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The England & Wales Cricket Board has announced that it will be doubling its investment in Chance to Shine

Andrew Miller03-Nov-2016The England & Wales Cricket Board has announced that it will be doubling its investment in Chance to Shine, the cricket charity that was founded in 2005 to address the decline of the sport in state schools.Following a decade of pioneering work in the grassroots game, during which time more than 3 million schoolchildren have been introduced to cricket, the ECB yesterday announced that, from October 2017, at least £2.5m will be donated annually to Chance to Shine, with a further £500,000 to be made available for matched funding.According to Luke Swanson, Chance to Shine’s chief executive, the extra investment will targeted on primary schools, with the aim of reaching an additional 200,000 children a year. This places the charity right at the heart of the ECB’s game-wide strategy, as spelt out through their framework, Cricket Unleashed, to inspire more people, especially families, to get involved with cricket.”When we work in primary schools, we have the opportunity to introduce the game to every child irrespective of background, gender or parental involvement,” said Swanson. “In a primary school, cricket has the chance to reach the whole community, and give kids of all backgrounds the chance to play together.”Matt Dwyer, the ECB’s director of participation and growth, said that the timing of the announcement was designed to maximise the opportunity that the sport has in the coming years to reconnect the sport with its public. With the Champions Trophy and Women’s World Cup coming up on home soil next year, followed by the men’s World Cup and the Ashes in 2019, the drive to attract new players and supporters begins now.”It is not just about seeing cricket survive, it’s about seeing cricket thrive for generations,” he said. “As a game we are very much focused on inspiring that next generation, and taking cricket to classrooms and playgrounds across the country.”We believe cricket is uniquely placed to enrich the lives of young people, whether that be through the development of nine of the 10 fundamental movements skills, the fact that we are the only sport that incorporates our values into the official rules of the game, or the fact that cricket can deliver so many in-class curriculum outcomes.Cricket has the ability to inspire kids in our communities in a way like no other and we will do that together with Chance to Shine.”The funding boost was announced by Colin Graves, the ECB chairman, during Chance to Shine’s annual awards dinner at Lord’s on Wednesday evening, following a coaching session at St Mary and St Peter’s Primary School in south-west London, attended by the England batsman, Sam Billings.”Every career starts at the bottom level so it’s fundamental that these kids get the chance to play many sports, especially cricket,” said Billings. “In many schools around the country its football dominated, cricket is not on the curriculum.”Certainly in Bangladesh with England we had this conversation. I think it’s about a 50/50 split in terms of who went to state and independent schools, and club cricket plays a massive role too in getting that relationship right. Club cricket was a great benefit to me growing up but again, it starts with the schools.”

Australia’s tour of Bangladesh appears increasingly in danger of being cancelled, with Cricket Australia’s security team on their way home following a series of meetings in Bangladesh

Brydon Coverdale29-Sep-20151:13

Bangladesh offers Australia extra security

Australia’s tour of Bangladesh appears increasingly in danger of being cancelled, with Cricket Australia’s security team on their way home to brief players and the board following a series of meetings in Bangladesh over the past two days.CA’s head of security Sean Carroll, team security manager Frank Dimasi and team manager Gavin Dovey have held meetings with Australian and Bangladeshi officials after the squad’s scheduled departure was postponed at the weekend. Their trip followed a new travel warning from Australia’s government that: “There is reliable information to suggest that militants may be planning to target Australian interests in Bangladesh.”Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade had contacted CA directly on Friday to inform them of the updated travel advice. On Monday, the United Kingdom government also updated its travel advice for UK citizens to state that: “Militants may be targeting western interests in Bangladesh in late September; UK officials have been advised to limit attendance at events where westerners may gather.”News agencies have also reported that an Italian charity worker was shot dead in Dhaka’s diplomatic zone on Monday evening, and both and AFP reported that an online statement in the name of Islamic State had claimed responsibility for the attack.ESPNcricinfo understands the BCB was caught off guard by the departure of Dimasi and Dovey from Bangladesh on Tuesday – the Bangladesh board had expected the two officials to remain in the country until the Australian team arrived. Both CA and the BCB have, over the past two days, expressed their strong desire for the two-Test series to go ahead, though CA’s chief executive James Sutherland said on Sunday that the safety and security of their players and staff was “the absolute priority”.”There has been no change to our position on the matter,” a CA spokesman said on Tuesday. “Following yesterday’s meetings, our head of security, team manager and team security manager are on their way home from Bangladesh for further meetings with the Department of Foreign Affairs and to brief our board, management and players on the situation.”The BCB on Monday expressed its confidence that the series would go ahead as scheduled, and also named a squad for the first Test in Chittagong. The first Test is scheduled to start on October 9, with the second Test due to begin in Dhaka on October 17.

Ian Blackwell, 34, has announced his retirement from cricket after struggling with a shoulder problem and losing a contract with Durham in January

Tim Wigmore15-Mar-2013Ian Blackwell, 34, has announced his retirement from cricket. The decision comes as little surprise – Blackwell had been struggling with a left shoulder problem, and his contract was terminated by Durham in January.He will not be lost to cricket and has already declared an ambition to train as an umpire, a role his jovial demeanor could be well suited to. He will umpire some second XI games in 2013, with a view to progressing to the first-class reserve list next year.Blackwell’s first-class record – averaging 39 with the bat and 35 with the ball – made him arguably the best county all-rounder of the 2000s. His batting was always explosive, his slog-sweep against spin standing out.Although he says he became “more of a batsman than a bowler”, despite starting his career batting at nine, Blackwell’s left-arm spin remained a very useful county weapon, evidenced by the 398 first-class wickets.Yet internationally, it was his bowling that was better able to handle the step-up in class. In 34 ODIs, he maintained an economy of only 4.27 an over, and was unfortunate to be injured after keeping his head above water during England’s ignominious ODI winter of 2005-06 in Pakistan and India.Two things held him back. Blackwell was always criticised for his attitude to fitness: his frame did not fit easily into Duncan Fletcher’s image of the 21st-century England cricketer. And his greatest county asset, his belligerent batting, seemed becalmed in an England shirt: he averaged only 15 in ODIs. There was a solitary Test cap too, against India at Nagpur in 2006, where he made his debut alongside current England captain Alastair Cook and Monty Panesar.Blackwell says he cherished his international appearances. “I enjoyed the times with England, and I’ll look back and have some fond memories. I can say I performed at a reasonable standard. I was probably selected as an all-rounder but I batted higher for my county than for England, and subsequently never got the chance to bat for any length of time except if we were doing badly.”But at county level, Blackwell was seldom short of success. He ended his career on loan at Warwickshire, winning the Championship and very nearly the CB40 too. He also had Championship success at Durham, and won the Twenty20 in 2005 at Somerset.Although he began his career with home county Derbyshire, it was Somerset that he will be most associated with. Over nine years, he proved a perfect match at Taunton, where he registered a career-best 247* in 2003. The last 147 runs came from 63 balls, testament to how destructive Blackwell’s blade could be. Somerset will now be his home.

Australia’s captain Michael Clarke has confirmed a hamstring complaint will keep him out of Friday’s triangular series match against Sri Lanka in Sydney

Daniel Brettig13-Feb-2012Michael Clarke, the Australia captain, has confirmed a hamstring complaint will keep him out of Friday’s triangular series match against Sri Lanka in Sydney.It will be the first ODI or Test he has missed since replacing Ricky Ponting as leader following the end of the 2011 World Cup campaign.Clarke complained of right hamstring soreness in the field against India during Sunday night’s loss at Adelaide Oval, and upon his return to Sydney underwent scans to check on the injury.A grade one hamstring strain was located, ruling Clarke out of the team’s next fixture, though he hopes not to miss more than one match.After Friday, the squad travels to Brisbane for another meeting with India on Sunday.His absence, at a time when he may have been due for a rest, has opened up a dilemma for the national selectors regarding who should be the stand-in captain. The official vice-captain Shane Watson is making a slow and steady recovery from his own leg muscle problems, while Brad Haddin, Clarke’s deputy in the Tests against India, has been rested while Matthew Wade is given a glimpse of the wicketkeeping spot.
David Warner has served as vice-captain so far during the ODI series, a role he also fills with the national Twenty20 team, while the former captain Ricky Ponting remains a senior figure in the dressing room. Another option would be to call in George Bailey, captain of Tasmania and the T20 team, and in strong form during his state’s last two fixtures against New South Wales.Australia’s team physio Alex Kountouris said Clarke’s availability for the Sunday match would be determined later this week. “He will not recover in time to play in Australia’s next Commonwealth Bank Series game on Friday in Sydney against Sri Lanka,” Kountouris said, “but I will assess him later this week and decide on his availability for the game in Brisbane on Sunday against India.”The Australia squad for the next block of triangular series matches will be named by the national selector John Inverarity on Tuesday.

Yusuf Pathan launched the sort of assault that has made him a rich man to ensure it wasn’t all one-way in Centurion but it wasn’t enough to prevent South Africa from snatching the series with a 33-run victory

The Bulletin by Siddarth Ravindran23-Jan-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Yusuf Pathan smashed eight sixes in his 105•AFP

Yusuf Pathan launched the sort of assault that has made him a rich man to ensure it wasn’t all one-way traffic in Centurion but it wasn’t enough to prevent South Africa from snatching the series with a 33-run victory. After a tough tour over the past month-and-a-half, the last day of the series seemed set to be an anti-climactic non-scrap courtesy yet another Hashim Amla century and a slew of reckless strokes from the Indians.Yusuf, though, blasted a century of utter violence when all looked lost at 119 for 8, and after an hour of Yusuf, the South African bowling was looking clueless and India were 49 short, dreaming of a miraculous win. Yusuf clubbed a 68-ball century but holed out soon after, much to the relief of the Sunday crowd at Supersport Park.The tour had begun with South Africa’s crushing Test victory in Centurion and ends with another defeat for the visitors at the same venue. One reason India’s bowlers will be thrilled to be heading back home will be that there will be less sparring with Amla, who has plundered more than 1100 runs in the past 11 months against India in Tests and one-dayers. He collected another 116 on Sunday to push South Africa to a tall total in a rain-hit match.MS Dhoni had chosen to bowl on winning the toss, perhaps swayed by Supersport Park’s reputation of being a ground where it is easy to chase in day games. No matter what the past record, it is unlikely any team can win when its top order combusts so spectacularly and heedlessly as India’s did. Barring Virat Kohli, the rest of the top six were dismissed not by unplayable deliveries but by attempts at extravagant strokes.Rohit Sharma’s horror series ended as he was bowled by Lonwabo Tsotsobe going for a loose drive through the line; Dhoni’s imperious cut ended as an edge to first slip; Yuvraj Singh edged two boundaries to third man before giving catching practice to JP Duminy at point; Suresh Raina smashed a couple of fours before an upper cut sailed to third man; Parthiv Patel was the only one in the top order to inspire confidence, middling nearly every ball for the second innings in a row before falling to a debatable diving catch by Faf du Plessis at cover. India were 74 for 6 in the 14th over, and their only hope of saving the series seemed to be if the ominous clouds circling the stadium brought a massive downpour which washed away the match before the 20th over.Enter Yusuf. He fell over reverse-sweeping Robin Peterson for a six early in his innings, but the wickets kept tumbling at the other end. With Zaheer Khan adopting a blithe step-away-and-swing approach, the end seemed minutes away, but he knuckled down after some initial scares and kept turning the strike over to Yusuf.Indian fans would have nursed little hopes even when intermittent bursts of hitting took Yusuf to 66 off 58, and India climbed to 175 for 8 in the 33rd over. All that changed as Yusuf pounded four sixes and three fours in the next three overs to reach his century – so quickly that few realised he had reached the milestone till he raised his bat. That frenzy, through which Yusuf remained completely calm, ended with a 21-run over from Tsotsobe that brought the required-rate below five. Yusuf skied another attempted blast down the ground soon after, which du Plessis clasped to settle South African nerves.Yusuf’s ton was in absolute contrast to Amla’s in the morning, when the South African chose patience over pyrotechnics to coolly compile his runs – he reached his half-century on the back of 30 consecutive singles. After Graeme Smith’s troubles against Zaheer Khan continued, Amla let No. 3 Morne van Wyk be the aggressor. van Wyk grew in confidence as his innings progressed, unleashing a series of powerful cuts whenever he was given width, and even pulled off an audacious lap-shot off Munaf Patel for four.India went in with only two quick bowlers, and their armada of spinners didn’t pose too many questions to the South African batsmen. South Africa glided to 113 for 1 before Yuvraj plucked a spectacular caught-and-bowled to send back van Wyk, and had AB de Villiers stumped with a sharply turning delivery.Amla and Duminy, the home side’s two form batsmen this series, both had lives – Duminy surviving a close lbw shout and Amla dropped at square leg – and revived South Africa with a 102-run stand. The standout shot in Amla’s innings was the dab to third man, perfectly timing the ball as he opened the face to pick up several boundaries, one of which brought up his century.In the four overs that remained after an 80-minute stoppage, South Africa lost their heads and plenty of wickets as panicky running, smart bowling and attempted slogging combined to result in a collapse of 6 for 24. Amla played only two deliveries in those last four overs. India went in to lunch on a high, but there was little joy for them after the break barring Yusuf’s heroics, and their dreams of a maiden series win in South Africa were shattered.

New Zealand allrounder Jacob Oram is in doubt for the remainder of the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy series after sustaining a knee injury in the first ODI

Cricinfo staff03-Mar-2010New Zealand allrounder Jacob Oram is in doubt for the remainder of the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy series after sustaining a knee injury in the first ODI. Oram sent down seven overs, taking the key wicket of Shane Watson, before he twisted his left knee in the 28th over while fielding a single off Michael Hussey. His spikes appeared to stick in the turf as he fell to the ground, writhing in pain, and he was carried off by team-mates Tim Southee and James Franklin.”His knee is painful, it’s still unclear what it is…there will be further investigation in Auckland tomorrow and we’ll assess after that,” Dave Currie, New Zealand’s manager, said. “It’s pretty painful at the moment so we’ll have to wait and see.”Currie said no replacement had yet been made but fast bowler Ian Butler was a likely call-up. If there is ligament damage, not only will Oram miss the series but his participation in the upcoming IPL with Chennai Super Kings is in doubt as well.Oram, 31, retired from Test cricket in October after injury worries, involving his back and foot, limited him to 33 appearances over a seven-year career. In the two Twenty20s against Australia before Wednesday’s game he scored 1 and 0 and conceded 67 off six overs. Even as there were calls for him to be excluded from the ODI series opener against Australia in Napier, he found support from captain Daniel Vettori.The good news, though, for New Zealand is that Vettori, who was ruled out of the match in Napier due to a neck injury, is expected to back for the second game of the five-match series on Saturday.”His neck had a kink in it yesterday but he thought he would be all right,” Currie said. “Even warming up today he thought he would be all right but he wasn’t and there was no point taking any risk on it. He is fully expected to be back next game.”Ross Taylor enjoyed immediate success as new captain as New Zealand won a tense series opener by two wickets.

The USAC-ACE contract termination has created uncertainty around USA’s preparations for next year’s T20 World Cup as well as the future of the MLC

Nagraj Gollapudi05-Sep-2025USA Cricket’s decision to terminate its contract with American Cricket Enterprises (ACE), its primary commercial partner, which is also the parent company of Major League Cricket (MLC) – has left USA’s players “extremely affected” while dealing with uncertainty about their future. According to USA allrounder Corey Anderson, who is the operational director of the US Cricketers’ Association (USCA), the players fear that cricket in the country could be derailed if ACE pulls out.Anderson, the former New Zealand allrounder who moved to the USA and became eligible to play for them in 2023, suggested that ACE had been integral to the development of cricket in the USA for the past several years having invested in both Minor League Cricket and the MLC, which is now three seasons old.Related

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“I guess the termination of this contract between USAC and ACE just leaves players in a limbo and in a scenario where they are now so uncertain of their futures,” Anderson told ESPNcricinfo on a call from his home in Dallas. “And this is something that they’re extremely affected by in the way that they earn a living. How long does this last for? What does future seasons of Major League or Minor League or anything like that – what does that start to look like from that regard?”Apart from the significant sums of money it spends to conduct cricket in the country, ACE is also the backbone of cricketing operations in the USA. ACE owns the ground that houses the High Performance Centre at Grand Prairie in Dallas, Texas, holds exclusive license to the ground in Morrisville, has agreements with Broward County in Florida, and owns two drop-in pitches at the Oakland Coliseum, which made its debut during the 2025 MLC.As part of a long-term deal inked in 2019, ACE is contracted to funnel a minimum of USD 1.2 million annually to the USAC to cover the contracts of the national team including support staff. A failure to pay out that money consistently, the USAC has claimed, was one of the breaches that led to the termination of the contract. ACE strongly disputes this, claiming it has actually paid more than the agreed amount.Another thing that bothers Anderson, in case the standoff continues, is its potential impact on several important events leading up to the 2026 T20 World Cup, which is set to be played in February-March in India and Sri Lanka with USA among the 20 participating teams. In consultation with USAC, ACE had planned a high-performance camp for 35 top men’s players with trial matches – three 50-over games and three T20s – in Morrisville against West Indies A.Anderson, the former New Zealand allrounder who now plays for USA, is the operational director of the US Cricketers’ Association•Major League Cricket

The objective of this camp was to identify the best players for the T20 World Cup as well as prepare the team for World Cricket League 2 in October, which is USA’s qualification pathway for the 2027 ODI World Cup. ACE is also meant to be hosting the USA Women’s team at the HPC in Grand Prairie along with five-match T20 series against West Indies in October-November.”Is that all still taking place or not? These camps have to take place for the players to get ready for those things,” Anderson said. “All of those things are very much in a big question mark at the moment, which again just creates more uncertainty around the players. And effectively anything that goes on regarding those contracts ends up ultimately just affecting the players.”It’s just throwing a question mark on what players don’t know and their uncertainty around even that, which is again so unfortunate, because we’re in a space now with USA [where cricket] is growing and it’s growing very fast, and there’s a lot of money getting put into it and a lot of investment. But again [as things now stand], for what? Because players are now disrupted, unsure of what they need to do, unsure of where they’re going, and what their future looks like.”Has USAC written to the players since the public termination of the ACE contract? Not yet, according to Anderson. He pointed out that while the World Cricketers’ Association (WCA) recognizes USACA, USAC doesn’t. “We haven’t heard anything from USAC,” he said. “Again, I do want to establish that we aren’t recognized by USA Cricket, so in terms of being bound by anything, they do not have to say anything to us. But again, it would be very neglectful of them not to inform the players’ association considering we do have majority of the members [players] of Major League Cricket and in fact we have the majority of the USA national team as our members. And so when we speak up and get into bargaining discussions and things like that, we are doing it for them. It’s a players’ union run by the players.”Anderson said he had personally not reached out to any USA players, although there had been several discussions between players during the ongoing Minor League, where he plays for Dallas Kings Eleven. “I have not been in touch with any of the players because at the moment we don’t have any information to provide those players. If they’ve been provided information, that hasn’t been given back to us or given to any other players. This is where things can get pretty messy, because it starts becoming a little bit of the whispers start going around, and the rumour mill starts up, and [nobody knows] what’s actually true and what’s correct. And everyone’s a little bit unsure of what that actually looks like. So again, it’ll be nice to hear from the governing body [USAC] itself and understand what it looks like.”We’re currently in the middle of Minor League at the moment, so there are a lot of players asking what’s happening. Text messages, phone calls, what does this look like for Major League and our World Cup preparation? Minor League is currently running, but what does the future of that look like? Is this going to continue? So again, messages that unfortunately don’t have any answers.”According to USAC chairman Venu Piske, ‘it’s too early to make any assumptions’ about the future of the MLC•Sportzpics for MLC

USAC open to ‘renegotiate’ and ‘sanction’ 2026 MLC

Venu Piske, the USAC chairman, said he understood the concerns raised by Anderson, and added that players would always be the priority. “I certainly can understand the sensitivity and also the players may have some concerns,” Piske said. “It’s understandable, but players are our No. 1 priority without any doubt. We have made sure we take care of players in all situations even when we are getting our funding as per the contract from ACE, or not getting the funding.”Piske said while there remained outstanding issues to sort out with ACE, USAC would not overlook players’ welfare including the financial aspect. Piske said USAC had given out 15 national contracts, which he said were the highest number offered in the board’s history. Piske said he could understand players being concerned about the future of MLC, and whether it would happen next season, but remained optimistic, saying USAC were open to “renegotiate” with ACE and even “sanction” the next season.”I know there may be some concerns around what’s going to happen with MLC, that’s understandable, but it’s too early to make any assumptions. As per our communication to ACE at the time of termination, we are committed to renegotiate on different terms because the current terms they [ACE] have not met; we always had a friction environment for the last six years, but considering their [ACE’s] commitment and investment to MLC, we are open to even sanction MLC while this is going on or we are open to some agreeable terms to resolve this.”MLC CEO Johnny Grave said ACE was not in breach of any terms in the original agreement and said it was focused on continuing to support USA Cricket. “We are fully compliant with our agreement with USAC and we continue to work to build all aspects of cricket in America.”According to Anderson, the best solution ought to involve ACE, without whose support he felt USA Cricket cannot provide a “premium product”. A “resolution sooner rather than later”, Anderson said, would benefit not just the game in the USA, but also reassure players that they have a secure future. “It needs to be anything that’s going to benefit the players in terms of just answers that will give us some suggestion that the future of the game here in the States is going to continue to be invested in and continue to grow, and players understand that they have a way of earning a living and being able to play quality cricket here again,” he said. “With the runway of what the USA team specifically has in terms of a World Cup and then an Olympics in 2028, those are massive markers for USA cricket to be able to hit. And I don’t see a world in which they can provide a premium product or quality of product without funding from ACE.”

Head coach says it would be ‘slightly mad’ if duo are left on sidelines during Championship season

Vithushan Ehantharajah27-Feb-2024England head coach Brendon McCullum says it would be “slightly mad” if Tom Hartley and Shoaib Bashir are unable to build on a breakthrough tour of India in county cricket, and has suggested clubs should produce pitches to assist in the development of spinners across the country.Hartley and Bashir have been two plus points in a series in which England competed well but still lost after India took an unassailable 3-1 lead on Monday, with victory in the fourth Test at Ranchi. Having arrived with minimal first-class experience, the left-arm spinner and off-spinner respectively have acquitted themselves brilliantly throughout, against opposition batters proficient at playing the turning ball.Hartley has played all four Tests and is currently the leading wicket-taker in the series (20), having taken just 19 in the entirety of Lancashire’s Division One campaign last summer. Bashir, who only made his first-class debut in 2023 and arrived with 10 dismissals at an average of 67 for Somerset, has more than doubled his red-ball tally with 12 Test wickets. Both picked up five-wicket hauls on this trip.Related

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Their selections were made to meet England’s specific requirements for success in India: tall spinners driving the ball into the pitch, aping the likes of R Ashwin and Axar Patel, who have had so much success in home conditions. After impressing with the Lions under men’s performance director Mo Bobat – who left the ECB last week to take up a post at Royal Challengers Bangalore – Hartley and Bashir were essentially fast-tracked into the England set-up, where they have since thrived.The concern, however, is the pair may be stunted by a lack of playing time when they return to their counties, which England want to avoid given they are building towards a tour of Pakistan in October.Lancashire, for instance, have signed Nathan Lyon for the season, the Australian veteran spinner who claimed his 500th Test wicket at Perth in December. Speaking after bowling England to victory in the first Test with 7 for 62, Hartley reflected it would be “fantastic” if they were able to play together but acknowledged Lyon would be the main man in the XI.Bashir, meanwhile, has England team-mate Jack Leach to contend with at Somerset. Leach, who is having surgery on Thursday to ease the swelling in the damaged left knee that ruled him out of the India series after just one Test, will need Championship games to work himself back to full fitness for the home series against West Indies and Sri Lanka. Though Taunton pitches occasionally favour a multi-spinner approach, Bashir was the only one in the XI for his three appearances at home last summer. Leach presented Bashir with his maiden cap for the second Test in Visakhapatnam.Bashir’s eight wickets in Ranchi gave England hope of squaring the series•AFP via Getty Images

“It will be a slight frustration of ours if they weren’t given opportunities at county level,” McCullum said. “There’s a very real possibility that might be the case, but without wanting to dictate to counties because they have their own agendas as well, when you see performances like we have out of those two bowlers throughout the series, I think you’d be slightly mad if you didn’t give them more opportunities in county cricket.”It would be nice to think they’d get plenty of opportunities so that they can improve at a quicker rate. Whether those opportunities are with counties or with England, I think we’ve just got to keep trying to get cricket into them. Whatever opportunity we can, we’ll try and give it to them because there’s two guys there more than good enough for international cricket. They’re also tough characters.”What you can’t tell from the outside of a man’s body is the size of their heart – and we’ve seen both of them have big hearts and they’re up for international cricket. It doesn’t get any harder than it is right now, and they’ve both stood up and performed, so we’ve just to keep giving both of them chances.”It was a sentiment echoed by the captain Ben Stokes in the immediate aftermath of England’s five-wicket defeat in the fourth Test, but acknowledged it was “very tough” to force counties to adhere to specific needs. McCullum suggested a workaround of sorts could be if teams produced surfaces that encourage turn more, a move that he believes would enhance the craft and provide more entertainment.Hartley’s seven-wicket haul in Hyderabad secured a famous England win•BCCI

“As much as England’s about playing on good wickets and having the ball move off the seam, it should also be about playing on spinning wickets too,” he said. “If we lived in a world where we could have both Bash and Leachy able to operate in spinning conditions at Somerset, and Hartley and Lyon could bowl together at Lancashire, I think that would be a great viewing point for spectators.”Hartley and Bashir are the latest examples of an England set-up not beholden to domestic form and numbers. Zak Crawley, for instance, was selected initially in 2019, despite scoring just three first-class centuries in 36 matches for Kent, before McCullum and Stokes backed him during a tough start under their tenure. Having top-scored in the Ashes, he is now leading England’s run charts in India with 328 at an average of 41.Despite looking beyond the numbers, McCullum insisted England’s selection policies are not dismissive of county form. Indeed the scale and variety within English cricket has allowed them to be more precise with their picks.”We certainly don’t pick in spite of county cricket, if that’s what you mean. We look at what we need skill-wise and we try and adjust it to what we think we’re going to require, and be brave enough to make decisions around it. We’re not going to get every decision right.”From our point of view there’s a big team out looking around county cricket, and the guys who we think play in the way we want to play as a cricket team, and who fit the environment as well. And there’s a lot of eyes on those guys throughout. So it’s not certainly in spite of it. County cricket is a good system, it’s got a lot of cricketers opportunities, it’s got a volume of cricket as well and different conditions.”Some guys who have got great county numbers might not find themselves necessarily in the England team. And some guys who don’t will find themselves in, but that’s not a reflection of that [county cricket]. It’s just about the skill set we want.”

Trevor Griffin invited to re-apply for job after seventh-placed finish in 2022

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Nov-2022The MCC have advertised for a new London Spirit coach in the women’s Hundred after missing out on the knockout stages in the tournament’s first two seasons.Trevor Griffin, the Western Storm and Sydney Thunder coach, took charge of Spirit in the last two seasons but has been invited to re-apply for his job as part of an open recruitment process. Hundred coaches are appointed on one-year contracts which can be extended by mutual agreement.Spirit missed out on the play-offs on net run-rate in 2021 but struggled in 2022, losing four of their six games and finishing second-bottom in the group stages.Related

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“London Spirit has recently opened the process to recruit a head coach for its women’s team in the 2023 edition of the Hundred,” an MCC spokesperson said.”This open recruitment process is designed to find the best possible head coach for London Spirit women for 2023, with all candidates who meet the criteria, including the head coach from 2022, invited to apply.”London Spirit, in conjunction with the England and Wales Cricket Board, will announce the outcome of the recruitment process at a later date.”Dates for the Hundred’s 2023 season have not been officially announced but the tournament is expected to run from the first week of August until the weekend of August 26. Applications for Spirit’s vacancy close on November 21.

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.”