Lorgat will be tasked with trying to globalise the appeal of the T10 format

Umar Farooq13-Oct-2020The Abu Dhabi T10 has roped in former ICC Chief Executive Officer Haroon Lorgat as director of strategy and development to devise a strategy to globalise the format, as well as mend their relations with Pakistan so that their players can feature in the league from January 28 to February 6 in 2021.The T10 League is a 10-overs-a-side format introduced by private cricket organisers in Sharjah in 2017, and later embraced by the Abu Dhabi government. It was rebranded as the Abu Dhabi T10 League and games were also moved out of Sharjah to the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi. The partnership also made Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) a party in the tournament.”We thought it was time to move ahead with a much better professional management structure at the top by bringing in names of repute in the cricket world,” Shaji ul Mulk, the league’s founder and chairman, said while announcing Lorgat’s appointment. “His role is to make this league a global one, as we feel there is an opportunity for us to create a truly global brand.”The PCB and the T10 League have had a troubled history since the latter came into being three years ago. Last season, the PCB unexpectedly revoked players’ NOCs at the last minute, saying they needed to manage workloads. The ECB protested strongly, with the board’s vice-chairman Khalid Al Zarooni sending a letter directly to PCB chairman Ehsan Mani to say that the decision would hurt the UAE government’s stakes in the tournament, and urged the PCB to change its mind. Mani is believed to have told the ECB vice-chairman about Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s role in the decision. The ECB was also thought to be weighing its options, including raising the issue of government interference in the PCB’s affairs with the ICC.Mulk said he wanted to move on from past hiccups, and was hoping for a fresh start. Lorgat was optimistic that the format could be adapted as one of the official formats in world cricket. “Last year was an unfortunate development [between PCB and ECB] which happened quite late,” Lorgat said.”It was commendable that Qalandars still managed to get together a team that participated, and actually played well. That indicated to me the interest in the league. In spite of the late withdrawal, there were still many players who were willing to come and participate at short notice. We would appeal to all the member boards to afford this opportunity to their players. The ICC has already sanctioned the T10 format. I want to explore whether this is something that can be played by international member countries.”

The left-arm quick last appeared in 2014 although would only be available for a handful of matches this season

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Nov-2020Mitchell Starc is set to appear in the BBL for the first time in six years after signing with defending champions the Sydney Sixers while England wicketkeeper-batsman Jonny Bairstow has joined the Melbourne Stars.Starc, who has 142 T20 wickets at 17.78, was part of the Sixers side that won the inaugural BBL title in 2011-12, but his most recent appearance came back in 2014 and he has only played 10 times in the competition due to international commitments.This season there is a small window after the Test series against India where Starc could be available for a handful of group matches and the finals if the Sixers make it that far. The series finishes on January 19 with the Sixers playing local rivals the Thunder on January 22.ALSO READ: BBL to begin in Tasmania and Canberra hubs, talks continue over Perth matchesStarc recently said he had spent about 30 hours at home since August as he went from the England tour bubble to the Sheffield Shield hub via quarantine in Adelaide and some time with wife Alyssa Healy in Brisbane during the New Zealand series.It had been thought he would likely take the opportunity for a break, but having opted out of the IPL – and with hope that restrictions around the BBL may have loosened by January – he was keen to take part. The Sixers will hope he can have the same sort of impact as Steven Smith and Josh Hazlewood did when they returned last season.”I started at the Sixers at BBL01 and it’s nice to continue that journey at a club I’ve still been around with my wife Alyssa involved with the Sixers,” Starc said. “I was watching Steve and Josh get back involved last year, and still being around and involved with the club I saw a little bit of an opportunity to jump back in.Mitchell Starc last appeared in the BBL in 2014 and Jonny Bairstow will bring more power to the Stars’ top order•Getty Images

“I’m just really looking forward to being back with some of my really close mates that play for NSW and the Sixers. There’s some great people at the Sixers behind the scenes too.”Greg Shipperd, the Sixers head coach, said: “He is a maximum impact player who is a world class T20 fast bowler as well as being in the upper echelons across the other formats.”Meanwhile, Bairstow has become the latest England player to join the tournament and is set to be available from after Christmas following the tour of South Africa and the quarantine most overseas players will need to undertake. He has been part of David Warner’s Sunrisers Hyderabad side at the IPL although was dropped towards the end of the tournament.The Stars said they expect him to be available for the remainder of the BBL. England are in talks about a brief T20I tour to Pakistan in mid-January, but if that goes ahead it is expected to be with a shadow team.”I’m glad that Jonny has decided to make his BBL debut with us at the Melbourne Stars,” Stars coach David Hussey said. “He’s been playing at the top level with England for almost a decade now and brings a real competitive fire to matches”His experience and versatility will be a valuable addition to our batting line-up, and we’ve got several ‘keeping options in the squad as well.”The BBL will begin on December 10 with matches initially played in Hobart and Canberra before heading to Queensland and Adelaide later in the month. Venues for games in January are yet to be confirmed with the hope that border restrictions will ease further.

Independent analysis confirms all members of touring party are Covid-negative

Matt Roller08-Dec-2020England have announced that the two suspected cases of Covid-19 within their touring party were false positives, following independent ratification of the tests.The ECB revealed on Sunday that a full round of tests had returned “unconfirmed positive” results for two members of the touring group, understood to be a player and a member of support staff.Neither displayed any symptoms, raising the possibility that they had received false positives, and after further analysis of the results in both Cape Town and London, Professor Nick Peirce, the ECB’s chief medical officer, issued a statement to say that neither individual was Covid-positive.ALSO READ: England blame ‘unacceptable’ nets after claims of Covid protocols breach“Following the independent ratification of the two unconfirmed positive Covid-19 tests from the England camp in South Africa, the England and Wales Cricket Board can confirm that, following further testing and analysis, in the opinion of the independent virologists based in Cape Town and London, the two individuals are not infected, and do not pose any risk of passing on the infection to the rest of the party,” the statement said.”As such, the advice is they are now free to join the rest of the group and are no longer self-isolating.”Ashley Giles, the ECB director of men’s cricket, and medical staff would have been among those to stay behind in South Africa until December 15 if the individuals had been confirmed as positive. Instead, they will be free to fly home on Thursday on the team’s chartered flight.Sam Billings, Lewis Gregory, Liam Livingstone and Jason Roy will all travel to Australia to begin a 14-day quarantine period ahead of the Big Bash League, while it is understood that Jake Ball may join them after being sounded out as a possible replacement for Tom Curran at the Sydney Sixers.The Vineyard Hotel in Cape Town, where England and South Africa’s squads have been staying•Getty Images

Meanwhile, the South African player who tested positive before the ODI series – understood to be Heinrich Klaasen, who also missed the third T20I – has returned home to Johannesburg after returning a negative test on Monday.Confirmation that the players were not infected with Covid-19 came less than 24 hours after the tour’s abandonment, with the chief executives of both CSA and ECB citing player welfare in the decision to postpone the three-match ODI series indefinitely.Giles told British newspapers in Cape Town last night that the call had been taken in recognition of the fact that the squad felt distracted and had been unsettled by news of the initial positive results.”These guys have been living in bubbles for long periods of time and their mental health and wellbeing is the absolute priority for us,” he said. “I think we felt ultimately focusing on a game of cricket, and trying to squeeze two games into two days when this had been going on in the background, was going to be particularly difficult and we were better off calling it and looking to re-arrange these fixtures at a better time.”Giles had also confirmed the England camp’s doubts about the efficacy of CSA’s Covid protocols, though news that nobody in the touring party was infected with the virus will be reassuring for the home board ahead of scheduled series against Sri Lanka, Australia and Pakistan later this season.”I think the thing that really raised the levels of anxiety and nervousness were that we were coming into a biosecure environment and from very early on it appeared that it wasn’t biosecure,” Giles said. “I think the South African [team] doctor has said he could understand our nervousness because of that.”In future, perhaps we can never guarantee a place is biosecure. Maybe we have to adapt but that is the environment we expected when we came here.”

The former NZ opener is hoping to use his life as an example to deter other players from getting caught up in corruption

Nagraj Gollapudi15-Jan-2021Lou Vincent, the former New Zealand opener, is considering an approach to the ECB to plea for “leniency”, more than six years after being found guilty on 11 counts of match-fixing.Speaking for only the second time since admitting, in an open letter in 2014, that he was a “cheat”, Vincent reiterated to Giving the Game Away podcast that he accepted his punishment, a life ban from playing cricket at any level, entering any cricket ground, or coach the game in a professional capacity.However, having forged a new life as a builder in the small town of Raglan, a surfing destination in the Waikato region of New Zealand, Vincent explained how his story has been used as an example of the perils of corruption – not just in cricket, but by the country’s Olympics athletes, by women hockey players ahead of the World Cup and New Zealand soccer teams, and even by the New Zealand Police during an anti-fraud and money laundering seminar.Since leaving the game, Vincent has set up the informal Windy Ridge Cricket Club, a place in his backyard where folks can walk in and use his kit from all his years of playing cricket across the globe. However, he says that the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic has helped to rekindle his love of the sport, and he now hopes to be able to give back to cricket in some capacity in the future.”I will be approaching the ECB at some point and saying “Hey, this is what I’m doing. I want to be respectful,” Vincent told recently. “I accept my punishment. But I think I have got a part to play and if there’s going to be any leniency in the future, possibly sort of downgrading the 11 life bans…will be something I am going to try for. Absolutely.”Delivering the MCC’s Spirt of Cricket Lecture in 2016, Brendon McCullum, the former New Zealand captain, had said that Vincent deserved “clemency” after “baring his soul” to help the anti-corruption authorities in the Chris Cairns trial, which focussed on his involvement in the now-defunct Champions League T20, hosted by the BCCI.Instead, McCullum pointed out that Vincent had the “book thrown” at him, in particular by the ECB, who handed him 11 life-bans pertaining to county matches during his time at Sussex at 2008, and seven offences committed at the 2011 Champions League.In December, during the first Test between New Zealand and West Indies in Hamilton, kids that Vincent coaches in Raglan went to see the match wearing his various shirts from his playing days. The gesture, Vincent says was a “bit of a moral support” to help him overturn his ban.‘I’d just been completely honey-trapped into a bookie’ Vincent last played international cricket in 2007. Having a hit a “wall of depression” he decided to move to the UK. The same year the Indian Cricket League (ICL), a rebel T20 tournament, was launched in India. Vincent decided to play the ICL to sustain himself. There, a bookie, posing as a bat-maker, contacted Vincent. Despite having attended a dozen education programs, conducted by the anti-corruption unit, Vincent got sucked into the “honey trap”.”He got straight into it,” Vincent said, recounting the incident. “He said: ‘Listen, right, this is how the business works’ and he pulled out US$15,000 cash and set it on the table and said, ‘right that’s our down payment. We deal in cash. What we do is we bet inside games’. And I was like, ‘oh sh*t’ – that’s when the penny dropped that I’d just been completely honey-trapped into a bookie.”Because we had education, I had probably sat through about 12 seminars during my cricketing career, sort of warning us of this but I was like oh, this is never going to happen to me, no chance it’s going to. Then it was like, oh sh*t, I’m in trouble here. He’s probably got cameras around the room recording what’s just happened and he’s given me US$15000 cash, explaining how the betting system works and all that. I was like, oh I’ve got to get out this room. I said, ‘Listen okay cool, I’ll have a think about it. I’ll go downstairs and have a think about it’.According to Vincent, corrupters are always looking to groom players who are vulnerable. The grooming in his case, Vincent pointed out, started with simple instruction before it became technical. “It was pretty straightforward – as an opening batsman, I was just asked to score between 10 and 15 runs off 20 balls and get out. That’s it, job done, US$50,000 in some random account in Dubai – all yours, no worries, piece of cake, keep it simple. That’s how it all started; It started very simply and then, as I got deeper involved with match-fixing, and you started dealing with other bookies, it became more technical.”Say in a T20 match, where it was broken into five-over sessions – so the first five, the second five overs, the third five overs, and then the last five. At the end of the second session, which is overs 6-10, they’ll choose three-over blocks during those sessions. For example, overs eight, nine and ten, they would only want to see 12-14 runs scored. So off the three overs, 12-14 runs, isn’t much in a T20 match. It is about controlling the runs and being on strike, playing and missing, hitting to the fielders and then getting out. That was the probably the hardest part: to control a game when you are on the take and the other person isn’t.”So you can see why they groom you or threaten you to get other players because the more players involved in a team the more they can guarantee the betting is controlled. We are talking about hundreds of thousands and millions of dollars bet on certain situations of a game. It is massive money. Huge money.”‘You’re always living with a noose around your neck’ The creation of several T20 leagues across the globe, Vincent pointed out, is a hot bed for corrupt elements as they are on the prowl to tap into any kind of insecurity or ‘change room jealousy” that can emanate from players being paid varied money. According to Vincent, corrupters are looking for vulnerable young players and approach them. Vincent’s advice is not let money “ruin” the career.Vincent also said that during his dealings with the corrupters he encountered “gangsters” who are very “threatening”. “Once you are there, you’re always living with a noose around your neck waiting to be bribed. There’s always subtle conversations about your children and where you lived and things they knew about you that you didn’t even know.”In his 2014 confession statement, Vincent had said he would regret his actions “for the rest of his life”. The 42-year old now does not want young players to go through what he did. Vincent believes with even club sport being streamed worldwide “amateurs” are at the risk of being approached by corruptors and that is why he has been keen to go out and tell his story to avoid it being repeated.”But for now I am just going to keep things simple and keep things fun. And keep working towards just…yeah, enjoying life. Because, man, people try and take it out on you. People crush you, But, no, I’ll not let that happen again.”

Batsman sets out stall for winter with impressive display after year out of Test team

Andrew Miller18-Jan-2021Jonny Bairstow has said that the pleasure of sealing victory in the first Test at Galle makes the hardships of life in the England bubble worthwhile, after he and Dan Lawrence soothed the team’s jitters on the final morning to seal an emphatic seven-wicket victory over Sri Lanka.Bairstow, back in the Test side for the first time in more than a year, impressed in both innings, with a hard-fought 47 on the first day, and an unbeaten 35 on the fifth, as he withstood the threat of Sri Lanka’s spinners – in particular Lasith Embuldeniya – in an unbroken 62-run stand for the fourth wicket.And while it’s early days in his return to Test cricket, the confidence and proactivity shown by Bairstow on a wearing pitch augurs well for the rest of a tough winter schedule, starting with Friday’s second Test, also at Galle, and moving swiftly on to four Tests in India.”We saw yesterday a lot more balls were raising off a length, there were some chunks coming out just over the five-foot mark,” Bairstow said in the moments after hitting the winning boundary for England. “It was tricky, so I think the big decision was just being precise in your movements. We saw going forward and really stretching, it was bouncing.”Bairstow’s sixth and most recent Test century also came while batting at No. 3 in Sri Lanka two winters ago, and his tally of 82 runs for once out in this contest lifts his overall average from 13 Tests in Asia to 37.63, a higher figure than his overall mark of 35.14.Though his return to the team came about, in part, due to some notable absentees – most particularly Ben Stokes, rested for this leg of the winter, but also Ollie Pope, who is currently recovering from a shoulder injury – Bairstow’s proven ability against spin could yet make him a key part of England’s line-up for the remainder of the winter.Even so, he might have been run out early in his innings, after taking off for an unwise single moments after his captain, Joe Root, had departed in the same manner. But thereafter Bairstow exuded confidence, both in his own game, and in that of his young batting partner, Lawrence, who finished an outstanding debut on 21 not out to go with his first-innings 73.Asked what advice he had offered his team-mate when play resumed on the final morning, Bairstow said: “Look, you need 36 runs. I think that’s the that’s the be-all and end-all of it, isn’t it? It doesn’t matter how you get there. You just need to score the runs and, on a pitch like that, I think if you’re not proactive, if you’re not looking to score in your areas, then I think there’s going to be a good ball that comes your way.”That was the mindset, to go out and be busy, running between the wickets is a huge a huge part of it, especially over here with the outfields being slightly slower. Just making sure that we’re pressing them in the field, and running hard.”The win was England’s fourth in a row in Asia, dating back to their 3-0 series success on the last tour of Sri Lanka, and their fourth in a row overseas, following a trio of wins in South Africa last winter, a feat that England have not achieved since the 1950s. And Bairstow was delighted, not just for himself, but for the whole team that has had to adapt its preparations to cope with the restrictions of the Covid-19 pandemic.”It’s absolutely fantastic,” he said. “It’s difficult when you come to the subcontinent. You know the challenges that you’re going to have, but to get a win on the board in the first game, with a pretty short lead-up to be quite honest, is pleasing for all the boys.”Rooty in the first innings, Bessy with the ball in the first innings, Leachy in the second innings, and the efforts that the fast bowlers put in as well, I think a huge amount of credit has to go to them.Dan Lawrence and Jonny Bairstow celebrate the moment of victory•SLC

“They properly toiled away, Sam [Curran] got that early breakthrough, there was Broady too in the first innings with his legcutters, and then someone like Woody. The hard toil that he’s put in there, running in and really making it uncomfortable, it puts people on the back foot to try and exploit other options at the other end, so a huge amount of credit goes to those guys.”It’s been tricky,” he added, when asked about adapting to life inside the England bubble. “I was happy that the Christmas break came around because I think I had about six nights at home since the beginning of August.”It’s tough, I’m not going to lie about it. It’s something that does take its toll, because you are going from hotel to the cricket ground and back to the hotel, and unfortunately the guys are not able to see their families, kids, wives, girlfriends over long periods of time.”The lads have all got addicted to Call of Duty, but it’s the Skype chats with people back home who have been with you through thick and thin that keep you going, and it’s wins like this, and moments like this, that really make it even more special when you’re away from home so much.”England may well rotate their options with the second Test getting underway in just four days’ time. James Anderson is likely to come into the side, potentially to give Broad a rest, while Olly Stone is a possibility to replace Wood, whose extra pace was a welcome asset but whose injury record invites caution when it comes to back-to-back Tests.Related

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Root, England’s captain, said the management would use their extra day of rest to assess their options, but paid his own tribute to the efforts of Bairstow and Lawrence in smoothing the team’s path to victory.”That’s exactly what you want to see as captain, guys getting opportunities and really taking them in both hands,” he said. “For a young guy like Dan to come in and play with such maturity, such a calm nature, and to be put in that situation last night and handle it how he did was really impressive for a guy making his debut,”And it’s really pleasing for Jonny as well. I think both innings showed his class, showed he’s got a very good game against spin, and a very good game for Test cricket. It’s lovely to see them both perform so well and start the winter really strongly.”It is great to know that, with a number of guys being rested and out currently, guys are coming into those positions and there is that strength there, and we’re building all the time as a group and as a squad. That’s what you want to see and hopefully that continues moving forward.”Both Bairstow and Root also paid tribute to Rob Lewis, the lone England fan on the fort at Galle, who had stayed in Sri Lanka when the last tour in March had to be postponed due to the Covid outbreak, and who ended up being a rare witness to England’s achievement, seeing as even the travelling media and most of the match commentators have been covering the game remotely.”It’s an incredible story,” Root said, after speaking on the phone with Lewis in the wake of the victory. “To see him struggle to get on the fort the first couple of days, then finally up there enjoying himself and getting to watch some cricket was fantastic. All of the guys really appreciate him being there and the support we get from everyone that comes and watches us. He was almost a beacon for everyone at home watching on the screens.”We are very lucky to get the support we do everywhere in the world. It was nice that at the end of the game I managed to have a little conversation with him over the phone. It’s a really interesting story and it was lovely for him to enjoy that moment with the rest of the group.”

Martin Guptill said it was good to feel the “rhythm back” as he launched eight sixes in his 97

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Feb-2021Kane Williamson feared Australia were about to pull off an extraordinary heist in Dunedin as Marcus Stoinis and Daniel Sams turned around a near-impossible position before the New Zealand bowlers managed to hold their nerve at the death.Having reduced Australia to 113 for 6 after 13 overs chasing 220, Stoinis and Sams then got the equation down to 36 off the last three when Trent Boult produced a brilliant 18th over, conceding just six. It became 15 needed from the last over, the ball handed to Jimmy Neesham for the first time in the innings and he managed to remove both Sams and Stoinis to avoid the match slipping away.The finish had echoes of Stoinis’ magnificent 146 at Eden Park four years ago, after Australia were 67 for 6 chasing 287, and on that day it was a sharp piece of fielding from Williamson to run out last-man Josh Hazlewood that saved New Zealand.”There were flashbacks of the last time Stoin hit us for a 100 or so, incredible partnership at the end and as we know on these sorts of grounds anything can happen,” Williamson said at the post-match presentation. “You have to be on your game the whole innings because it can change so quickly. Think it was a pretty strong performance from us across the board but it’s such a small margin in the T20 format.”On these grounds, you are always in the game. So even though we had over 200 on the board, we know the power they have. We saw even when the run rate got out to 16, they were still well in the game and almost at a point where the game looked likely to go their way.”ESPNcricinfo Ltd

In the first half of the match, the most significant performance for New Zealand came from Martin Guptill who emerged from a lean season with 97 off 50 balls, getting to within a couple of metres of a third T20I hundred when he found Stoinis at long-off.Guptill fell for a duck in the opening match in Christchurch but, on a surface that he said was a little tricky to start with until the initial shine had come off the new ball, he stroked the first ball of the match for four and launched the first of his eight sixes – among a combined tally of 31 for both teams – off Jhye Richardson at the start of the third over.”Any first ball you get that is a wide half-volley you’d take, but it wasn’t until about the third or fourth over that I started feeling a little bit at ease,” Guptill said. “Kane came out around that time and we put on a great partnership to ease those nerves.”It felt like I’d started batting well in the nets over the last little while then it hasn’t quite gone out to the middle. Was nice to spend some time in the middle today and feel that rhythm back.”Despite Mitchell Santner’s triple-wicket over leaving Australia in trouble, the closeness of the final result did not surprise Guptill. “Actually thought we were potentially ten runs short,” he said. “Jimmy did a great job but was starved of strike in the last couple of overs. It ended up being enough… A great game in the end.”

The coach “had some really interesting chats” with Shaw during 2020 IPL

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Apr-2021Prithvi Shaw doesn’t like to work in the nets when he is struggling for runs, but keeps on batting and batting in the nets when he is in form. The Delhi Capitals head coach Ricky Ponting revealed this “interesting theory” of Shaw, who had an unimpressive IPL in 2020 with just 228 runs from 13 innings at an average of 17.53. Ponting said he tried hard to get Shaw to work on certain aspects of his game when the opener was out of form during the last IPL, but couldn’t get Shaw into the nets.”I’ve had some really interesting chats with him through last year’s IPL, just trying to break him down, trying to find out exactly what was the right way to coach him and how I was going to get the best out of him,” Ponting told “He had an interesting theory on his batting last year. When he’s not scoring runs, he won’t bat, and when he is scoring runs, he wants to keep batting all the time. He had four or five games where he made under ten and I’m telling him, ‘We have to go to the nets and work out [what’s wrong]’, and he looked me in the eye and said, ‘No, I’m not batting today’. I couldn’t really work that out.Related

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“He might have changed. I know he’s done a lot of work over the last few months, that theory that he had might have changed, and hopefully, it has, because if we can get the best out of him, he could be a superstar player.”Ponting said that he told Shaw during the 2020 IPL that he disagreed with his philosophy about practice. Shaw started the tournament as the Capitals’ incumbent opener but eventually lost his place in the XI due to poor form.”I was going pretty hard at him,” Ponting said. “I was basically telling him, ‘Mate you’ve got to get in the nets. Whatever you think you’re working on, is not working for you.'”It’s my job as a coach to challenge someone’s preparation if they’re not getting results. So I challenged him and he stuck to his word and he didn’t practice much at all towards the back-end of the tournament, and didn’t get many runs towards the back-end of the tournament either.”After the IPL, Shaw played the opening Test in Adelaide in December but was dropped after he survived just six balls and was bowled by incoming deliveries. Shaw later said he felt “worthless” after being dropped and “broke down” in his room.Shaw then turned to the nets with India head coach Ravi Shastri and batting coach Vikram Rathour, and played the Vijay Hazare Trophy – India’s 50-over tournament – to amass 827 runs in eight matches, leading Mumbai to a title win by smashing 73 off 39 in the final against Uttar Pradesh. He averaged 165.40 in the tournament, striking at 138.29, with the help of four centuries which included unbeaten knocks of 227 and 185.Ponting said Shaw’s form is perfect for the Capitals because it gives them a better balance.”Maybe [his training habits] have changed for the better, because [his success] won’t just be for the Delhi Capitals, I’m sure you’ll see him play a lot of cricket for India as well in the coming years,” Ponting said. “He’s diminutive, in the Tendulkar sort of mould but hits the ball incredibly powerfully off the front and back foot, and plays spin really well.”If we can get him to take that form that he’s just shown into the IPL, it just makes the balance on our Delhi Capitals side so good. If [the penny] does drop – I’m not sure I’ve seen many more talented players than him in my whole time of playing the game.”

No immediate impact on IPL participants, but quarantine periods may affect future engagements

George Dobell19-Apr-2021The ECB are confident they will be able to fulfil their home international fixture programme despite India being added to the ‘red list’ of countries from which most travel to the UK has been banned due to fears of a new Covid variant.Under new regulations, most people who have been in India in the last 10 days will be banned from entering the UK from 4am on Friday. British or Irish residents, or those with residence rights within the UK, will be obliged to serve a 10-day quarantine period. There is, at present, no dispensation available to allow sportspeople to train out of their rooms while they serve that quarantine period.There is a concern that a new variant of the virus, which appears to be relatively prevalent in India, could spread more easily and prove more resistant to vaccinations. The UK’s Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has cancelled a visit to India which was scheduled to take place next week.India are scheduled to play in the World Test Championship final against New Zealand in June and a five-Test series against England starting in August. Pakistan, which is also on the red list, are also scheduled to play ODI and T20I series in England in the coming months, while India’s women’s team is also scheduled to play a series in June.But although the ECB are likely to require dispensation from the UK government to stage such tours, they are optimistic that all games will be given the go-ahead.Having fulfilled their full home schedule in 2020, the ECB feel they have the experience and capability to combat the demands of the situation. Crucially, they also believe they gained the confidence of the UK government by demonstrating their ability to build an effective bio-bubble and stage matches without compromising safety. England were able to host series against West Indies, Pakistan, Ireland and Australia in 2020 with players of all sides obliged to abide by strict protocols, including serving quarantine periods.”We are currently discussing with Government the impact of countries being on the ‘red list’,” an ECB spokesperson said. “By working collaboratively we demonstrated how we can stage international cricket safely in the middle of a pandemic and hope to be able to do so again this year.”Related

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It is unlikely the news will have much of an impact on England’s players involved in the IPL. While some may be alarmed at infection rates in India – new cases have risen to over 200,000 a day and only the USA has reported more deaths from the virus – the players are already living in bio-bubbles and playing in empty stadiums.It could, however, lengthen the process by which players can appear elsewhere, having been involved in the IPL. That could make it difficult for players at the IPL to be available for the Test series between New Zealand and England which starts on June 2. New Zealand players involved in the tournament include their captain, Kane Williamson, while England players involved include Jos Buttler. The IPL final takes place on May 30.The ICC are also confident that the World Test Championship final, due to be played at the Ageas Bowl near Southampton in June, will go ahead as planned, although they may need the UK government to grant dispensation for the event, and for the hotel at the ground to be considered an approved quarantine centre.”We are currently discussing with the UK Government the impact of countries being on the ‘red list’,” an ICC spokesman told ESPNcricinfo. “The ECB and other Members have demonstrated how we can stage international cricket safely in the middle of a pandemic and we are confident that we can continue to do that and that the World Test Championship Final will go ahead as planned in June in the UK.”

Home side crumbles for second time in match as Hannon-Dalby claims 4 for 24

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Jun-2021Oliver Hannon-Dalby bowled Warwickshire to a crushing 191-run victory as Derbyshire’s batting folded again in the LV=Insurance County Championship match at Derby.Faced with a target of 309, Derbyshire crumbled for the second time in the match and were bowled out for 117 before tea on the third afternoon with Hannon-Dalby claiming 4 for 24.The home side had a chance when they bowled Warwickshire out for 155 with Michael Cohen taking 5 for 43 but a post lunch collapse condemned them to a fourth defeat of the season.Warwickshire’s fourth victory takes them to the top of Group 1 and boosts their chances of qualifying for Division One with two games to play.Derbyshire have yet to win a match but they were in with a slim chance of ending that run when they took the last three Warwickshire wickets for only 23.Cohen and Sam Conners both got lavish swing to restrict Warwickshire’s lead to 308 but their hopes quickly faded as Hannon-Dalby removed both openers in the first five overs.Billy Godleman edged a good delivery to first slip, where Tim Bresnan took a sharp catch, and Luis Reece was caught down the leg side trying to pull.Craig Miles delivered another body blow with the last ball before lunch when Brook Guest was caught behind off an inside edge.Wayne Madsen and Ben McDermott briefly lifted the spirits of the home supporters before the wheels came off again with four wickets falling for eight runs in five overs.Will Rhodes brought himself on at the Racecourse End and was immediately rewarded when Madsen gave him a return catch off a leading edge and in the nex over, Hannon-Dalby returned to pin Matt Critchley lbw.McDermott went in his next over when he pushed forward and edged low to third slip and Alex Hughes was beaten by a full, swinging delivery from Rhodes.Warwickshire turned to the left-arm spin of Danny Briggs for the first time in the match and he struck with his third ball when Cohen pushed forward and was stumped.Anuj Dal drove and cut Liam Norwell for two fours before he edged to third slip and a 21 point victory was sealed when Ben Aitchison skied Briggs to mid off.

Wicketkeeper’s spot is yet to be confirmed but he is suddenly the frontline option after Foakes’ injury

Alan Gardner at Lord's31-May-2021When England announced their 55-man return-to-training squad last summer, it’s probably fair to say James Bracey was in the outer orbit among candidates for the Test side. But Bracey, a well thought of young wicketkeeper-batter from Gloucestershire, who had impressed for England Lions on their 2019-20 tour of Australia, quickly made an impression. Twelve months on, he is on the verge of a Test debut at Lord’s.Having spent almost 20 weeks in bio-secure bubbles as England’s reserve batting option last summer and on tours of Sri Lanka and India, Bracey had been seen as vying for a spot in the top three when the squad to face New Zealand was announced earlier this month. However, with a dressing-room mishap ruling out Ben Foakes, and England’s other wicketkeeping options, Jos Buttler and Jonny Bairstow, not considered after their post-IPL quarantine, Bracey is set to take the gloves – something he admits he “didn’t really have on my radar.””I was really excited when I got the call about being in the 15,” he said. “It’s a bit different to how I have been around the group in the last year or so. I think that step up into the main squad is a big landmark. I have been taken on in each group – originally in the 55 and then it kept being cut down and now I feel like I am really close. I am really keen to get going.”When I heard about Ben it was almost a shock – I didn’t really have it on my radar to be there as a keeper. I knew that Ben was highly likely to take those gloves, and when I got that call it didn’t really sink in straight away but when I arrived in London it started to hit that it was a distinct possibility.”Bracey’s spot has yet to be confirmed, but he is suddenly the frontline option in a position where England have not been short of competition over recent years (Sam Billings, who has kept in the white-ball teams, is also with the squad as cover). Buttler is currently first choice, while Foakes has won universal plaudits for the standard of his keeping and was in line to play his first home Test after impressing in India. But given Bracey’s rapid rise, it would not be a surprise if he grabbed his chance.Related

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“While we were away this winter, all four of us were there [and] it wasn’t something I really looked at. I always knew that if I continued to work on my keeping there was always a possibility. I am really glad now that I put in that extra shift because it puts me in lot better spot now. With Jos and Jonny and Ben coming back later in the summer, it might not be mine to keep but as long as I show myself as a good keeper, it is definitely going to help me out going forward.”I’ve had a lot of times this winter when I’ve been trying to calculate how I’m getting in the team and how I’m going to get that opportunity. But the fact of the matter is a lot of the time it happens when you don’t expect it. That time hopefully has now come.”I’ve benefited from Foakesy having a freak accident and I think if I put in good performances over the next couple of games, that could see me bed into the squad moving forward. I’m looking at each game at a time and this week if I get out there it’s not only an opportunity to push myself with the gloves but really show what I can do with the bat and show that I can do different roles.”James Bracey: “I have worked really hard on my keeping ever since coming into the Lions and I feel like it is in a good place”•AFP via Getty Images

Bracey, 24, bats No. 3 with Gloucestershire and initially only kept wicket occasionally, but he has increasingly focused on that side of his game. Speaking to the last week, he credited Foakes’ example over the winter as helping him to improve his own game, and he revealed that he has continued to seek advice from the Surrey man in the build-up; Lord’s is a notoriously difficult ground to keep at, though Bracey has the advantage of having done so in a County Championship match last month.”I am gutted for him [Foakes],” Bracey said. “He’s been brilliant, I spoke to him yesterday and he is really helpful to me in terms of keeping and our different bowlers and how you can combat that and what challenges I might come up against. I know he is gutted but he has been brilliant with me over the last 48 hours.”I have worked really hard on my keeping ever since coming into the Lions and I feel like it is in a good place. I have worked hard with the other keepers on tour and the keeping coaches, I did a long catch yesterday and go again today and I feel I am in a really confident place with that and that I can perform with the gloves and the bat.”There are a couple of different factors. It will be different in terms of the pace of the pitch and the slope and sometimes you have to work with little angles but it is all stuff that the bowler and [Joe] Root and other guys have given me tips on and I am sure when it comes to Wednesday I will be in a good spot.”Bracey said that his time spent with the team over the last year made him confident he could “do a job in Test cricket in the top three”, but he is more likely to make his debut batting at No. 6 or 7. Such versatility, added to his utility behind the stumps, is only likely to aid his case when it comes to being part of the planning for England’s major Test goal this year – the winter Ashes trip to Australia.”It’s hard not to think about it but I’m trying to stay present, there are seven Test matches this summer and a lot can happen. I’m really excited about the possibility of playing two of the world’s best teams this summer and obviously an Ashes tour next winter is another goal as well. We’ll see how these first few games go and then hopefully I’ll be in a position where I can’t be ignored.”