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Cricket Australia will not disclose its list of 30 probables for the Champions Trophy, breaking the norm followed by all countries ahead of ICC tournaments

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Apr-2013Cricket Australia will not disclose its list of 30 probables for the Champions Trophy in England this June, breaking the norm followed by all countries ahead of ICC tournaments. It is understood that CA approached the ICC for clarification over the rules about squad announcement and then requested that the 30-man squad, which will be pruned to 15 in a month’s time, not be made public.”Custom and practice is that countries announce their provisional squads 60 days before the first ball is scheduled to be bowled in the tournament,” an ICC spokesperson said. “But this isn’t compulsory.”Pakistan have already released their list of 30 probables, and other countries are expected to do so by the end of the week. Australia have been grouped with England, New Zealand and Sri Lanka, and play their first game on June 8, against the hosts.

A round-up of the Ford Trophy matches that ended on January 13, 2016

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Jan-2016Wellington and Otago, the two teams bringing up the rear of the Ford Trophy points table, played out a tie at Basin Reserve. Set 250 to win, Wellington’s line-up could only accelerate at a run-rate of 3.21. They had made 74 off 23 overs when rain arrived, stayed and put an end to the match. In the end, the two teams had to share two points each.Otago, who had won the toss, but had only one batsman capitalising on it even though six of the top eight got off to starts. Neil Broom made 54 off 57, with eight fours but his wicket paved way for a mini-collapse. Otago slipped from 147 for 2 to 172 for 6 before Mark Craig at No. 8 hit 46 off 41, with three fours and two sixes.They were all out for 249 without batting their full quota of overs, and the main reasons for that were seamer Brent Arnel and offspinner Jeetan Patel. The duo claimed four wickets and gave away only 54 runs in 19 overs, a combined economy rate of 2.84. Their colleagues, however, went at well more than double that rate. Matt McEwan, Anurag Verma and Alecz Day bowled 29.5 overs and leaked 196 runs.Otago’s bowlers, however, were able to put up a miserly display from all sides. Jacob Duffy, the 21-year old seamer, came away with figures of 5-1-8-1 and their most expensive bowler, Craig, still only conceded 25 runs in five overs, one of which was a maiden.Perhaps that was because Wellington were trying to build a solid enough base first, believing they had 50 overs to chase down 250. Captain Michael Papps and Stephen Murdoch were in the middle of a 69-run partnership when bad weather broke out and Wellington had to settle for a tie. At the time, they had nine batsmen left to tackle an equation that read 176 off 27 overs and an asking rate of 6.5.Tom Latham strengthened his bid to claim a permanent place as New Zealand’s one-day opener with a fluent 96 off 111 balls that helped his state side and table-toppers Canterbury to a 98-run victory over Auckland at Hagley Oval.Latham batted through to the 38th over to set a strong foundation, and though his team lost all six remaining wickets and were all out in the 49th over, they had a formidable 265 on the board. Todd Astle, who has been picked to play Pakistan in the upcoming T20s, chipped in with 52 off 67 as well.For Auckland, Colin de Grandhomme picked up 3 for 42 while Michael Bates and Robert O’Donnell claimed two wickets each. But any threat their batsmen could pose was wiped out when they fell to 32 for 5 inside 10 overs and were bowled out for 167. New-ball bowlers Ed Nuttall (4 for 50) and Kyle Jamieson (2 for 24) were the wreckers-in-chief. Auckland’s bottom five added 118 runs, a whopping 70 percent of their runs, but it was nowhere near enough.A century from Dean Brownlie and an unbeaten 99 from Anton Devcich made small work of Northern Districts‘ chase of 225 against Central Districts in Whangarei, for an eight-wicket win. The two put on 198 runs in 32.4 overs to seal the chase in the 43rd over and give Northern Districts four points, taking them to fourth place in the table.Opting to bat, Central Districts were rattled early by James Baker, who reduced them to 29 for 4 in the fifth over with two wickets off consecutive deliveries. Doug Bracewell (80) helped them past 50 with captain Will Young and hauled the score from 91 for 6 to 192 for 7 with Ben Wheeler (53). Two wickets each from spinners Ish Sodhi and Jono Boult then bowled them out for 224 in the 49th over, and Baker finished with 3 for 30 from seven overs.Northern Districts were in a spot of bother early, being 29 for 2 after ten overs. But Brownlie and Devcich scored briskly and put the chase on track with plenty of boundaries. Brownlie struck ten fours and two sixes in his unbeaten 107, while Devcich collected nine fours and a six.

Bumrah named vice-captain as most of the regulars who missed the Sri Lanka tour in July return

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Dec-20211:18

Chetan Sharma: ‘KL Rahul has proved his leadership qualities’

Rohit Sharma has failed to recover from the hamstring injury that kept him out of the Test series in South Africa. In his absence, KL Rahul will lead India in the three-match ODI series in South Africa. Jasprit Bumrah has been named the vice-captain of the squad.This was supposed to be India’s first ODI assignment since Rohit was named full-time captain for the format, but Rohit’s recurring hamstring injury has emerged as a bit of a concern. Chairman of selectors Chetan Sharma said the decision to not send Rohit to South Africa was taken keeping that frequent injury and important events in mind, including the T20 World Cup and the ODI World Cup in the coming two years.”This is the only reason why we have decided to let him work on his rehab, work on his fitness, work on his muscles,” Chetan said. “Nobody gets injured on purpose. This is precisely why we didn’t send him to South Africa because we want him to go back to 100% fitness because there are important events and World Cups coming. That is the reason why he is not going to South Africa, and KL Rahul is the captain.”ESPNcricinfo Ltd

India’s 18-man squad welcomed back R Ashwin, who last played an ODI in 2017 but made his comeback into the T20I side earlier in 2021. Venkatesh Iyer received a maiden ODI call-up. As with T20Is, Venkatesh might bat in the middle order and bowl a few overs, a vacancy created by Hardik Pandya’s inability to bowl because of fitness issues.The other allrounder in the squad is Washington Sundar, who missed the T20 World Cup with injury but proved his fitness in the recent Vijay Hazare Trophy. Also coming back from injury was Shreyas Iyer, who has since made a successful Test debut too. The other potential allrounders, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel, are yet to recover from injuries sustained during the Test series against New Zealand.That Rahul would lead in Rohit’s absence was expected, seeing that he is the ODI vice-captain, but Chetan said that Rahul was being groomed as a future leader. “We are looking at KL Rahul as a three-format player, and he has got good experience of captaincy,” he said in an online press interaction. “He has proved his leadership qualities. That is what all selectors think. When Rohit is not fit, we thought KL is the best one to handle the side. We have good confidence in him, and we are grooming him.”From India’s last full-strength ODI squad that played England in March, the selectors omitted Kuldeep Yadav, the Pandya brothers Hardik and Krunal, T Natarajan (injured) and Shubman Gill. Deepak Chahar and Ishan Kishan found their way in.KL Rahul has been handed the reins of the ODI squad•Getty Images

Between the England series and this one, India played an ODI series in Sri Lanka too, but it was a second-string side because the main squad was in England to play the World Test Championship final and the Test series against England. Shikhar Dhawan captained that side in Sri Lanka and retained his place, but Prithvi Shaw didn’t. Ruturaj Gaikwad, who was part of that squad but didn’t get to play, was retained for the South Africa series.”He’s getting the chance at the right time,” Chetan said of Gaikwad. “He was picked in the T20s and now he’s in ODI squad. Wherever this is space for him, he’s getting picked and selectors are hoping he will do wonders for the country. We have selected him, now it’s up to the management when he plays in the XI and when he’s required in the combinations. He’s doing well and he’s been rewarded for that.”On some of the major names missing, Chetan said, “Mohammed Shami, we are resting him looking at the load management of our faster bowlers. He will definitely be playing the coming series. Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja, both are not fit, that’s the reason they are not in South Africa.”Also discussed in the selection meeting, Chetan said, were Ravi Bishnoi, Rishi Dhawan, Shahrukh Khan, Harshal Patel and Avesh Khan: “These guys will definitely get their chances in coming times.”ODI squad: KL Rahul (capt), Shikhar Dhawan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Venkatesh Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Yuzvendra Chahal, R Ashwin, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah (vice-capt), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Prasidh Krishna, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj

The pitches in the Ashes have made life tricky for batters and there could be a benefit of that

Andrew McGlashan07-Feb-2022Alyssa Healy believes an Ashes series where runs have been hard to come by has set her up well for the ODI World Cup in New Zealand.Healy has not been at her free-flowing best against England with the multi-format series including a pair in the Test match before a brace of hard-fought contributions in the first two ODIs.It is those two performances that have left her confident that her game is in a good place for next month’s World Cup with Australia set to fly to New Zealand two days after the Ashes finishes to undertake their ten-day quarantine.”Probably the best thing that could have happened is these two wickets being a little bit tricky,” Healy said. “The English bowlers are really skillful, they are using the seam really nicely, and not one batter has really flourished in this ODI part of the series. Moons [Beth Mooney] played a beautiful knock but it took her a long while to get going and knowing that making those tough runs early has been the best thing for me.Related

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“Means my shape is good, I’m getting in good positions to keep the really good balls out, and the last two dismissals think I’ve found ways to get myself out which is weird tick of the box if that makes any sense.”Australia toured New Zealand last year and played three ODIs in early April which is the time of the year the World Cup will conclude. Healy made 65, 44 and 46 in those three matches.”Feel like with the conditions [against England] not being perfect for batting it’s been a great test of exactly where things are at and I’m really excited as to how things are tracking,” she said. “Once we get over to New Zealand, if the wickets are similar I know I’m in a good position to dig in but if they are flat I know I’m in a great place to hit the ball like I normally do.”With one game to go of Australia’s home international summer, Healy’s top score is 77 which she made in the first ODI against India in late September. India’s seamers performed really well in that multi-format series while England’s have also caused plenty of challenges during the Ashes with Healy feeling the bowlers have held sway all season.”The wickets here have been really conducive to seam bowling all summer,” she said. “Hasn’t felt like we’ve had a real flat track. From that point of view, I feel like our group and me, in particular, is really well prepared for whatever the wickets might throw at us [at the World Cup].”Healy is also confident that the World Cup will see the best of Ellyse Perry who played the central role in the Ashes-winning victory in Melbourne with three wickets and a well-constructed 40 when most other batters struggled. Perry was left out of the T20Is at the start of the Ashes but remains a formidable ODI and Test cricketer.”That six she hit over mid-off was a shot I’ve never really seen Pez hit before with that shape and flair,” Healy said. “That’s really exciting signs for us leading into a big world tournament that she’s hitting her straps at the right time and probably a bit of concern for other sides around the world.”

Josh Sullivan take 4 for 11 in rain-reduced encounter at Chesterfield

ECB Reporters Network08-Aug-2021Yorkshire 109 for 2 (Fraine 69*) beat Derbyshire 108 for 6 (Sullivan 4-11) by eight wicketsWill Fraine scored the fastest List A fifty in Yorkshire’s history to take his side to an emphatic eight-wicket victory over Derbyshire in a Royal London Cup match reduced to 10 overs a side at Chesterfield.Fraine smashed 50 off only 19 balls and his unbeaten 69, which contained five fours and four sixes, from 32 deliveries took Yorkshire to their target of 109 with eight balls to spare.Derbyshire had set a challenging total of 108 for 6 after rain delayed the start by six hours with Fynn Hudson-Prentice hammering four sixes in an unbeaten 38 from 17 balls.Josh Sullivan took 4 for 11, including three in four balls, with his leg spin before Fraine’s assault carried Yorkshire home at a canter and keeps alive their chances of making the knock-out stages.Mitch Wagstaff and Harry Came got Derbyshire off to a good start when the rain finally cleared, adding 40 before Wagstaff was bowled trying to ramp George Hill in the fifth over.Tom Wood drove Hill for consecutive fours but then became Sullivan’s first victim when he pulled the leg-spinner’s first ball to deep midwicket.Brooke Guest was stumped coming down the pitch and Alex Hughes clipped his first ball to square leg as Derbyshire slipped to 50 for 4.Hudson-Prentice pulled Mathews Pillans for six and Came repeated the treatment as 21 came off the seventh over.Sullivan was driven over the long on fence by Hudson-Prentice but Came’s attempt to dispatch the spinner into the crowd ended in a sliced catch to cover.Derbyshire needed another big over and Hudson-Prentice delivered when he straight-drove and pulled Ben Coad for sixes with 17 coming from the 9th.It lifted Derbyshire to a competitive total but Fraine got Yorkshire off to a flyer, driving Hudson-Prentice for successive fours before lifting him over long off for six.Matthew Revis miscued a pull at Ravi Rampaul to mid on but Fraine drove Mattie McKiernan for another six to take his side to 43 for 1 after three overs.McKiernan bore the brunt of Fraine’s onslaught, conceding 21 from his second over, as the opener drove him onto the pavilion roof before his fourth six took him to a 19-ball 50.William Luxton pulled George Scrimshaw for six and although he holed out to deep midwicket in the same over, Yorkshire needed only eight off the last two overs.Gary Ballance removed any lingering hopes Derbyshire might have entertained of pulling off a dramatic heist by driving Hudson-Prentice for six as Yorkshire cruised to victory in the evening sunshine.

Australia’s selectors are expected to name Brad Haddin as Michael Clarke’s vice-captain and No. 1 gloveman for the tour of England, reverting to the leadership duo that delivered a 4-0 hiding of India on home soil two summers ago

Daniel Brettig23-Apr-2013Australia’s selectors are expected to name Brad Haddin as Michael Clarke’s vice-captain and No. 1 gloveman for the tour of England, reverting to the leadership duo that delivered a 4-0 hiding of India on home soil two summers ago.An Ashes squad of 16 is set to be revealed on Wednesday in Sydney, with Haddin’s return to a post he has held sporadically in the past forcing a change in the wicketkeeping hierarchy. The younger keeper Matthew Wade will again be held in reserve after a year in the Test side, though both will be in the tour party. Wade has the chance to force his way into the XI as a batsman.The former Test No. 3 Shaun Marsh is also looming as a surprise inclusion, his unarguable talent believed to have won the selectors over despite a poorly recent record. Not since his Test debut in Sri Lanka in 2011 has Marsh made a first-class century, and during the 2012-13 Australian summer he cobbled 152 runs at 19 in four Sheffield Shield matches.Nevertheless, Marsh showed improved results from the moment the former Australia batting coach Justin Langer took over as coach of Western Australia in mid-season, excelling in the Big Bash League and then making a century for Australia A against the England Lions in Hobart before suffering a serious hamstring tear that he has only just recovered from.Marsh’s selection would be a blow to the international claims of numerous other batsmen, including the longtime reserve Usman Khawaja, the Twenty20 captain and ODI regular George Bailey, and the prolific top-order batsman Chris Rogers.Among the bowlers, the young left-arm spinner Ashton Agar and the allrounder James Faulkner are thought to be vying for the final spot. Still a teenager, Agar turned plenty of heads for his composure and skill with the ball and the bat during his limited appearances for Western Australia during the summer, and went to India as an intern in the early part of a sorry tour.Shaun Marsh has emerged as a surprise contender for a recall to the Test squad•AFP

Faulkner’s allround skill and fiery temperament are admired by the selectors, and will be afforded extra experience of English conditions by the Australia A tour that precedes the Ashes. By naming 16, the selectors may leave themselves room to make an addition to the Test squad after glimpsing the Australia A tourists.They are also keeping one eye on the diplomatic progress of the Pakistan-raised legspinner Fawad Ahmed, who is now unlikely to be granted a passport in time for the start of the England tour but may become eligible soon after. It is not inconceivable that he may be added to the Ashes squad following the second Test of the series at Lord’s.Mitchell Johnson is not expected to be chosen after a poor tour of India, in which he was one of the four players suspended, and four years on from a nightmarish 2009 Ashes series he began as the world’s top-rated bowler but ended as the enigma he has remained to this day.Haddin’s expected appointment as vice-captain, only days after Shane Watson relinquished the post, is an acknowledgement of the leadership vacuum that opened up in the Australian Test side in India after the retirements of Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey.An ankle sprain to Wade during the tour forced Haddin to be flown over as a replacement, and he then became the acting captain in the field during the third Test in Mohali when Clarke suffered from the back trouble that would rule him out of the fourth match. Haddin’s presence on tour was welcomed, providing the sort of experience, wisdom and discipline lacking earlier in the trip, as demonstrated by the suspension of four players for failing to complete basic tasks.Clarke and Haddin have been close friends and tactical confidantes for many years, ever since the wicketkeeper captained a young Clarke with New South Wales in the years before his Test debut in India in 2004. They formed a successful leadership axis during the home Tests against India in 2011-12, when Watson was absent due to injury.Possible Ashes squad Michael Clarke (capt), Brad Haddin (vice-capt, wk), David Warner, Ed Cowan, Phillip Hughes, Shane Watson, Steve Smith, Shaun Marsh, Matthew Wade (wk), Ryan Harris, Peter Siddle, James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Ashton Agar, Jackson Bird.

James Pattinson’s international future is clouded, after scans showed a worrying recurrence of shin stress problems, following his exertions for Australia in their recent Test series victory in New Zealand

Daniel Brettig01-Mar-20161:02

Cloud over Pattinson’s immediate future

Fast bowler James Pattinson’s international future is clouded, after scans showed a recurrence of shin stress problems, following his exertions for Australia in their recent Test series victory in New Zealand.”James had a recurrence of his left shin soreness following the second Test in Christchurch and had follow-up scans in Melbourne yesterday,” Australia physio David Beakley said. “These scans have shown some inflammation around the shin consistent with bone stress. James will now require some time off to allow this injury to resolve and will not be available for the remainder of the domestic cricket season.”After working to find his rhythm in Wellington, Pattinson bowled with pace, hostility and accuracy in Christchurch, while also gaining useful reverse swing. However his demanding stints at Hagley Oval, including one eight-over spell in which he claimed two vital wickets, have taken a toll.The shin soreness had been a problem for Pattinson earlier in the summer. Following the West Indies series, he was unavailable for Big Bash League and Sheffield Shield duty until immediately before the New Zealand tour began. He had admitted previously that he was gambling on his maturing body being able to cope with the stresses of his action, which has been modified several times in order to try to reduce chances of an injury.After his debut against New Zealand in November 2011, Pattinson was first ruled out of Australian duty by a foot stress fracture at the SCG in January 2012. He did not return to the team until South Africa’s visit in November of the same year, whereupon he suffered a torn side in Adelaide and resumed on the tour of India the following year. He then suffered further injury during the Lord’s Ashes Test, and was out of Test cricket until the third Test of the 2014 tour of South Africa due to a back stress fracture.Having bowled well there, Pattinson was found to have suffered the early signs of more back stress, and was again kept out of international cricket for a long time, not playing a Test again until Hobart against the West Indies last December.

Pakistan’s focus now on the Tests, says the pacer, with the series being a key one for his side in the new World Test Championship cycle

Danyal Rasool04-Aug-2021An early 1-0 lead that’s consolidated by not much happening for the rest of the contest sounds like something out of Jose Mourinho’s playbook, but if ever a cricketing equivalent were to have such a result, you’d put good money on Misbah-ul-Haq being the mastermind. There weren’t too many tactics involved in that scoreline, though, with uncooperative weather ensuring a T20I in Guyana was all the cricket that could be played, and once Pakistan edged West Indies in it, there was little West Indies could do to prevent a Pakistan series win.But while the weather might be the enduring narrative from what should have been a five-match series (even before the weather played foul, Covid-19 cut into the schedule), Pakistan fast bowler Hasan Ali insisted a series win at the home of the defending T20 world champions meant a lot to his side. “Winning away to a side with such firepower that they can hurt you anytime is great. A win is a win and we’re very happy with the series victory in the West Indies,” he said. “We’re all disappointed because we wanted to play. Even when it was raining we were all raring to go. But the weather is not in our control. Of course, the disappointment is we couldn’t prepare properly away to a champion side.”We had to learn some lessons from the England series, and we’re working on our bowling in the middle and the death. I really like our bowling unit right now, and also my personal form. As a bowling unit, we trust each other and our coaches trust us too. Of course, we have to improve, but we have a month or two to hone our skills ahead of the T20 World Cup.”There’s another assignment, though, before the focus shifts completely to the shortest format. A two-match Test series against West Indies starting next week, to kick off the new World Test Championship (WTC) cycle for both sides. Unlike the last cycle, which somewhat passed Pakistan by, the fixtures and scheduling have fallen in a way that represents a real chance for Babar Azam’s side to claim a spot in the final come 2023. The upcoming two-match series presents arguably Pakistan’s most challenging away fixtures in this cycle, with the other away series against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.That, of course, makes performing in this Test series that much more important, and Ali said the series was his side’s primary focus for the moment.”We’re looking forward to the Tests; we have a few days to get used to the red ball. I’ll try to capitalise on my form and the rhythm I’ve got going for now,” Ali said. “Our team is very balanced. We have plenty of spinners with Yasir [Shah] coming back, and in dry conditions like these that’s very useful.”Then we also have [pace options in] Shaheen [Afridi], Naseem [Shah], [Mohammad] Abbas and myself. We’ve won the last two Test series [against West Indies] and we’re looking to continue that and get the WTC off in victorious fashion.”Facing up to the usual, mandatory question on Pakistan being drawn in the same group as India in the T20 World Cup group, Ali was clear that it was not something the team was dwelling on. “We’re not looking forward to the India match right now at all, to be honest with you,” he said. “That’s still very far away. My focus is just on these two Tests right now.”

Should Australia’s batsmen require some advice about stepping into the shoes of Michael Hussey and Ricky Ponting, they could do far worse than look across to the other side of the dressing room

Daniel Brettig01-Jan-2013Should Australia’s batsmen require some advice about stepping into the shoes of Michael Hussey and Ricky Ponting, they could do far worse than look across to the other side of the dressing room.While Phillip Hughes has been up at night thinking about the idea of replacing the seemingly irreplaceable, the Test team’s fast bowlers have learned how to step up when asked. If the rotation or management of fast bowlers has been the source of some consternation among some former players, portions of the public and shriller segments of the media, it has also added to the collective poise of the battery at Australia’s disposal.Instead of wondering aloud how they could possibly improve on the sort of high-quality bowling produced by the likes of James Pattinson, Ryan Harris, Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle at times over the past 18 months, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Johnson, and most recently Jackson Bird have stepped up to their tasks with increasing confidence. All the time they have been reassured to keep doing what put them in the team in the first place – the sort of simple advice the batsmen will need to hold close as they set about the task of covering for Hussey’s loss after the SCG Test.”We’ve gone through a lot of players and had a lot of success with it,” Siddle said on New Year’s Day. “I think we’ve shown in the past 18 months that when blokes go out whether it’s injury or resting, the blokes that come in can perform and do well whether it’s their first Test or 49th. Like Mitch [Johnson] last week, it doesn’t matter if they come in, they’re ready to go. And it’s a strength.”There are a lot of games of cricket and we’ve got a busy Test match period coming up, which is going to put a lot of pressure on all the bowlers. But I think by having that backing by the blokes on the side, the reserves, we can keep being competitive and very competitive, as we’ve shown.”At 24, Hughes has the experience of 19 Tests to call on, but remains an aspirant to the level of consistency shown by Hussey and captain Michael Clarke this summer. He admitted to thinking of how often the aforementioned duo had saved the blushes of other members of the top six across the Tests against South Africa and Sri Lanka, and has resolved to build his mastery of No. 3.”I was actually thinking the other night the partnerships they’ve been getting through the summer, they’ve been unbelievable,” Hughes said. “But in saying that, it’s now all about us stepping up just a little bit more. I’ve been in and out of the team for a few years now and I suppose I’ve got a few caps behind me now so I’m a little bit experienced.”I really want to make this three position my own. As I came in the team and got selected I really want to stamp my authority and I suppose be consistent over a number of years. I’d really love to hold that spot going forward and I suppose everyone has to step up now. [Ponting’s] been unbelievably consistent now for years, so it’s about us all being really consistent and going to the next level.”Next to Clarke and the seasoned reservist Johnson, Siddle’s 36 Tests will make him Australia’s third-most experienced Test player when Hussey’s career concludes. While Siddle admitted to feeling a little “weird” about his advance in seniority, he also reasoned that he had spent enough time in and out of the team to learn what worked for him, allowing him to impart knowledge and advice to others.”Looking back now, when I came in at 23, you do go about things differently,” Siddle said. “You think it’s pretty cruisey and you’re happy with we’re you’re at, but it does hit you a few times when you get dropped or you’re told some home truths about how you’re really going or really looking. It has only been the last few years I’ve started to concentrate a lot more and work a lot harder.”Last year I benefited from all that work I put in and actually concentrating a bit harder on what I had to do to be a professional cricketer and play at the highest level. Sometimes those little hiccups along the way sometimes do help if you take it the right way and go about changing those things.”I just want to see the young boys do as well as they can when they first come in and keep doing as well as they can. I want them to learn from my mistakes of being a bit lazy when I first came in and taking it easy. You want them to go as hard as they can and keep doing that – if I can keep doing that, whether that’s at training or out on the field, hopefully they can follow.”

Birmingham Phoenix head coach could still be involved in future editions

George Dobell18-Jun-2021Andrew McDonald is set to be the latest big-name withdrawal from the Hundred, amid concerns over fixture clashes and bio-bubble fatigue.McDonald had been appointed as head coach of Birmingham Phoenix, but ESPNcricinfo understands that he will not be coming to England this summer with his responsibilities as Australia’s assistant coach taking priority. Daniel Vettori is believed to be a strong favourite to secure an interim role in charge of the side.Related

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McDonald is instead expected to go on Australia’s tour to the Caribbean, which departs in late June and is due to be followed by a trip to Bangladesh in early August. He will remain in contact with Phoenix in a consultancy capacity and is expected to resume his duties in 2022.McDonald’s decision follows a string of other high-profile withdrawals which have included Marcus Stoinis, David Warner and Kagiso Rabada. With fixture congestion (both international and franchise league), quarantine arrangements and bubble fatigue contributing to create something approaching a perfect storm, the ECB is braced for more withdrawals in the coming days. The schedule suggests the involvement of players from the Caribbean and Pakistan may prove especially challenging. New Zealand’s players, already in the UK, may well prove the beneficiaries. Lockie Ferguson is expected to replace Rabada for Manchester Originals.This news is a significant blow to Birmingham Phoenix, though. McDonald had been heavily involved in the planning stages for the tournament, including taking decisions on which players to sign.