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Liam Livingstone dismissal derails Lancs chase as Somerset seal another final appearance

Alan Gardner13-Sep-2025Somerset fought their way past a severely depleted Lancashire and into a third consecutive T20 Blast final at Edgbaston. Tom Kohler-Cadmore’s 81 off 52 underpinned the batting after his side were put in, and although Lancashire got off to a good start in their chase, led by powerful cameos from Keaton Jennings and Liam Livingstone, Somerset’s greater experience helped claw things back.Lancashire were shorn of six first-choice players, and had two making their first appearances of the season, which included giving a full T20 debut to 21-year-old spinner Arav Shetty. They looked well placed at 102 for 3 in the 12th over, but the controversial dismissal of Livingstone, whose lbw was upheld by the third umpire despite the suggestion of an inside edge, triggered a collapse.Shetty, who in the event did not bowl, was snapped up by a diving Lewis Gregory in the covers – Somerset’s sharp fielding in contrast to a messy Lancashire effort – and although Michael Jones attempted to keep the chase alive with some defiant blows, Migael Pretorius and Ben Green combined for five wickets to close out the game. Somerset were not at full strength either, with Pretorius playing only his second game after Riley Meredith was recalled to Australia ahead of Finals Day, and Tom Banton absent with England.The game ended in slightly farcical scenes, as Lancashire retired out George Balderson, only for his replacement, Tom Hartley, to be dismissed first ball. Rain then began to fall during the final over, with the ground fully covered moments after the players left the field.

Jennings fires up

“Feels slightly tacky, nice to know what you’re chasing.” So said Jennings at the toss, and Lancashire’s captain was intent on getting his side ahead of the asking rate at the start of their innings. He swung his third ball, from Craig Overton, nonchalantly over fine leg for six, following up with back-to-back fours. Luke Wells was plucked out by a brilliant catch at short fine leg by Pretorius, before Jennings again deposited Overton over the ropes.Overton struck back by pinning Matty Hurst lbw, but there was more punishment to come as Livingstone joined Jennings in the middle. Livingstone pinged Somerset’s premier new-ball bowler over deep square leg, before Jennings flat-batted him down the ground for six more; Overton’s first three overs costing 39. Jack Ball was then welcomed into the attack by Jennings top-edging him all the way over the keeper, and another Livingstone hoick across the line made it six sixes in the powerplay, with Lancashire flying on 73 for 2.Liam Livingstone queries his dismissal•Getty Images

Livingstone dismissal turns chase

Livingstone had powered Lancashire to Finals Day with an unbeaten 85 against Kent in the quarters, having found his form during the Hundred – during which he calls Edgbaston home with Birmingham Phoenix. He looked to have the measure of the ground once again, crunching Lewis Goldsworthy into the crowd for his third six, as Lancashire continued to make good progress despite the loss of Jennings for 44 off 28.When Gregory won an lbw decision with Livingstone trapped on the crease, the Lancashire man reviewed straight away. But with the aid of UltraEdge, third umpire Sue Redfern determined that there was no bat involved before the ball hit the back pad – although it seemed impossible to be conclusive. Livingstone, however, obviously felt otherwise and made his opinion clear after seeing the decision on the big screen. His long walk off marked the beginning of the end for Lancashire’s hopes of a second Blast title, 10 years on from their first.

Depleted Lancashire strike first

Lancashire absentees included four on international duty with England – Jos Buttler, Phil Salt, Luke Wood and Saqib Mahmood – and both of their overseas being employed elsewhere (Chris Green at the CPL, Ashton Turner with Western Australia). That Salt and Buttler had helped England put on a record 302 against South Africa the previous night hardly helped the Red Rose mood. Somerset, meanwhile, were without New Zealand quick Matt Henry, as well as Banton and Meredith.Winning the toss felt like an advantage on a brisk, mid-September morning – and two tight overs, from James Anderson (who last played at Finals Day in 2014) and Tom Aspinwall, were followed by Balderson, playing his fourth T20 and first of the season, finding the perfect amount of nip back with his first ball to clatter Will Smeed’s off stump. But it didn’t take long for Somerset’s batters to start wresting back the initiative.Kohler-Cadmore had struggled to lay bat on ball and was on 1 off 9 when he collared Balderson for the first six of the day, a rustic heave that just had enough on it to land beyond the rope at deep midwicket. He repeated the shot, but added about 20 yards, in Balderson’s next over, and before Tom Abell audaciously ramped Anderson all the way over fine leg in a sequence of 6-4-dot-4. Anderson struck back to have Abell bowled off an inside edge, as Somerset finished the powerplay on 49 for 2.

Kohler-Cadmore pumps the tires

Lancashire continued to chip away, James Rew held at midwicket off Aspinwall, as Kohler-Cadmore dropped back down the gears. Somerset were 78 for 3 at halfway, and then 95 for 4 after losing Sean Dickson to a smart stumping in the 13th over. Kohler-Cadmore responded by pumping Livingstone’s legspin straight back down the ground for six, then raising a 38-ball fifty off the next delivery – aided by another misfield at midwicket that enabled them to come back for two.Hartley was boshed down the ground for Kohler-Cadmore’s fourth six, and he found a useful ally in captain, Gregory, who scooped Aspinwall for his first boundary. Jack Blatherwick was then taken for four consecutive fours by Kohler-Cadmore, as 18 runs came off the 17th. By the time the returning Anderson removed Gregory via a slap to deep cover, the partnership had realized 57 off 31 balls. Kohler-Cadmore might have had the first Finals Day century in his sights, but he only added one to his score before holing out off Balderson. Nevertheless, Overton and Pretorius hammered 21 off Aspinwall’s final over to take Somerset to an imposing total.

Given India had a longish tail in Tarouba, they could consider bringing in Jaiswal for one of the wristspinners

Himanshu Agrawal05-Aug-2023

Big picture: Fearless approach sets the tone

In the first T20I on Thursday, there was a hint of the fearlessness and the freedom with which both West Indies and India batted. Despite losing both opening batters inside three balls of the fifth over, Nicholas Pooran pumped Yuzvendra Chahal for a four and a six off the next three deliveries. Next over, he deposited Axar Patel for a six and four.Fast forward to the run chase where India too lost both openers early. They were scoring at less than a run a ball two deliveries into the final over of the powerplay when debutant Tilak Varma pulled back-to-back sixes to show us just a glimpse of the future.Both teams are filled with eye-catching hitters and the T20 format offers the perfect stage to entertain only it was the bowlers who shone the brightest. India’s spinners did not let the odd boundary throw them off their plans and West Indies’ seamers used their change of pace to pull off a fine defence.The last time West Indies beat India in successive T20Is was in 2016. That only four runs separated the teams in Tarouba perhaps points towards a closely contested five-match series.

Form guide

West Indies WWLWL (Last five completed T20Is; most recent first)
India LWWLW

In the spotlight: Shepherd and Hardik

Romario Shepherd has faced just 185 balls across 13 innings in T20Is and sent 34 of them for a six or a four. That’s a balls per boundary ratio of 5.44, which fits a player who usually bats at No. 6 or lower. He has a strike rate of 205.88 in the last five overs in T20Is this year, the second-best for any batter to have faced at least 30 deliveries in that phase. While he managed just four from six balls on a used pitch against India, his two previous T20I knocks were an unbeaten 44 off 22 and another unbeaten 41 off 18 – both against South Africa in March 2023. If Shepherd can keep this form going, then he all but becomes a shoo-in ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup.Contrast that with Hardik Pandya’s recent form. When he first came into the side, he was a finisher. Now he seems to prefer batting up the order. But it’s not entirely working. Since the T20Is against New Zealand last November, India’s short-format captain strikes at only 106.31 in the middle overs, hitting just one out of the 95 balls he has faced for six. If that’s him biding his time for the death, then a strike rate of 119.23 doesn’t quite make the job well done territory. All but set to lead a refreshed and a much younger T20I side of India in the medium term, he will be keen to show the way before it gets too late.Romario Shepherd has been one of the fiercest strikers at the death•Associated Press

Team news: How do India shorten their tail?

West Indies wouldn’t want to tinker with a winning combination, especially since one more victory would take them close to a series win.West Indies (probable): 1 Brandon King, 2 Kyle Mayers, 3 Johnson Charles (wk), 4 Nicholas Pooran, 5 Shimron Hetmyer, 6 Rovman Powell (capt), 7 Jason Holder, 8 Romario Shepherd, 9 Akeal Hosein, 10 Alzarri Joseph, 11 Obed McCoyPlaying three spinners in Tarouba left India with four No. 11s. So even as they needed only 37 from the final 27 balls, once the last recognised batter – Axar- fell it became a tall ask, though Arshdeep Singh did give West Indies a scare. That might force India to play Yashasvi Jaiswal, the only spare batter in the squad, leading to a toss up between Kuldeep and Chahal.India (probable): 1 Shubman Gill, 2 Ishan Kishan (wk), 3 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 4 Suryakumar Yadav, 5 Tilak Varma, 6 Hardik Pandya (capt), 7 Sanju Samson, 8 Axar Patel, 9 Kuldeep Yadav/Yuzvendra Chahal, 10 Arshdeep Singh, 11 Mukesh Kumar

Pitch and conditions: Rain expected

Two of the last five T20Is at Providence Stadium in Guyana have been washed out. The scores batting first in the three completed games were 146, 157 and 163, with the chasing team winning twice. Going by that trend, prepare for more middling scores and more rain.

Stats and trivia

• With a minimum of 40 wickets while playing for Full Members in T20Is, only four have an average less than 15, and an economy rate under seven. Kuldeep is one of them.
• Kyle Mayers averages only 20.81 as opener in T20Is. That is the second-lowest for any West Indies batter to have opened at least 20 times in the format.
• West Indies and India had played a T20I at Providence in 2019 too. But no member from the visitors’ playing XI from that game is part of the squad for the ongoing T20I series.

Quotes

“This series will be decided on how the West Indian batters bat spin in those middle overs. If we bat spin good during the middle overs, then we have lot of batters and a lot of power in the back end… That makes left-handers – [Shimron] Hetmyer, [Nicholas] Pooran and Kyle Mayers – very important.”

“That’s his way of playing – he has a lot of attacking shots. He played really well despite being on debut, and despite the pressure of a run chase. There were some beautiful strokes, and he should back himself. I believe he will win a lot of matches for his side in the future.”

Jake Doran left the field having felt ill after testing positive for Covid-19

AAP01-Dec-2022Tasmania wicketkeeper Jake Doran left the field feeling unwell after testing positive to Covid-19 and was replaced by Tim Paine on day one of the Sheffield Shield clash against South Australia.South Australia batters Jake Weatherald and Nathan McSweeney scored centuries to put their side in a solid position at 8 for 309 having been sent in to bat by Tasmania.Tasmania named former Test skipper Paine as 12th man but he was brought into the game as a substitute wicketkeeper when Doran left the playing arena.Doran had felt fine at the start of play and took an early catch but was replaced by Paine after taking ill. Paine, who will not be allowed to bat, took two neat catches.Weatherald made 100 and McSweeney (118) scored his maiden first class century.Peter Siddle, sporting a peroxide blonde hairstyle, was a constant threat on his way to 4 for 59 from 25 probing overs.Weatherald and McSweeney combined for a 149-run stand for the third wicket after Siddle struck early to remove Henry Hunt and Daniel Drew.Left-hander Weatherald struck 16 boundaries, including two sixes, and was particularly savage through the off side in a confident counter-attacking innings.McSweeney offered sensible support and was an excellent foil for his more aggressive batting partner before upping the ante. The 23-year-old brought up his century with a sweet on drive from the bowling of spinner Jarrod Freeman.It was a moment to savour for the former Australia Under-19s representative after he was stranded on 99 not out in March when he hit the winning runs in a five-wicket Shield win over NSW.South Australia were 6 for 196 just after tea but McSweeney received excellent support from in-form allrounder Benjamin Manenti and Nathan McAndrew.Weatherald said he was delighted to find form against a class attack.”This year has been a bit of a struggle for me with the bat so it was good to walk out there and play freely and score some runs,” he said. “[McSweeney] was able to absorb an amazing amount of pressure … and batted really well.”Tasmania sit second on the Shield table behind Western Australia after a hard-fought four-wicket win over Victoria in their most recent match. South Australia are second-last with two losses and three draws so far this season.

Agar hopeful of being fit for the second Test after side strain

AAP26-Jun-2022Steven Smith has dispelled doubts about his fitness ahead of Australia’s first Test against Sri Lanka, but Mitchell Starc but still faces a crucial lead-in to overcome a finger injury.The two stars of Australia’s last tour to Sri Lanka, Smith and Starc, headline a long injury list for the tourists ahead of the opening Test in Galle on Wednesday.Travis Head is also battling to play after a hamstring strain with Glenn Maxwell waiting in the wings, while Ashton Agar’s side strain has cost him a potential Test recall.Related

• Stats – Australia await trial by left-arm spin

• Adam Voges: 'Not the one that spins and beats your outside edge that is the dangerous one'

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• Starc won't risk Test chances by making quick return in Sri Lanka

But there is good news, at least for Smith and his quad injury after he missed the past three ODIs in the country where he scored a Test century during Australia’s most recent tour in 2016.”If we were still playing one-day cricket, I would be touch and go, but Test cricket, I will be fine,” Smith told AAP. “Test cricket is a bit easier [on the quad].”I field in the slips, won’t be doing a great deal of running around in the field. And then in these conditions, there’s not a lot of hard running.”They usually have a few sweepers, and it’s four or one quite often. So there’s not a heap of hard running.”Starc has not played since cutting his finger in the first T20I match more than two weeks ago. He has since had stitches removed and bowled at full pace in the nets with tape applied.He had planned to bowl for the first time without the strapping on Sunday afternoon, but instead had some minor taping on his left index finger as he ran in for about 20 minutes.Match officials have dictated that Starc cannot enter the game with his bowling hand taped up, unless he cuts it again during play.Even in that event Starc has found it difficult to grip the ball down the seam in training, meaning he will want to bowl without the taping before Wednesday.”We have tried to give it as long as we could, because it is in probably the worst spot,” he said. “It’s where the ball comes off last. It’s certainly not to my advantage [bowling with tape on], because it takes away from my grip. “Agar’s injury is also a spanner in the works for Australia. Fingerspin has traditionally been more effective than wristspin in Galle, with Australia opting to keep Jon Holland and Matthew Kuhnemann around as back-ups.Selectors had not ruled out using the legspin of Mitchell Swepson, but coach Andrew McDonald indicated Agar was in serious contention to play his first Test since 2017 before the injury.Agar remains in the squad and is hopeful of being fit for the second Test, also in Galle, starting on July 8.”A lot of the suggestions from around the traps is that finger spin tends to work better here than wrist spin,” McDonald said. “But it’s not to say wrist spin can’t work.”We’re not as clear if we were to go with a finger spinner [on who it would be] as we would have been with Ashton. We feel like Ash would have given us good control, and that would have been a positive for the team if he was selected.”

As a collective, fast bowlers made the biggest impression in Leeds, North Sound and Colombo in the three World Test Championship games

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Aug-2019Ben Stokes’s incredible unbeaten 135 and match haul of four wickets at Headingley have pitched him up 13 places to No. 13 in the rankings for batsmen and No. 2 for allrounders, while Jasprit Bumrah’s remarkable 5 for 7 in North Sound have put him in the bowlers’ top ten.Both are career-best numbers for Stokes, though, technically, he was at No. 12 among batsmen on the day the Headingley Test ended, but slipped down one spot when the rankings were updated following the end of the P Sara Oval Test between Sri Lanka and New Zealand, when Tom Latham moved up eight spots to eighth place as a result of his 154 in his team’s only innings.Virat Kohli continued to top the batsmen’s chart, but the gap between him and Steven Smith, who missed the third Test because of concussion-related issues, stood at just six points.Of the other batsmen in action in the three Tests, Kane Williamson (No. 3), Cheteshwar Pujara (No. 4) and Henry Nicholls (No. 5) held on to their spots, while Sri Lanka captain Dimuth Karunaratne (up to No. 6), Joe Root (up to No. 7) and Ajinkya Rahane (up to No. 11) moved up within the top 15.In the allrounders’ list, Jason Holder remained at the top, with Stokes now 22 points behind him in second place, having pushed down Shakib Al Hasan, Ravindra Jadeja and Pat Cummins on his way up.Cummins, however, was still the top bowler. Along with Bumrah, who climbed nine spots, Trent Boult, Kemar Roach, Josh Hazlewood and Ishant Sharma also moved up. Jofra Archer continued his astounding rise, his six wickets at Headingley giving him a 40-place jump to 43rd after just two Test appearances.Bumrah’s seventh position came with a career-high rating of 774 points, while Roach moved up three spots to eighth position, Hazlewood three spots to No. 12 and Ishant, with a career-high 671 points, to 21st.

She will officiate the final of WCL Division 2 between Namibia and Oman, continuing her leading role for female umpires

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Apr-2019Australia’s Claire Polosak will make history on Saturday as she becomes the first female umpire to stand in a men’s ODI when she officiates in the final of the World Cricket League Division 2 between Namibia and Oman.It is far from the first time Polosak has led the way for female umpires. She was the first woman to stand in an Australian men’s domestic fixture in 2017 during the JLT Cup. Then last December she and colleague Eloise Sheridan became the first female umpires to officiate on-field together during a professional match in Australia when Adelaide Strikers faced Melbourne Stars in the WBBL.”I am thrilled to be the first woman to stand in a men’s ODI and how far I have come as an umpire,” Polosak said. “It really is important to promote women umpires and there’s no reason why females can’t umpire in cricket. It’s about breaking down barriers, creating awareness so more females can come into the role.””Umpiring is a team effort. I would like to thank all the umpires I have worked with, my local umpires association – NSW Cricket Umpires’ and Scorers’ Association and Cricket Australia, as well as my family and friends, as without their support, this match today would not be possible.”Adrian Griffith, the ICC senior manager of umpires and referees, said: “Congratulations to Claire for this fantastic achievement of becoming the first woman umpire to stand in a men’s one-day international. It is one thoroughly deserved and a result of her hard work and perseverance. She is a role model for women who want to get into officiating and proves how successful they can be once they are on the right path and get the opportunities.”Polosak has previously stood in 15 women’s ODIs since 2016 and also umpired the semi-final of last year’s World T20 between England and India.

England’s director of cricket warns against expecting Archer to be “some sort of messiah” if he is selected

George Dobell12-Jan-2019Ashley Giles has confirmed Jofra Archer’s “hat will be in the ring” for England selection ahead of the World Cup. But Giles, the new managing director of England men’s cricket and, as a result, a selector, said he would have to talk to the others on the panel, notably national selector Ed Smith, before a final decision was taken.He also sounded a note of caution over expectations of Archer, who has played only 14 List A games, suggesting it would be unfair to expect “some sort of messiah” if he is selected.Archer, Barbados born but the holder of a British passport courtesy of an English father, qualifies for England selection in March. That means he will have no chance to make his international debut before England have to name their provisional World Cup squad by April 23.But while Eoin Morgan, the England captain, has previously said that, unless injury intervenes, it may be too late for Archer to force his way into a relatively settled England one-day squad, Giles suggested Archer’s skills could prove hard to ignore. England play a one-off ODI against Ireland, on May 3, and have a five-match ODI series against Pakistan before the World Cup.”He is an exciting cricketer and his hat will be in the ring,” Giles said when asked if the World Cup came too soon for Archer. “It will be exciting when Jofra is available. Any guys who bowl 90mph-plus are going to create interest and get people out of their seats. His skills are good and it is a massive one-day year. He will be available from the end of March.”Giles is also keen not to unsettle a team that has taken England to the top of the ODI rankings and looks likely to go into the World Cup as favourites. And, for all Archer’s success in T20 cricket – he has played in leagues around the world and was the quickest bowler in last year’s IPL – his inexperience in List A cricket is a concern.”We’ve got a group of players who’ve done a lot to get us to this point and have performed very well for England,” Giles said. “So competition for those final places is going to be strong.”I’ll have to speak to Ed. I’ve not spent much time with him although we spoke through the summer as a director of cricket of a county [while Giles was at Warwickshire]. I’ll need to get some other opinions as well. I need to know what the coaches are thinking and the captains.”It is a big year and it would be a bit tough on the lad to think he is going to be some sort of messiah coming into the team. But he is an exciting cricketer.”Giles also confirmed that he hoped to travel to the Caribbean and India in the coming weeks to see the England side and the England Lions side in action.”I’ll be going out for second Test in Antigua and some of the one-dayers,” he said. “It is not about me just watching some cricket: I need to get to know some of these guys. Before we know it, we will be into the season so I need some time with them. I have a long list of people I need to catch-up with and a long list of stuff I need to read.”

The India fast bowler has been handed one demerit point and fined 15% of his match fee

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Aug-2018Ishant Sharma has earned a demerit point and a fine of 15% of his match fee for his send-off to Dawid Malan in England’s second innings at Edgbaston. The Level 1 offence violated Article 2.1.7 of ICC’s code of conduct, which relates to “using language, actions or gestures which disparage or which could provoke an aggressive reaction from a batsman upon his/her dismissal during an international match”.As he ran away in celebration after getting Malan caught at gully, Ishant was seen turning towards the departing batsman and yelling out.After the day’s play, Ishant admitted to the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by match referee Jeff Crowe and, as such, there was no need for a formal hearing. The charge was levelled by on-field umpires Aleem Dar and Chris Gaffaney, third umpire Marais Erasmus and fourth umpire Tim Robinson.Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand, and a maximum penalty of 50% of a player’s match fee, and one or two demerit points.

Andre Russell, Alzarri Joseph and Kieran Powell have been recalled to the West Indies side for their three-match ODI series against Bangladesh beginning July 22

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Jul-2018Allrounder Andre Russell is set to play his first ODI for West Indies since November 2015 after being named in a 13-man squad for the three-match series against Bangladesh beginning on July 22 in Guyana.Fast bowler Alzarri Joseph and batsman Kieran Powell also earned recalls while Marlon Samuels, Carlos Brathwaite, Nikita Miller, Sheldon Cottrell and Kesrick Williams were dropped from the ODI squad, after they played in the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe to clinch a spot for West Indies at next year’s World Cup.

West Indies ODI squad

Jason Holder (capt), Devendra Bishoo, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope (wk), Alzarri Joseph, Evin Lewis, Jason Mohammed, Ashley Nurse, Keemo Paul, Kieran Powell, Rovman Powell, Andre Russell
In: Alzarri Joseph, Kieran Powell, Andre Russell
Out: Carlos Brathwaite, Sheldon Cottrell, Nikita Miller, Kemar Roach, Marlon Samuels, Kesrick Williams

Russell’s last ODI for West Indies came nearly three years ago against Sri Lanka in the first ODI in Colombo. He scored 41 off 24 balls but also suffered a leg injury that kept him out of the following two matches in the series. That match is the only ODI Russell has played since the 2015 World Cup.He had been suspended for a year in January 2017 after he was found guilty of an anti-doping violation. Russell was charged with failing to file his whereabouts paperwork three times within a year, which amounts to a failed doping test under World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) rules.After the ban, he returned to 50-over cricket for Jamaica in the Regional Super50 tournament but withdrew himself from consideration for the West Indies squad for the World Cup Qualifier in March, allegedly because he wanted to regain his confidence in the format first. Instead, he chose to play in the Pakistan Super League during the same time frame.”Great to have Dre Russ back as well,” West Indies coach Stuart Law said in a CWI press release announcing the squad for the Bangladesh series. “His explosive power and energy will breathe life into an already motivated squad.”Aside from the five players dropped, Kemar Roach was rested for the ODIs in what the selectors described as managing player workloads in the lead-up to next year’s World Cup. Roach was also rested for the second Test against Bangladesh after picking up a hamstring strain in the first Test and was replaced in the squad by Joseph.

There have been several instances of turmoil in Bangladesh’s selection policy in the last two decades, and the controversy surrounding Mominul Haque’s place in the side won’t be the last time the selectors find themselves undermined

Mohammad Isam20-Aug-2017Mominul Haque became the latest high-profile selection turnaround in Bangladesh after he was swiftly brought back into the squad for the first Test against Australia, a day after he was dropped. The decision, reportedly taken by the Bangladesh Cricket Board president Nazmul Hassan, is also the latest episode of tumult in the convoluted selection policy introduced last year, which also factors in the approval of the board president.The initial decision to drop him was contentious since Mominul had suffered only his first dip in batting form since his Test debut in 2013. Other Bangladesh batsmen have been given longer stints in the senior team, with recent examples being Mahmudullah and Soumya Sarkar. Mominul remains the highest run-getter at home in the last four years, and the best player of spin by far.During the press conference to announce the team on Saturday, chief selector Minhajul Abedin and coach Chandika Hathurusingha offered different reasons to support Mominul’s exclusion but many of those fell flat. When Minhajul and Hathurusingha were called to a meeting by Hassan, in the presence of selector Habibul Bashar and other BCB directors, they had to agree to bring Mominul back.He was brought in to replace Mosaddek Hossain, who has an eye infection, but the discussion went much deeper. Hassan said that he usually talks plans and strategies with the players, head coach and selectors before every series but this time he missed the meeting because the team was training in Chittagong earlier this month.”So after seeing the squad, I asked the selection committee and the coach to see me because I wanted to know what they were planning to do,” Hassan said. “Today I heard the coach’s plan with the selectors present. I also spoke to the senior players yesterday.”He said that during the meeting there was no real reason given to explain Mominul’s axing, and that the decision was “unfortunate” and “sad”.”Both sides said that there was no real reason to drop Mominul. He became a victim of circumstance, particularly for this game.”It is unfortunate. Mominul is one of our best batsmen, there is no doubt about it. When we dropped him from ODIs and T20s, we said that he will concentrate on Test cricket. He has been our Test specialist, so I am bound to feel sad when he is not in the Test team. There is a big difference between being dropped for one game or being set aside permanently. He can be dropped with conditions or opposition in mind but Mominul is not the sort of player to be dropped. He has a huge career in front of him in Test cricket.”But this is not the first time the selection panel in Bangladesh has made a 180-degree turn for a player. Previously, Minhajul and Habibul Bashar were reinstated after being overlooked in 1999 and 2000 respectively. In 2006, Mohammad Ashraful was brought back into the squad after being dropped.In recent years, there has been some drama surrounding team selection, none more so than when Mahmudullah, touring Sri Lanka, was asked by the team management to return home ahead of Bangladesh’s 100th Test. Hours later, Hassan insisted that Mahmudullah would remain in Sri Lanka and be picked in the ODI team. Hassan also said that he asked the selectors to pick Mehidy Hasan for the ODIs on that tour.The instances of Mahmudullah and Mehidy are among the more high-profile turnarounds since the new selection committee took over in June last year. The BCB rebooted the committee by adding Hathurusingha, team manager Khaled Mahmud and cricket operations chairman Akram Khan. Faruque Ahmed resigned as chief selector, with Minhajul being named as his replacement. The committee picks a squad, and it still needs Hassan’s approval.Hassan has asked the selection committee to reduce his role in decision-making, but on several occasions in the last 14 months, he has made recommendations for certain players. For instance, he asked the selectors to continue with Mosharraf Hossain after he bowled well in the third ODI against Afghanistan.During last year’s Bangladesh Premier League, he mentioned Mehedi Maruf and Shahriar Nafees as potential candidates for the New Zealand tour. The selectors picked Maruf in the training squad and the player traveled to New Zealand, had nets for a day and then returned home.The latest episode is not the last instance when the selectors are undermined, though it will leave a bad taste for those who reformed the selection system.Could it, for the first time, trigger a rethink on the policy?