Category Uncategorized

New Zealand’s bowling coach was pleased with the efforts of the left-arm quick, who took three important wickets on day four at Hagley Oval

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Christchurch29-Dec-2018Pitches in New Zealand tend to flatten out after a roaring start, but even though opposition teams struggle to get wickets in the second innings, New Zealand’s own quicks are generally capable of bowling their team to victory. Why? Because they hunt as a pack, according to their bowling coach Shane Jurgensen.There was evidence of that teamwork as they removed four Sri Lanka batsmen on day four – three of those wickets falling to Neil Wagner. The performance left New Zealand four further wickets from victory, with day five to play. In fact they may only need three wickets, if the injured Angelo Mathews does not bat again.”It’s awesome, because I think the bowlers actually bounce off each other,” Jurgensen said after play. “They all get on with each other – they’re really good mates. You’ve got the two left-handers in Neil and Trent Boult, and then you’ve got Tim Southee and Colin de Grandhomme, when there’s a bit more on offer in terms of seam and swing. You’ve got those four guys – two lefties and two righties. Neil’s ability to bowl those bouncers, it just adds another string in the bow for the group.”One of the big things with our bowling is we want to bowl in partnerships and put pressure on from both ends. I think that’s what we did in the first innings and that’s we needed all our bowlers to do in the second.”Having arrived in New Zealand only six days before this series started, following their three Tests in the UAE, New Zealand’s bowlers have also had to contend with a huge workload, having earlier spent six months without any international cricket on their schedule. Boult – New Zealand’s quickest bowler – has played in all five of those Tests, and Tim Southee has played four.”Trent is really fit,” Jurgensen said. “I think that’s what I’ve been really impressed with our bowling group – it’s our fifth test in six-and-a-half or seven weeks, and it’s a testament to their fitness during the winter, how hard they’ve worked, to still keep trucking in. Neil just provides that extra punch that we need, particularly at the back end of the game, and you saw another example of that today. He’s been doing it for a while now for us.”Perhaps the best on-field battle of day five was Wagner v Dinesh Chandimal. In the past, teams have targeted Chandimal with the short ball, on account of his reputation for being an impulsive hooker. Aware of this potential weakness, New Zealand and Wagner bowled a lot of bouncers at Chandimal, without much success for the first two sessions, with Chandimal routinely ducking or swaying out of the way.It was Wagner who eventually got his wicket. Early in the third session, Chandimal could not get out of the way of a delivery headed toward his throat, and ended up fending at it with his gloves, sending an easy catch to short leg. Wagner was ecstatic at having taken that wicket, letting out an almighty scream.”I was a good battle between them,” Jurgensen said. “Dinesh batted very well, he applied himself fantastically. His hook shot is certainly something that we’ve targeted. But one of the things that I was mentioning in the dressing room is that I don’t think he’s playing the pull or hook shot today, so maybe we need to change our fields slightly to suit that. Eventually Neil got him.”

Usman Khawaja became the first Glamorgan player to hit hundreds in his first three Championsip figure – then a familiar figure rudely interrupted

ECB Reporters Network26-Jun-20181:34

Surrey hit with five-run penalty

ScorecardUsman Khawaja made history on the second day of Glamorgan’s Specsavers County Championship Division Two match against Northamptonshire at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff.But there was also a century for Northamptonshire’s opening batsman Ben Duckett, as he guided the visitors to 169 for 0 at the close, a sizeable second innings lead of 196. They are in firm control after a lacklustre bowling and batting display by the Welsh county, with the notable exception of Khawaja.After showing glimpses of his best form in Northants’ opening win of the season, this was Duckett at his most destructive and suggests better times ahead for a player who was in England’s thoughts only recently.Khawaja’s 103 made him the first player in Glamorgan’s history to score a century in his first three Championship matches for the county, surpassing the two consecutive hundreds achieved by Javed Miandad (in 1980) and Shaun Marsh, earlier this season, with Khawaja adding to his centuries against Warwickshire (125) at Edgbaston and Derbyshire (126) at Swansea.”I wasn’t expecting the record at all,” Khawaja said. “There were even ifs and buts whether I’d get here at all because I was still waiting for a visa in India. I got over here with not too much time to spare and to get that first hundred alone… It’s nice that it’s flowed on a little bit from there.”The Australian left-hander brought up his century from 138 deliveries, striking 16 fours and two sixes, before he was caught at fine leg by Richard Levi off Hutton for 103, as Glamorgan were dismissed for 254, 27 runs behind in the first innings.Earlier in the day, Luke Procter had taken two Glamorgan wickets in the first session as the Welsh county battled to 115 for three in their first innings reply to 281. Nick Selman was first to depart, touching an outswinger to keeper Adam Rossington off Ben Sanderson for 29.
Jack Murphy was then trapped lbw for 21 from Luke Procter’s second delivery of the day before Owen Morgan was caught behind for 20, having struck four fours. Kiran Carlson, off the mark from the sixteenth delivery he faced, was struck in front by Sanderson, who bowled Chris Cooke two balls later before Andrew Salter was lbw to Brett Hutton, with Glamorgan in trouble on 195 for 6.Ruaidhri Smith was dropped by Richard Levi at second slip on two, before Nathan Buck took three wickets in successive overs, getting Smith caught behind before bowling both Prem Sisodiya and Timm van der Gugten. Khawaja was eventually dismissed for 103 as Glamorgan were all out for 254, a first innings deficit of 27.Northamptonshire’s openers Luke Procter and Ben Duckett started their second innings and the final session aggressively, building a valuable partnership and making Glamorgan’s bowlers suffer as they built a sizeable lead.Duckett brought up his half century from 52 deliveries and his century from 92, as the visitors continued to dominate late into the day. Procter also posted a half-century as the visitors looked to build a comprehensive lead.After completing his 14th first-class century for Northamptonshire, Duckett said, “Tomorrow is massive. In the past, we’ve been on the opposite end of days like this where sides have really hammered us. I think it’s really important for us to do the same in the morning.”

The Committee of Administrators has specified that an office-bearer who has completed nine years in a post either at the BCCI or a state association is ineligible to hold any post thereafter

Nagraj Gollapudi24-Feb-2017The Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators has specified that an office-bearer who has completed nine years in a post either at the BCCI or at a state association will become ineligible to hold any official post thereafter.

The COA’s criteria which disqualifies individuals as office-bearers

• Is not a citizen of India;

• Has attained the age of 70 years;

• Is declared to be insolvent, or of unsound mind;

• Is a Minister or Government Servant;

• Holds any office or post in a sports or athletic association or federation apart from cricket;

• Has been an Office Bearer of the BCCI for a total period of 9 years;

• Has been an Office Bearer of the state association for a total period of 9 years;

• Has been charged by a Court of law for having committed any criminal offence

This directive was part of an e-mail sent to state associations on Wednesday, in which the COA has also sought compliance reports concerning the implementation of the Lodha Committee recommendations at the state level. The associations have been asked to submit these reports over e-mail by March 1. This is the first set of directives issued by the COA after it was appointed by the court on January 30.There has been confusion over the specifics of the nine-year tenure cap since the release of the Lodha Committee recommendations in January 2016. The original Lodha Committee recommendation regarding eligibility, which was passed by the Supreme Court on July 18 last year, had made it possible for an individual to serve nine years each at both BCCI and state level. A BCCI office-bearer’s cooling-off period could have been a three-year term at their state association, after which they could once again contest an election for a BCCI position. And if they won the BCCI post, the ensuing three-year term would serve as their cooling-off period from holding office at state level. An individual could therefore have spent 18 years in Indian cricket administration between the BCCI and his state association.On January 2, 2017, the Supreme Court stated in an order that, “A person shall be disqualified from being an Office Bearer if he or she has been an Office Bearer of the BCCI for a cumulative period of 9 years.” A day later, the Court, while modifying the order issued a day earlier, ruled that an office bearer would be disqualified in case he had completed a “cumulative period” of nine years at “BCCI or a state association.”The Lodha Committee’s interpretation of the Court’s modification of January 3 was that if an individual had finished nine years as an office-bearer, whether at BCCI or state level or both combined, that individual was ineligible to continue as an office-bearer at the BCCI or state level effective immediately.On January 20, the court said that its January 3 modification was likely “to create some ambiguity” and therefore it was issuing a fresh clarification on the tenure for an office bearer. It said an administrator would be disqualified if he “has been an office bearer of the BCCI for nine years or a State Association for the same period.”This fresh ruling was interpreted by the office-bearers as a reprieve and an indication that they could continue for nine years separately at BCCI and their respective states. Subsequently, senior administrators like BCCI joint secretary Amitabh Choudhury and treasurer Anirudh Chaudhry have continued at the board despite having finished nine years as presidents of their respective state associations. On Monday, IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla, who has passed the nine-year cap as Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association president, attended the IPL 2017 auction as head of the league’s governing council.As an attempt to put an end to the confusion, the COA has now pointed out that it would stick to the Lodha Committee’s interpretation of the court’s order until a new directive is issued by the Supreme Court.The COA laid out its stand under the subhead: “Disqualification of office bearers/representatives/nominees/patron/advisor/committee member/council members of state/member association” in the e-mail to the sates on Wednesday.”The committee of administrators has been informed that there is lack of clarity on the exact scope and extent of the disqualification in terms of the order dated January 2, 2017, January 3, 2017 and January 20, 2017, passed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court,” the COA said. “The committee of administrators is of the view that until there is complete clarity on the exact scope and extent of the disqualification in terms of the aforesaid order the committee of administrators should proceed on a strict undertaking/interpretation of the same.”As per the advice received by the committee of administrators, this strict understanding/interpretation has the effect on disqualifying all persons who fail to meet the norms recommended by the Lodha Committee and accepted by Supreme Court for being office bearers/representatives/nominees/patron/advisor/committee member/council members of state/member association.”Consequently, the states have been asked to submit list of their existing office bearers along with each individual’s elaborate details. Importantly, all administrators would also need to submit a written undertaking that they conform with the eligibility criteria to the COA by the March 1 deadline.The COA has also asked the state associations that have complied with the courts orders dated October 7 and October 21 last year to submit their resolution in writing by March 1. Last October, the court passed two orders which asked the BCCI to “cease and desist” from supplying funds to the states unless and until they gave a written undertaking that they would comply with the Lodha Committee recommendations as approved by the court.

In terms of the outcome, this was more Belfast 2009 then Bangalore 2011 as England edged a match that was interrupted frequently by the weather

Andrew McGlashan in Dublin25-Aug-2011In terms of the outcome, this was more Belfast 2009 then Bangalore 2011 as England edged a match that was interrupted frequently by the weather and, like at Stormont two year ago, Eoin Morgan was central to the victory. On that occasion it was one piece of fielding on the boundary edge which saved England, but here he contributed the most fluent innings of the game and made calm captaincy decisions in the closing stages.It meant he finished his brief stint as captain with a 100% record, although he has no qualms about handing back to Alastair Cook. He said he’d got a “buzz” from the day, especially when it came to watching the younger players, and believed that an inexperienced side will have gained immensely from the tight situations they found themselves in. Although the three debutants – James Taylor, Ben Stokes and Scott Borthwick all had quiet matches – Morgan knows how valuable it will have been to be around the set up.”It was something completely different and something they aren’t used to in county cricket,” he said. “A bit of an indifferent pitch is challenging, where dot ball follows dot ball and you have to calm yourself down and I thought they showed a lot of maturity in the field. It took me 10-12 one-day internationals to get going and for them to be around guys like Jonathan Trott really helps, guys who have been there, done that and be able to learn from them. Experiences like today will really help.”Morgan, himself, also showed some tactical acumen when he had to juggle his bowlers in the final part of the game. Before the rain he’d given Chris Woakes and Steven Finn standard new-ball spells, but after the reduction in overs it meant they’d completed their allocation so the likes of Samit Patel and Ravi Bopara played important roles.Although Morgan took the Man-of-the-Match award for his 59 off 65 balls the match-winning performance for England came from Jade Dernbach, who produced another nerveless display of yorkers, slower balls and bouncers with 3 for 30. He is already being suggested as the best England have had in that ‘death’ role since Darren Gough or Andrew Flintoff and his ball to remove Kevin O’Brien, who was turning the game Ireland’s way with a flurry of boundaries reminiscent of Bangalore, was unplayable.”The wicket really helped his slower ball,” Morgan said. “Going from 85mph to a slower ball is a hell of a skill and is something that’s worked consistently for him since he’s come in. He stepped up in the last series against Sri Lanka, particularly the last game at Old Trafford where he was exceptional. We haven’t had someone like that in a long time and he fits the bill.”The day, though, didn’t quite live up to the hopes and expectations of the locals. Of course the weather and result played a part in that but there remains a lingering thought that England could have done a little more to feel part of the occasion. Sending young players was completely understandable but the team, minus Morgan who is staying on to spend time with friends and family for a few days before the squad meets up in Manchester on Sunday, were flying straight back to Heathrow that evening. Two of them, Taylor and Craig Kieswetter, are involved in Twenty20 Finals Day but it would have been nice to see them linger with the hosts.England’s swift departure also meant there wasn’t the usual extra hour available to compensate for the rain which required overs to be lost earlier than would have otherwise been required. It may not have altered the result, but Ireland captain William Porterfield admitted the final requirement of 90 in 10 overs was “steep” on that surface.However, while Kevin O’Brien was batting for Ireland they were favourites to make it back-to-back victories over England and Porterfield had a wry smile when it was suggested to him that his run out, off the second ball of the final 10 overs, may have been tactical. “I could have got a better dive in but it probably did us a favour,” he said. “When Kevin was in they whipped the spinners off pretty quickly. Another couple of overs of them and it could have been over pretty quickly but seam wasn’t easy to get away on that wicket when you bowled straight.”It’s a sign of the development in Ireland’s cricket that defeats like these really hurt. As the supporters and home players looked back on the day with a few pints of a local tipple in the Clontarf pavilion they, no doubt, reflected on one that got away. England, meanwhile, were already on their way to the airport grateful that they had at least come out on the right side of this result.

Ricky Ponting has rued his team’s batting lapses in the second innings of each Test which cost Australia the series

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Oct-2010In Mohali, the width of a stump – the one Steven Smith had a shy at and missed – separated Australia from a famous victory. In Bangalore, in front of a passionate crowd that was worth at least half a man to the home side, there was no Heartbreak Hotel room to check into. This was a comprehensive defeat, the manner of it all the more galling after Australia had matched India for three days and more.”It’s probably a little bit harsh, isn’t it?” said Ricky Ponting, when asked about the 2-0 scoreline. “We played very well for the majority of the first Test, and pretty well for the majority of this one. It just goes to show that unless you play five good days of Test cricket – and that’s five, not four or four-and-a-half – you don’t win games.”The first Test was a great example of that. Even this Test here … our inability to break the M Vijay-Sachin Tendulkar partnership on day three was crucial to the outcome of this game. There was also our inability to bat for three sessions in the second innings of a Test match. We needed to bat for one hour longer to put India under some pressure. Then it would have been a really good game of cricket.”Ponting, who has now lost two series as captain in both India and England, fought valiantly for the series-levelling win on the fourth evening, but a classy innings of 72 was cut short when Zaheer Khan once again exhibited his mastery of reverse-swing. “I was really disappointed and down last night to get out when I did,” said Ponting. “I probably played as well yesterday as I ever have in Indian conditions. I did it for three quarters of the day but didn’t get across the line. When you get those starts, you have to capitalise.”Little went right for him when India batted. Virender Sehwag’s poor run in the fourth innings of matches continued, but India found a new hero in Cheteshwar Pujara, who stroked the ball with tremendous fluency and showed great poise on his way to 72 on debut.”I was hoping we’d take some early wickets and I was hoping we’d get Sehwag out early, which we did,” said Ponting. “We knew Sachin was going to be a big wicket for us. I guess the Pujara-Vijay partnership put us a bit behind the eight-ball. They scored at nearly a run a ball and had the momentum going their way. That’s what I spoke to the boys about at lunch. It was about stemming the momentum and slowing the scoreboard down. We got one wicket, but we weren’t good enough to maintain it through the course of the day.”He admitted that Australia were a little surprised to see Pujara stride out in the No. 3 position that Dravid has occupied for so long. “I’m not sure what the reasoning was behind it,” he said. “I’m sure you’ll hear from MS [Dhoni] later on. I imagine it was something to do with him being fresh and not doing much batting in the first innings. I also had a look at Dravid’s record in Bangalore, and it’s not great. Maybe they were trying to be pro-active and send someone out that was willing to keep the scoreboard ticking over at a faster rate, rather than someone who was under a little bit of pressure.”Having nearly made a hash of a similar run-chase in Mohali, India went about things rather differently on this fifth-day pitch, with Pujara’s belligerence the best example of a refusal to get even slightly bogged down. “They seemed to have a bit more intent,” said Ponting. “We were able to get four wickets late that night [in Mohali]. It was a tough little period for them to bat.”That’s the sort of start we needed to have today. It seemed their approach was a bit different. Even Pujara, playing the way he did, showed great intent. He showed he was willing to take a few risks to try and get the momentum going India’s way, and it paid off for him today.”And while there was a lot of criticism of his own tactics, especially the fields set when Nathan Hauritz came on, Ponting admitted that any dreams of parity pretty much disappeared with his frontline spinner conceding 76 in just 12 overs. “Nathan’s disappointed with the way he’s bowled this game,” he said. “Saying that, I thought even our guys yesterday handled the Indian spinners well. It was the reverse-swinging ball late in the day that got them two wickets. There’s no doubt that we have some work to do, on how we bat against reverse-swing bowling and also how we deliver it when we’ve got the ball. Zaheer and Sreesanth, again today, have done that a lot better than us this series.”India now haven’t lost a Test series since Sri Lanka in 2008, but Ponting suggested that any ambitions of replicating the sort of dominance that West Indies and Australia enjoyed for so long would depend entirely on how well they dealt with the changing of the guard. “What I know about the Indian team at the moment is that all their batsmen are very experienced, bar Suresh Raina. When VVS Laxman comes back in, one of Vijay or Pujara’s going to have to go back out.”The greatest challenge they’ll have is how they maintain the standards they’ve set over the last couple of years when some of those guys start to move on. That’s been the biggest challenge for Australian cricket over the last three or four years. When those very experienced and very good players move on, how long does it take for the next crop of young guys to stand up and start playing the way those players did in winning games for their country? It’ll be interesting to see how India cope with that.”

Harbhajan Singh has said India won’t lose their focus in the Asia Cup after the high of beating Pakistan

Siddarth Ravindran in Dambulla21-Jun-2010Harbhajan Singh, who hit the winning six in the see-saw match against Pakistan, has said India won’t lose their focus in the Asia Cup after the high of beating their arch-rivals. He had launched the penultimate ball of Saturday’s contest to pull off a thrilling victory which secured India’s place in the final against Sri Lanka.”You obviously feel proud and happy that we won the game against Pakistan, but this tournament isn’t over yet,” Harbhajan said after India’s practice session on Monday. “There are two more important matches to play, and we are looking to finish the tournament on a good note.”Harbhajan also stressed that his focus was mainly on his bowling and not on his batting. “I’m not an allrounder,” he said. “Firstly, I’m a bowler who can bat a bit and I want to keep it like that. I don’t take too much of pressure on myself by being called an allrounder.”Ahead of the Asia Cup, MS Dhoni had spoken about the dearth of quality fast-bowling allrounders in India, and Harbhajan also highlighted the lack of multi-skilled cricketers. “There was only one allrounder India has produced, that was Sir Kapil Dev,” he said. “After that forget Kapil Dev, we haven’t even produced an allrounder half as good as Kapil.”India have a decent record against Sri Lanka in bilateral series over the past few years, but have fallen short against them in several multi-team tournaments. Harbhajan said India needed to be wary of the Sri Lankan side. “They are a very good side, if you see their batting line-up, they have a very good line-up, Mahela [Jaywardene], [Kumar] Sangakkara and [Angelo] Mathews,” he said. “Their bowling is also quite good, we need to play as well as we can.”The visitors’ chances received a blow when experienced opener Virender Sehwag was forced out of the tournament by a hamstring injury. The Indian squad had a new member joining them on Monday morning after Dinesh Karthik was flown in as a replacement. Karthik and Saurabh Tiwary, one of whom is likely to take Sehwag’s place in the XI for India’s two remaining matches, both had lengthy batting sessions in the afternoon.Harbhajan remained confident of a good performance despite missing three of their most experienced players. “All the players who are here have performed well whenever given the chance, whether it’s Pragyan Ojha, Dinesh Karthik or Virat Kohli,” he said. “I think we shouldn’t think of them as youngsters, they are here because they are good enough.”

Sanath Jayasuriya admitted it was a “big challenge” for him to return to his old position in the middle order

Nagraj Gollapudi14-Dec-2009At 40, challenges still exist for Sanath Jayasuriya. The Sri Lankan team management, led by captain Kumar Sangakkara, has decided to push Jayasuriya down the order to make better use of the allrounder. Jayasuriya admitted it was a “big challenge” for him to return to the position where he had started his career.”Since 1995, I have opened unless I was coming back from an injury. So it is a big challenge, which for the last 15 years I haven’t faced,” Jayasuriya told Cricinfo on the eve of Sri Lanka’s first ODI in Rajkot. “But I have taken up the challenge and I will work hard to perform.”Jayasuriya was a regular middle-order batsman before being asked to open in the World Series Challenge in Australia in 1995 by the then captain Arjuna Ranatunga for the first time. Jayasuriya lapped up the new job with an intensity that would make him a household name in the years to come and completely redefine the role of an opener in the 50-over the game. But with age Jayasuriya’s reflexes have thinned down, resulting in the dip in his ODI form. To avoid the issue becoming a growing concern, the Sri Lankan think tank decided to push him down the order. The new job came with a disclaimer: there was no security.Interestingly, Jayasuriya’s previous performances in the role have been far from impressive: in 39 innings, he averages 13.13 with no fifties. He last batted in the middle order in 2005 against India, scoring an unbeaten 43 at No. 6 to help Sri Lanka chase 206.Despite the pressure building on him, Jayasuriya indicated he was not in a desperate situation. “Nobody is guaranteed a place if you don’t perform,” Jayasuriya said. “It doesn’t matter if you are an allrounder or an opener. So whenever I get an opportunity I have to perform.”Comparing the two roles, Jayasuriya said facing the new ball was a completely different equation as against negotiating the old ball in the middle-to-end overs. “It is unlike batting as an opener where you have the license to play your natural game and go after the bowling. The field is up and you are looking to get runs on the board so you are attacking from the very beginning,” he said. “In the middle order, you need to play according to the situation and occupy the crease for longer periods.”Despite the change in his job profile, Jayasuriya remains a dangerous proposition for the opposition, a fact the Indian captain MS Dhoni agreed with. “Whenever he has played a long innings, batting through the middle overs, he emphasises more on running between the wickets,” Dhoni pointed out.Dhoni said Jayasuriya is not as brutal while batting in the middle order, where the focus is to run hard and then go after the bowling at the end of the innings. According to Dhoni, the key to arrest Jaysuriya’s development was to restrict him from converting the singles into twos and threes.”He is a very good runner, (who) tries to put pressure on fielders,” Dhoni said. “The key is not to give him easy singles and doubles.”Sri Lanka have announced that Upul Tharanga will partner Tillakaratne Dilshan at the top.

Fast bowler says he is unable to commit to all formats “mentally and physically” at this stage of career

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Sep-2025Jamie Overton, the England and Surrey fast bowler who was a permanent member of the Test squad during this summer’s series against India, has announced an “indefinite break from red-ball cricket”. The decision effectively rules him out of this winter’s Ashes campaign, a development that has left his white-ball captain and Test team-mate, Harry Brook, “shocked”.Overton, 31, played the second and last of his two Tests at The Oval in July, claiming two second-innings wickets in England’s thrilling six-run loss. His previous match had come at Headingley in 2022, when he made a match-turning 97 in partnership with Jonny Bairstow, in the first summer of Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum’s stewardship of the England team.Despite his infrequent appearances, Overton was a near-certainty to feature in England’s Ashes squad, given his sturdy build, strong action and ability to bowl at 90mph – all attributes that the selectors have been identifying in their bid to win in Australia for the first time since 2010-11.However, in an interview with the Telegraph, he spelt out his reasons for the shock decision, saying that at this stage of his career, it was “no longer possible to commit fully to all formats at every level, both physically and mentally”. He will be in Australia this winter, but as part of Adelaide Strikers’ squad in the Big Bash, a team with whom he has spent the past two seasons, and for whom he was named MVP earlier this year for his haul of 11 wickets and 191 runs at 95.50.Related

• England made to toil amid mishaps of their own making

• Wood targets Durham return in build-up to Ashes

• Hazlewood: England will bring an 'unbelievable' batting line-up for the Ashes

• Sonny Baker set for England ODI debut against South Africa

“After a great deal of thought, I have decided to take an indefinite break from red-ball cricket,” Overton said. “I feel very fortunate to have played 99 first-class matches, including two Test matches for England. Red-ball, first-class cricket has provided the foundation for my professional career and has been the gateway to every opportunity I’ve had in the game so far. It’s where I learnt the game, and it fuelled the goals and ambitions that have driven me for so long.”However, at this stage of my career, with the demands of cricket across a 12-month calendar, it’s no longer possible to commit fully to all formats at every level, both physically and mentally. Going forward, my focus will be on white-ball cricket, and I will continue to give everything to play at the highest level for as long as I can.”Overton is currently at Headingley, as part of England’s white-ball squad, with their first ODI against South Africa coming up on Tuesday. Speaking on the eve of the match, Brook admitted he was taken aback by the announcement, and its timing.”A little bit shocked to be honest,” Brook said. “I thought he did well in that last Test, he bowled quick. Obviously you’ve got to respect that decision that he’s going to have a little bit of a break from red-ball cricket. Hopefully at some point we’ll see him again in the future.Overton arrives at training ahead of the Headingley ODI•Getty Images

“I’d heard rumours but I hadn’t heard it from him until today. You’ve just got to respect the decision, he obviously doesn’t feel like he wants to play red-ball cricket at the minute and we can’t do anything about it. He’s made the decision now but it’s unfortunate. I thought he did really well in that last Test match and it would have been nice to have him there in the Ashes.”From his perspective as white-ball captain, however, Brook acknowledged that the singular focus could be of benefit to his team. “Absolutely,” he said. “When he is fully fit and firing he bowls thunderbolts and he can whack it out of the park. Hopefully he can upskill even more from what he’s got now and be the best white-ball player he can be.”Overton had only played once in the County Championship for Surrey this season before being recalled to the Test squad. Overall, he has made four first-class appearances for his county since the start of 2024, with injuries limiting his availability.Rob Key, England Men’s director of cricket, said: “Jamie’s news came unexpected and it is sad to see, as he would have been part of our red-ball plans for the foreseeable future. That said, it serves as a reminder of the cricketing landscape we now operate in. We respect his decision and are grateful to him for informing us when he did.”

West Indies coach said the match officials admitted there were errors made during the first Test in Barbados

Andrew McGlashan02-Jul-2025West Indies coach Daren Sammy said that the match officials have admitted there were errors made during the first Test in Barbados, but insisted he holds no grudges against Adrian Holdstock, who will move from being the TV umpire to on-field in Grenada.Sammy was fined 15% of his match fee and handed a demerit point after he questioned the work of Holdstock, particularly decisions against Roston Chase and Shai Hope, adding he had held concerns from the recent England tour. Chase was also highly critical after the match but has escaped any ICC sanction.”I said I wouldn’t want my players to do that press conference because of the questions I think that would have been posted at them,” Sammy said. “I strongly believed in what I said.Related

• Sammy fined for criticising third umpire Holdstock

• Chase calls out 'so many questionable calls' in Barbados Test

“We’ve had further chats [with the officials]. They’ve clarified some stuff. There has been some admission of error as well. This was Barbados and we’re now in Grenada, so we’ve left that behind.”Asked whether he regretted his comments about Holdstock, Sammy said, “I don’t hold grudges. I said what I said, based on what I saw. I’ve been punished for it. I wish Adrian all the best, to be honest. I mean, we’re all human. I have nothing against the umpires. I really wish he has an awesome game.”Australia have not been drawn into any debate around the umpiring, although they have admitted they came out on the right side of it in Barbados. But Alex Carey had fears his diving catch to remove Hope would be given not out when he saw the replays on the big screen.Carey dived full-length to his left to take an inside edge off the bowling of Beau Webster from Hope, who was well-set on 48 in his first Test for three-and-a-half years. Carey was convinced he had taken the catch cleanly.West Indies were unhappy about Roston Chase’s lbw in Barbados•Randy Brooks/AFP/Getty Images

It was eventually confirmed as out by Holdstock. Earlier in the game, he had ruled a low catch by Hope from Travis Head in Australia’s first innings as not out.”I thought it was out straightaway, yes,” Carey said. “I wasn’t confident it was going to stay out when I saw the replay, to be honest. It’s been a really difficult shift in the third umpiring in what’s out and what’s not out. Your opinion is different to my opinion.”I thought that was a pretty difficult game, to have five, six, seven 50-50 examples for the third umpire. He’s not going to please everyone up there, but I thought he did a really good job. We obviously know the other side and the other camp was a little bit disappointed with some of them. I understand that.”But I did think it was out. I never thought I fumbled the ball or had any reason to question the decision. It was a pleasing one to take. A good batter as well, who was scoring some runs.”Holdstock will stand with Richard Kettleborough in Grenada and then with Nitin Menon in Jamaica. Kettleborough will be standing in his 93rd Test, going past David Shepherd’s count of 92 as the most by an English umpire.

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.