tour of Australia as the mainstay of India’s bowling attack even as they await the return of Mohammed Shami from a long injury layoff.

“Murphy is an exciting young bowler. He is not Nathan Lyon, but Nathan Lyon is not Shane Warne either”

Matt Roller24-Jul-2023Tom Moody believes that Australia must select Todd Murphy for the fifth and final Ashes Test at The Kia Oval, and that he should replace Cameron Green in the side.Australia went into the fourth Test at Emirates Old Trafford with three frontline seamers and two allrounders in Green and Mitchell Marsh, opting not to select a specialist spinner for the first time in more than a decade.They conceded 592 in just 107.4 overs as England looked to force a result before rain wiped out the majority of the fourth and the entirety of the fifth day. Moody, who played 84 times for his country and has enjoyed an extensive coaching career, believes that Australia must pick Murphy, the 22-year-old offspinner, to restore balance to their attack.Related

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“I know that they would’ve had their various reasons behind not playing Murphy, whether that was based around the fact that there was the weather that was potentially on the horizon, but that’s no guarantee,” Moody told ESPNcricinfo. “That would have looked pretty stupid if it had backfired.”To me, the attack did look like it lacked balance. Murphy is an exciting young bowler. He is not Nathan Lyon, but Nathan Lyon is not Shane Warne either. Murphy needs to create his own path and have his own journey; he has started that already and he has started pretty successfully.”I’d be surprised if he doesn’t come into the side just to create that balance, but also give the team better combinations for Pat Cummins to lean towards. In that fourth Test match, it was almost like he was looking around the field for options – and he was nearly looking in the mirror all the time.”Australia planned to use Travis Head as their main spinner in Manchester, but he bowled seven wicketless overs, which cost 52 runs. “That highlights the challenge of Test cricket,” Moody said. “You need to be a specialist at your craft, and you need complementary specialists in your attack.”He suggested that Australia should leave Green out of their side in order to fit Murphy in. “I think playing the two allrounders is a luxury, and to me, at this stage, Mitch Marsh is the one that looks like he can influence the game, which he’s already done since he’s returned with confidence.”There’s no question Cameron Green has got remarkable upside, but the here-and-now selection is Mitch Marsh. There are very few players in the history of the game that haven’t had setbacks, or been left out of sides for team combinations or form or whatever it might be. If anything, it’s probably something that might do him [Green] the world of good.”Moody expects Australia’s selectors to keep faith in David Warner, having retained him for the fourth Test. “The way I look at it, them deciding to play him at Old Trafford was nearly committing to him for the series,” he said. “If they were going to make a change, that was the moment to make it, but they clearly felt that he’d done enough.”And Moody believes that winning an away Ashes series for the first time since 2001 by avoiding defeat at The Oval would be “a huge achievement” for Australia. “The way that England have been playing Test cricket has been nothing short of outstanding to watch. They have set new standards, which is something to be admired and respected.Moody wants Australia to win the Ashes 3-1•Getty Images

“So to get a stranglehold so early in the series was credit to Pat Cummins and his team. To win away from home is difficult anywhere in the world, but probably the two hardest places are India and England. After the way the game petered out at Old Trafford, I would imagine their mindset would be making sure that they put the final nail in the coffin and try to win 3-1.”Moody was speaking at Lord’s as Desert Vipers – the ILT20 franchise for whom he works as director of cricket – launched a sustainability initiative which included a full-scale audit into their carbon footprint during the league’s inaugural season in the UAE earlier this year.Vipers called on other T20 franchises to follow suit in order to mitigate the negative impact that short-form leagues have on the environment, particularly with regard to long-haul flights. “Hopefully Desert Vipers have a unique opportunity to be trailblazers for other sporting teams,” Moody said.”When you see significant events happen globally around the impact of heat or flood, that’s when it’s an eye-opener. Missing a day’s play because it’s wet is insignificant compared to seeing whole communities impacted by devastating floods, for example, which we’re seeing constantly both in Australia and globally.”