World T20 snapshots: Amla will do 'what the team needs' against India

Veteran South African opener Hashim Amla has said that his batting strategy will be guided by 'what the team needs' in their World Twenty20 semi-final against India in Dhaka on Friday.

Amla, who is the Proteas' leading run-scorer with 163 runs at a strike rate of 130, has played varying innings in each of his four stays at the crease: 41 off 40 balls against New Zealand, 43 off 22 balls against the Netherlands and 56 off 37 balls against England.

According to Sport24, Amla said that his different innings came down to adapting to the situation on the day, adding that it depends on what the team needs upfront at the time.

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Stating that the innings need to be set up, Amla also said that he and opening partner Quinton de Kock try to play positively to get the team off to a good start, adding that he believes that in the Twenty20 format, every different style can make the situation, provided it is assessed beforehand.

Amla played down the continued hype around India's spinners, saying that it could come down to any bowler on the day, adding that he also felt his team was 'hardened up' by their pressure wins in the group stages, and are in a good space ahead of their eighth head-to-head match against India.

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Sri Lankan head coach Paul Farbrace has said that left-arm spinner Rangana Herath's 'magical spell' in the World Twenty20 match against New Zealand has presented the selectors with a 'lovely headache' ahead of the semi-final clash with West Indies on Thursday.

Picked ahead of spin colleague Ajantha Mendis who had proved expensive against England, Herath destroyed New Zealand in a 59-run romp in Chittagong on Monday.

According to The Dawn, the former Kent player admitted that Herath has created a selection dilemma after claiming five wickets for three runs in 21 balls to put Sri Lanka in the semi-finals, although he insisted that it is a 'lovely headache' for the selectors.

Farbrace further said that they have some very high-quality spin bowlers in the team, which gives the selectors a 'good headache', adding that he believes Herath bowled at the right pace against New Zealand at Chittagong, which was the right surface for a spinner.

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Veteran Pakistani all-rounder Abdul Razzaq has blamed Twenty20 captain Mohammad Hafeez for the team's disastrous exit from the ICC World Twenty20 in Bangladesh and has called for his axing as skipper of the squad.

Razzaq, who has played 46 Tests, 265 ODIs and 32 T20s, has been mostly shunned from the team since Hafeez took over as the captain in 2012 following their public fallout after the last World T20 in Sri Lanka.

According to The Nation, Razzaq called for the removal of Hafeez as captain as he believes Hafeez pursued a policy of personal likes and dislikes while selecting the team and also slammed the national selectors for remaining 'silent spectators', adding that Hafeez was unable to handle the pressure against India and the West Indies

Razzaq, still rated as one of Pakistan's top all-rounders in T20 and ODI cricket, said he was appalled at the way the team had batted against the West Indies, adding that there was no game plan and the team was afraid to play positively, which let them down.

Razzaq also lashed out at former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohammad Zaka Ashraf for being responsible for his ouster from the national team and also for selecting Hafeez as captain, adding that Hafeez has always ignored merit while selecting players and never allowed new players to settle down.