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Joe Root leads calls for more sympathetic fixture list after players voice physical wellbeing fears

Vithushan Ehantharajah06-May-2024Joe Root says that a greater focus on player welfare amid an ever more congested fixture list is a “non-negotiable”, after a survey by the Professional Cricketers’ Association revealed a startling 81 per cent of county cricketers have been left fearing for their physical health due to their season-long workloads.The survey, which was conducted in pre-season with all 18 counties, has led the PCA to brand the current playing schedule “not fit for purpose”, in particular due to stark issues around matchday travel that have led to calls for an urgent rethink by the ECB and county chiefs to “pre-empt disaster”.More than eight out of 10 county cricketers admitted they were concerned for their well-being as the result of a packed season, while as many as 76 per cent revealed safety concerns around travelling to and from fixtures during the season, notably during the Vitality Blast when teams finish late and play the next day. This year will see 55 back-to-back T20s, an increase from 34 last year.Perhaps the starkest example is Gloucestershire, who play T20s against Glamorgan in Cardiff on June 20, before returning to Bristol the very next day to host Somerset. They then start a four-day match against Yorkshire at Scarborough after a one-day break on June 23.Related

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• Somerset tame Essex on seaming pitch to seal thrilling two-day win

• Nathan Gilchrist six-for leaves Lancashire in deep trouble

While teams usually travel by bus, issues arise when players drive themselves home, often in the early hours of the morning. The PCA revealed they had to intervene when they discovered one county used minibuses driven by players last season. It is understood the county has stopped that practice.”Back-to-back games have gone up considerably, and are only looked at through a commercial lens,” Daryl Mitchell, the PCA chief operating officer, said. “We understand that, but there needs to be a balance.”Over 10 per cent of our membership accessed our mental health services last year. It’s difficult to get away from the pressure of professional but I think the relentless schedule is a factor.”There’s reports of players who have got off the team bus, driven home and forgotten how they got there, almost on autopilot. Switching off while driving has an element of danger. We want to pre-empt it before anything disastrous happens.”Our CEO, Rob [Lynch] is worried about getting the call in the early hours of the morning when someone has driven off the M1. That scares us. Seventy-six per cent of players have concerns about safety when travelling, which is a high number.”In addition to calling for a minimum standard of three days between four-day matches and at least one rest day between T20s, 66 per cent of those surveyed believe the current schedule is not conducive to high performance.That sentiment was echoed by Root, who believes change will bring about “long-lasting benefits for English cricket”. Though protected from the schedule as a centrally contracted England cricketer, Root is playing five matches for Yorkshire in the County Championship.Joe Root, pictured with Harry Brook, has been back in action for Yorkshire this season•Getty Images

“I am fortunate to play a significant part of the season for Yorkshire this year and looking at the fixture list from a physical, wellbeing and high-performance angle does cause me concern,” Root said.”County cricket is the breeding ground for some of the best talent in the game and this requires world leading structures to allow players to reach their full potential. This is a benefit for everybody in the game.”Having space to recover, prepare and improve your game during the season is crucial and the creation of minimum standards to protect travel windows and player welfare is non-negotiable.”The PCA’s findings and call for action come at a pivotal time in English cricket, with the County Partnership Agreement – the agreement binding the ECB, PCA and counties – up for renewal. This week will also likely see the counties and MCC agree on the ECB’s proposals around private investment in the Hundred which could raise around £500 million for the domestic game. All of which leads into the next broadcast cycle, which begins in 2025.The Hundred remains the elephant in the room as far as fixture congestion is concerned, particularly with the Blast. This year’s eight-team competition has ring-fenced July and the first three weeks of August, with no Blast fixtures and just three days of Championship cricket scheduled in this period.While appreciating the value the Hundred and the importance of matchday revenues for clubs at a precarious time for county finances, Mitchell has called on chiefs and stakeholders to collaborate more around their decision-making. A more altruistic approach is required to ensure players, and by extension, the game, are better protected moving forward.”The power constitutionally is with the county chairs. But from our side it needs a really joined-up approach. Our focus is player safety, physical or mental wellbeing. It needs to be collaborative between the ECB, PCA and the counties to come up with solutions.”We saw with the High Performance Review, if you look at the structure from one particular lens without the others, that makes it very tricky to get anything over the line. It has to be joined up.”We could very easily put out a structure that the players think is ideal, but players also understand the need for the commercial side of the game, the passionate members we have in this country, who are the lifeblood of the counties, who are represented by their chairs. All these stakeholders need to have that approach. We need a collaborative solution to some of the problems we’ve got.In a statement released in response to the PCA’s survey, the ECB said: “As the PCA recognises, the men’s domestic schedule is a complex issue. The players have an important voice in discussions around this, and we are committed to working with them and the First Class Counties to discuss the best ways of overcoming some of the challenges.”

Maharaj was set to be in the XI for the first ODI against Pakistan but limped off just before the toss

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Dec-2024South Africa have been left sweating over the fitness of Keshav Maharaj ahead of their last two Tests of the ongoing World Test Championship 2023-25 cycle. Maharaj was seen limping off during warm-ups ahead of the first ODI against Pakistan on Tuesday because of a groin strain. It is understood that Maharaj was in the XI before he sustained the injury right before the toss and was replaced by Andile Phehlukwayo. He will have a scan on Wednesday.After the three-match ODI series, South Africa face Pakistan in two Tests, needing just one more win to be assured of a top-two finish to qualify for the WTC final next year. Maharaj is a key component of South Africa’s Test side, often their lone specialist spinner in the XI, with Aiden Markram offering support with his part-time offspin. Maharaj bowled them to a win against Sri Lanka in Gqeberha earlier this month, returning 5 for 76 on the last day to trigger a collapse.Related

• WTC final scenarios – SA need one more win for guaranteed top-two finish

• Fractured toe puts Anrich Nortje out of T20Is against Pakistan

While the severity of Maharaj’s injury is yet to be ascertained, this adds to the long list of injured South Africa bowlers. Anrich Nortje was ruled out with a fractured toe ahead of the T20Is against Pakistan; Gerald Coetzee and Lungi Ngidi are out until January with groin and hip issues respectively; Nandre Burger has been ruled out of the summer with a stress fracture of the lower back; Wiaan Mulder is in a race to be fit for the Boxing Day Test against Pakistan after breaking a finger against Sri Lanka.Dane Piedt and Senuran Muthusamy are the spinners in contention for the Boxing Day Test, if Maharaj is ruled out. Batting allrounder Neil Brand, who bowls left-arm spin, and legspinner Shaun von Berg also made Test appearances this year for South Africa. Left-arm wristspinner Tabraiz Shamsi, who last played first-class cricket in 2021, could be in with an outside chance.

Back-room role with one-day squad has helped 2005 Ashes legend in recovery from near-fatal accident

Vithushan Ehantharajah25-Sep-2023Marcus Trescothick says he has been buoyed seeing Andrew Flintoff “grow back into Freddie” during his stint with the limited-overs squad, and hopes to see more of his former England team-mate in a coaching capacity in the future.Flintoff, 45, has been working as an unpaid assistant coach for England’s men during their one-day series against New Zealand and Ireland, as part of his recovery from a near-fatal accident while filming an episode of last December. His presence within the dressing-room proved hugely popular with the World Cup-bound players who featured in the New Zealand series, many of whom grew up idolising him, especially during the 2005 Ashes, and his stint was extended to take in the current series against Ireland, for which a separate 13-man squad was chosen.There are no concrete plans to extend Flintoff’s working relationship with the ECB after the third ODI in Bristol on Tuesday, which concludes the international summer. However, both sides have an appetite for more involvement going forward after the last few weeks. Having attended a few days during the Ashes with the encouragement of Rob Key, director of men’s cricket and a long-term friend, Flintoff has become a more visible presence around England training sessions, taking the mitt to the bowlers, and offering advice to those who seek it.His command of a room has also been noteworthy behind closed doors. He was given the floor to speak at The Oval after Jos Buttler’s side had beaten New Zealand, stating his admiration for what he felt was one of the best England environments he had been privy to. On Saturday at Trent Bridge, Flintoff was given the honour of presenting Tom Hartley, a fellow Lancastrian, with his maiden England cap ahead of the second ODI.Speaking to The Telegraph, Ben Stokes said “you can picture him being involved as a full-time coach”, adding that Flintoff “grew more confident within himself” as he became more familiar with the group. Those sentiments are echoed by assistant coach Trescothick, a fellow 2005 hero and international team-mate of Flintoff’s on 133 occasions between 2000 and 2006, though he also joked there would be a drawback in having someone he knows so well in the set-up.”It’s been hard actually because he hammers me more than anyone else,” Trescothick said. “I’m the first target for his banter at the moment, but having him around has been superb, it really has.Flintoff has proven popular in his role with England’s back-room staff•ECB via Getty Images

“Seeing him grow back into Freddie and getting back into the cricket…obviously he’s been away from cricket for a long period of time. But this is where it all starts and where it belongs for him. The guys have really taken to him.'”He’s been brilliant. A couple of times he’s spoken in the changing-room it’s been like, ‘wow’. You can see the difference, and I’ve seen the progression of him as a character; the way he talks and delivers messages to players has been superb. To have him sprinkling a bit of gold dust around the team and having the younger players working with that has been invaluable, really. You can’t put a price on it.”It was during the first ODI against New Zealand at Cardiff that Flintoff was first spotted as part of the staff. This happened to be his first public appearance since he had been left with facial scars following a crash at Dunsfold Park Aerodrome while shooting an episode for ‘s 34th series.As a legend of English cricket, and a key personality in the lineage of talismanic allrounders now carried forward by Stokes, Trescothick was particularly enamoured with how Flintoff has grown into his role. While he has been around the game recently, having worked with England’s Under-19s and frequent visits to Emirates Old Trafford given his sons Corey (17) and Rocky (14) are part of Lancashire’s age-group sides, he was understandably wary ahead of this opportunity with the national team.”I think he was a little bit nervous coming into the environment,” Trescothick said. “He doesn’t know many of the people so, from where he was coming in first at Cardiff to where he is now, he’s grown massively.”He’s back into the person you expect to be around cricket because that’s what I’ve seen for so many years and it’s been great, really good. He’s really enjoyed the opportunity and the team have taken to him being around. Hopefully, we’ll see more of him in the future.”Trescothick, like Flintoff, knows all about cricket’s ability to aid recovery. His mental-health struggles, especially when on tour, meant his international career ended in 2006, at the age of 30. With the help of those within the game, Trescothick has begun to take on more overseas trips in retirement. He returned to Pakistan for England’s Test tour last winter for the first time since 2005, a series which he believes triggered his depression, and he will be assisting England at the upcoming World Cup in India.”You become more comfortable, don’t you?” Trescothick said, recognising how cricket had helped Flintoff as it had helped him. “This is what we know, this is what we’ve grown up with for so many years. Once you come to your comfortable environment, you know what goes on and you understand the place, people have respect for what he has done and enjoy seeing him improving.”That’s really good from our point of view. If we as players and squads and cricket in general keep doing that for people who have fallen on tougher times, then great, we’re doing something right.”

Decision follows the independent review, conducted after West Indies’ early exit from the T20 World Cup last year

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Mar-2023Following the independent review after West Indies’ first-round exit from the men’s T20 World Cup last year, CWI has decided to go the England route and appoint separate red- and white-ball coaches for the senior men’s team. The review, CWI director of cricket Jimmy Adams said, “included a closer look at the roles of the current head coach position”.”We believe it is now necessary to split the role and engage separate coaches for red and white ball formats,” Adams said in a statement. “The increased frequency of back-to-back multi-format tours combined with the specific demands of the respective formats no longer provides enough time for one individual to adequately plan, prepare and review across bilateral series and franchise itineraries that are so condensed.”The recruitment process for both head coaches is expected to commence shortly, CWI said, adding that the red-ball coach would also be in charge of the West Indies ‘A’ team.Related

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Adams explained that the decision to have two separate head coaches was made based on the recommendation by the review group – comprising Patrick Thompson Jr (chair), Brian Lara and Mickey Arthur – that it would help improve preparation for all the teams.”Separating the roles will also provide the head coaches with more time to oversee players’ ongoing development away from tours directly, and through increased engagement and planning with suitable high-performance programmes and coaches,” Adams said.

No full-time coach since Phil Simmons left

Phil Simmons was the last full-time head coach of the West Indies men’s team, and he announced his decision to resign after what he called was the team’s “unfathomable” performance at the World Cup, though he stayed on to oversee West Indies’ Test tour of Australia soon after.In their opening match of the World Cup, West Indies were bowled out for just 118 chasing 161 against Scotland before managing to defend 153 for 7 against Zimbabwe, but Ireland easily overhauled their 146 for 5 to move into the next round.Then in Australia, they lost both Test matches, and after beating Zimbabwe away 1-0 in a two-Test series, they have gone down 2-0 in South Africa. They haven’t played white-ball internationals since the World Cup. Nicholas Pooran, their white-ball captain at the World Cup, has also since stepped down. Shai Hope and Rovman Powell have been named captains for ODIs and T20Is respectively, while Andre Coley has served as the interim head coach.

Former PCB chairman appointed to board of governors by Pakistan’s Prime Minister

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Jun-2023Former PCB chairman Zaka Ashraf has taken a step closer to regaining the post once again after he, along with Supreme Court lawyer Mustafa Ramday, was nominated by the country’s Prime Minister to join the PCB’s board of governors.The development occurred the day after Najam Sethi, who is heading the interim management committee that runs the PCB until June 21, withdrew from the running to become the board chairman.Traditionally in Pakistan cricket, it is the Prime Minister’s appointment to the PCB board of governors who usually becomes the board chairman for a three-year term, and Ashraf is the overwhelming favourite to be elected, with the election process usually a formality.While announcing his withdrawal on Twitter, Sethi had said: “I don’t want to be a bone of contention between Asif Zardari and Shehbaz Sharif. Such instability and uncertainty is not good for PCB. Under the circumstances I am not a candidate for Chairmanship of PCB. Good luck to all stakeholders.”Sethi’s tweet was referencing the political horse-trading over the chairman’s seat. Shehbaz Sharif is the current Prime Minister of Pakistan, and also the PCB patron. Asif Ali Zardari, a former Pakistan president with the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), is a prominent coalition partner in the current government, and Ashraf is thought to be his party’s man for the post.Ordinarily, the PCB chairman would be a pick of Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) party. But over the last couple of weeks, the PPP has insisted that as they are the ones in charge of Pakistan sports, through the ministry for inter-provincial coordination (IPC), it maintained the right to nominate a candidate of their choosing.Ashraf’s return after a period of nine years ends – for now at least – a repeat of the tussles that had marked the tug of war between him and Sethi between 2013 and 2014. The pair were involved in a protracted legal battle for the chairmanship at the time, with the position switching hands several times. That issue was seemingly settled when former prime minister Nawaz Sharif – Shehbaz’s elder brother – finally ousted Ashraf and brought in Sethi. But after days of intense mediation between both parties, Sethi was compelled to make way for Ashraf.Sethi has been running the PCB on an interim basis since Ramiz Raja was removed as chairman, and the board’s 2019 constitution was scrapped last December. Sethi’s committee was initially given 120 days to bring back the 2014 constitution under which the PCB was run, and also reinstate the regional and department structure in domestic cricket. The committee was also given a mandate to form a board of governors and elect a chairman.That meant the dismissal of the six-team provincial model for domestic cricket which was formed with the backing of former premier Imran Khan. The domestic structure will now be based on 16 regions, marked by a return of departments. Among them, four regions and four departments are set to be given a board seat at the PCB for a term of three years.The 2014 constitution also requires the PCB to form a board of governors comprising ten members: four out of the 16 regional representatives, four representatives of services organisations, and two members directly nominated by the PCB patron.Over the last six months, Sethi’s management committee has also overseen the hiring of a predominantly overseas coaching staff for Pakistan, with former head coach Mickey Arthur appointed part-time director of cricket.One of the thornier issues that occupied Sethi during his short stint was Pakistan’s hosting of the Asia Cup and its link to Pakistan’s potential participation in the World Cup, scheduled to be held in India in October-November this year. Three days back, Sethi was talking about Pakistan’s participation at the event being subject to the approval of the Pakistan government. That will be one of the more pressing issues for Sethi’s successor to deal with.

England captain says ‘there are still a lot of issues to be a girl in sport’

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Nov-2020Heather Knight believes comments by former Football Association chairman Greg Clarke have highlighted that there is still work to be done for sportswomen to achieve equality with their male counterparts.Clarke resigned from the FA and from his role as FIFA vice-president this week after using a series of racist and offensive phrases while speaking at a parliamentary committee meeting.He was also criticised for saying a coach had told him that a lack of women’s goalkeepers was because girls “don’t like having the ball kicked at them hard”.Knight, the England women’s cricket captain, said there were still “lots of issues” surrounding how women in sport are viewed and treated.”To have someone so high up in football to say that is not a great place to be,” Knight told Sky Sports News. “There’s a lot going on at the moment in terms of women’s football academies not being able to train whereas the boys’ academies are [under UK Covid-19 restrictions].”It highlights that there are still a lot of issues to be a girl in sport. It’s not a problem purely for football, there are lots of examples from other sports where girls don’t get the same opportunities as guys. I think it highlights there’s still a lot of work to do in that area and still a lot of changes that need to be made.”Boys’ football academies were allowed to stay open during a second national lockdown because they met government requirements for elite sport, but girls’ academies initially remained closed because they fell outside the FA’s interpretation of those rules.Following political pressure, girls’ academies will be allowed to open, although Baroness Campbell, the FA’s director of women’s football, told Telegraph Sport that she expected only “one or two” to be able to do so because of the costs involved in complying with Covid-19 prevention measures – a problem not faced by the significantly better resourced boys’ academies.Knight acknowledged that many positive changes had occurred in women’s cricket and women’s sport over the course of her decade-long England career.”When I was growing up [cricket] was very much a male-dominated sport,” Knight said. “I played men’s cricket down in Devon and you had to have a thick skin sometimes [due to] the comments you got.”Luckily a lot of that has changed. I think perceptions to women in cricket and in sport in general is miles away from where they were while I was growing up.”It has become a lot more normal to become a woman in sport, and a lot easier for young girls to aspire to be that and to emulate the people they are now seeing a lot more in the media, obviously with women’s sport being a lot more visible. I think we’ve still got progress to make, but in terms of my career playing for England for the last 10 years, it’s changed massively.”During a Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Committee hearing on Tuesday, Clarke referred to “coloured footballers”, stereotyped south Asians and Afro-Caribbean people as possessing “different career interests” and described homosexuality as a “life choice”.Asked in the hearing if he would like to withdraw the use of the word “coloured”, Clarke apologised for using the term.In his resignation statement, Clarke said: “My unacceptable words in front of Parliament were a disservice to our game and to those who watch, play, referee and administer it. This has crystallised my resolve to move on. I am deeply saddened that I have offended those diverse communities in football that I and others worked so hard to include.”

His left knee has minor swelling due to increased joint loading from his bowling workload

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Dec-2024Mohammed Shami will not be considered for the fourth and fifth Tests of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy due to swelling on his left knee.The BCCI press release on Shami’s fitness came days after India captain Rohit Sharma called on the National Cricket Academy to provide an update on the fast bowler’s progress upon being asked once again about it at the end of the Brisbane Test.”Shami bowled 43 overs in the Ranji Trophy match for Bengal against Madhya Pradesh in November,” the BCCI said in a statement. “Following this, he played in all nine games of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, where he also engaged in additional bowling sessions on the sidelines to build his bowling volume in order to get ready for the Test matches.Related

• Shami to be rested for Bengal's opening Vijay Hazare Trophy game

• 'We're not going to take any risk' – Rohit on Shami's fitness for Australia

“However, his left knee has exhibited minor swelling due to increased joint loading from his bowling workload. The swelling is on the expected lines, owing to the increased bowling after a prolonged period.”Based on the current medical assessment, the BCCI medical team has determined that his knee requires more time for controlled exposure to bowling loads. Consequently, he has not been deemed fit for consideration for the remaining two Tests of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.”Shami has not played for India since the ODI World Cup final in November last year, after which he underwent surgery for a heel injury in February. The BCCI said he had “completely recovered” from the heel injury and would “continue to undergo targeted strength and conditioning work under the guidance of the medical staff at BCCI’s Centre of Excellence and build his bowling loads needed to meet the demands of the longest format of the game”.Shami was not included in Bengal’s squad for their first game of the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy on December 21 and the BCCI said his participation in the tournament would depend on the state of his knee.