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England spinner stifles chase as visitors fall short of victory required to stay in hunt

ECB Reporters Network01-Jul-2022James Fuller’s quickfire 45 and impeccable bowling from Liam Dawson and Nathan Ellis fired Hampshire into the Vitality Blast quarter-finals at the expense of Gloucestershire.Allrounder Fuller needed only 24 balls to smack his haul at the death to drag Hampshire to an above-par 140. Gloucestershire, who needed to win to keep their knockout hopes alive, lost wickets with regularity with Dawson returning 2 for 16 and Australian Ellis 1 for 14 in his four overs – as Hampshire won by 15 runs.Hampshire chose to bat first on a sluggish used pitch and battled their way to above par thanks to some late-innings hitting. Before then it had been a struggle as Gloucestershire bowled incredibly tightly on a pitch similar to a typical Seat Unique Stadium wicket.Only 24 runs came in the powerplay with Ben McDermott and James Vince both falling, the former to Mohammad Amir who only bowled three balls before walking off clutching his side.Benny Howell had Tom Prest top-edging a slog sweep with the pressure building before his slower ball found Ross Whiteley chopping on via his pad, on the way to 2 for 29.Joe Weatherley kept things ticking, but his dismissal sent Hampshire sliding. Weatherley and Dawson handed Tom Smith figures of 2 for 18, before Fuller teed off. Forty-six runs came from the final three overs, and 36 from the final two, as Fuller swung Ryan Higgins for back-to-back sixes over the long square boundary before plopping David Payne over the straight boundary twice.The visitors moved Iain Cockbain up to open for the first time this season but he only lasted until the second over when Prest brilliantly ran him out with only a single stump to aim at. It was an atonement for Prest, who had dropped a tough chance off Chris Dent. And he would complete his penance when his offspin forced Dent to sky to deep extra cover – 40 for 2 at the end of the fourth over.Miles Hammond skied to McDermott but Dawson’s introduction swung the momentum. The left-armer’s first over only went for three runs, his second just two runs, the wicket of Glenn Phillips and four play and misses from Higgins, before he bowled Higgins with a jaffa in his third over – at which point he had 2 for 9. Mason Crane joined in to get Jack Taylor caught behind.Gloucestershire had the rate well in hand throughout but the regularity with which they lost wickets came back to bite them, with Howell swiping to deep square leg to become the seventh man to depart to leave 38 needed from the last five overs.Only 15 runs came in the following three overs and the burden was too much for James Bracey – who had scored 38 off 30 – when he was caught splicing to third. Tom Smith was run out off the first ball of the last over, with 17 required, before Ellis bowled Payne to a rapturous response from a packed Ageas Bowl.

Hobart Hurricanes made amends for an embarrassing BBL opener with a 20-run victory over Brisbane Heat at Blundstone Arena in Hobart

The Report by Tristan Lavalette22-Dec-2015
ScorecardTim Paine anchored the innings with a 58-ball 87•Getty Images

Hobart Hurricanes made amends for an embarrassing BBL opener with a 20-run victory over Brisbane Heat at Blundstone Arena in Hobart. After losing by 95 runs and being steamrolled humiliatingly for 91 against Sydney Sixers just two days earlier, the Hurricanes rebounded with a fine all-round performance against Heat.After captain Tim Paine won the toss and elected to bat on a flat pitch, there was no batting calamity on this occasion with the Hurricanes batting aggressively, yet smartly to notch an imposing 3 for 184. They batted with intent but valued their wickets, with Paine exemplifying this approach by being the mainstay for the Hurricanes throughout. Paine scored an unbeaten 87 from 58 balls, and combined in consecutive half-century partnerships with Kumar Sangakkara and George Bailey.In their chase, the Heat lost wickets at regular intervals despite the best efforts of allrounder Jason Floros who was promoted to No.3 to counterattack Hurricanes’ spin duo of Cameron Boyce and Clive Rose. Floros scored an enterprising 42 from 23 but it was not nearly enough despite some late hitting from Nathan Reardon (41 from 32 balls). Despite teasing on occasions, the Heat fell short at 8 for 164.Dan Christian thwarted his former side with the key wickets of Lendl Simmons and Peter Forrest, but perhaps most importantly, he spectacularly caught danger man Chris Lynn (1) after the ball lingered high in the air. The juggled catch was one of four catches for Christian in the game.The Hurricanes bowlers and fielders backed up a disciplined performance by their top order. Openers Paine and Ben Dunk made a circumspect start in a determined bid to ensure a repeat of the calamity in Sydney was not replicated. They played respectfully, and in a fashion that was notably different to the explosive template of T20 cricket with only nine runs scored in the opening two overs. But Paine soon launched and smashed a couple of brutal pull shots that rocketed out of the small ground.After Dunk was run out by a direct throw side-on from Forrest, Paine combined with Sangakkara to give the Hurricanes the initiative. After his first ball flop in his BBL debut against the Sixers, Sangakkara started cautiously. But it wasn’t long before Sangakkara’s glorious off-side game flourished, ensuring runs were ticking along briskly without doing anything rash.Paine and Sangakkara complemented each other perfectly, with the Hurricanes captain’s brashness a nice juxtaposition to the stylish Sri Lankan. Just when it seemed he was about to shift gears, Sangakkara fell for a 31-ball 43 holing out off a Ben Cutting length delivery, ending the 77-run partnership off 51 balls.While his teammates were getting thrashed around, Cutting was the pick of the bowlers with 1 for 32 from his four overs, but his figures were blighted by a 13-run final over.Bailey, who scored 62 against the Sixers in a lone hand, continued his fine form bashing the Heat attack to all parts. He treated renowned disciplined spinner Samuel Badree with disdain, punctuated by a massive six over long-on after skipping down the track.Bailey (40 off 21 balls) holed out in the penultimate over but the damage had been done. The defeat ensured the Heat, last year’s bottom-placed team, are winless after two matches.

Oxford-Cambridge will also be hosted at ground in 2023, with vote due at AGM in May

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Sep-2022MCC has performed a U-turn over the cancellation of its traditional Eton-Harrow and Oxford-Cambridge fixtures at Lord’s, following a rebellion by a prominent group of members.The fixtures, which have been held at Lord’s (with rare exceptions) since 1805 and 1827 respectively, are among the longest-running annual sporting rivalries in the world.However, both were due to be removed from the venue from 2023 onwards, with MCC announcing in February that the Eton-Harrow match would be replaced by the annual finals of boys’ and girls’ schools competitions, in a bid for greater inclusivity.However, that decision has been met with disquiet by sections of the club’s 18,500-strong voting membership, with a spokesman for the Committee for the Reinstatement of the Historic Fixtures at Lord’s stating that it was “tantamount to cutting down oak trees to accommodate saplings”.With the prospect of a divisive row looming, MCC has now confirmed that a Special General Meeting, scheduled for Tuesday evening, has been cancelled, and a fresh vote on the status of the fixtures would be held at the club’s AGM in May 2023.”In the best interests of the club, the MCC committee has agreed to cancel the meeting,” MCC said in a statement. “This has come at the request of the group of members this morning who challenged the original decision.”While the committee and the requisitionists stand by their respective positions, the two parties will work together on next steps. These will include a consultation process between MCC and its members regarding the future of the two fixtures.”Noting the time needed for this, it has been agreed by both parties that the Committee will invite the four institutions to play their respective matches (Eton v Harrow and Oxford v Cambridge) at Lord’s again in 2023.”The climbdown is an embarrassment for the club’s incoming president, Stephen Fry, who is due to take office on October 1, and this week spoke out in favour of the change of the move towards modernisation.”My urging for MCC members is, ‘If you really love cricket, don’t you want more kids to play?'” he said on Sunday. “Don’t you want it to lose that image that it sometimes still has: a turgid image of snobbery and elitism?”

Six men’s titles in two seasons has cemented this WA side as the dominant force in the Australian game

Tristan Lavalette26-Mar-2023Not long after Cameron Bancroft’s boundary sealed Western Australia’s Sheffield Shield title defence, those left marvelling at cricket’s undisputed domestic powerhouse were trying to pinpoint their seemingly magical formula for success.WA’s nine-wicket victory over Victoria in the final at the capped their second straight season of capturing a treble of domestic titles when put alongside Perth Scorchers’ BBL successes.Even though the hierarchy at the WACA prefer a measured approach, which is drilled down into their players, talk of a dynasty was unavoidable after WA had won their sixth straight title.Victoria coach Chris Rogers is perhaps well placed to judge where this WA team stacks up in history having been at the helm of consecutive unsuccessful Shield finals against his home state.Related

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• Western Australia's trophy surge continues with back-to-back Sheffield Shield titles

As a gritty opener, Rogers was coming through the WA ranks during the late 1990s when the stacked team was led by legendary skipper Tom Moody and featured Test legends Justin Langer, Adam Gilchrist, Damien Martyn and Mike Hussey amongst others.He sees parallels with the likes of teenaged Teague Wyllie and emerging allrounder Aaron Hardie destined for international opportunities having played valuable roles in WA’s back-to-back Shield triumphs.”I started playing when we had all the legends under Tom Moody and that was an incredible side and this side is doing great things if not better than that era,” Rogers said. “They’ve got a great squad and amazing depth.”WA’s eventual comprehensive triumph masked periods in a see-saw of final where they were seriously challenged by an emerging Victoria looking to kick-start a successful era of their own.Like they’ve shown repeatedly in recent years through the various formats, WA proved decisive in key moments especially on day two when they slumped to 4 for 53 in their first innings in reply to Victoria’s 195.
On a green-tinged surface against a strong Victoria attack, WA was in a precarious position until composed veteran Ashton Turner came to the rescue with a game-changing cavalier century to restore his team’s advantage.He combined in key partnerships with Hardie, Josh Philippe and Joel Paris to deflate Victoria who could never recover.”We speak as a group a lot about key moments in games and a theme for this week was ‘walk towards the pressure’,” said Paris, who combined with Turner in an invaluable 105-run partnership while also taking five wickets for the match.”They put a lot of pressure on us. Ash and I spoke about how we wanted to keep them out there as long as possible. We cashed in on the back end and got us to the lead which made it really tough for them.”WA’s sustained success has been built around a local core and continuity with the only change from last year’s title-winning side being Turner replacing recently retired Shaun Marsh.”All of us are from WA originally. A lot of the players have played together or against each other since we were playing Under 9s and 10s,” Paris said. “When you’re on the road as much as we are throughout the season, the closeness of the group is super important.”We understand each other as cricketers and people better than anyone and that certainly goes a long way when we’re out in the middle.”Ashton Turner has not been a regular in red-ball cricket but played the defining innings•Getty Images

The tight knit nature of the playing group memorably reared when Turner reached his first Shield century in more than five years, triggering raw emotion from his teammates in the dressing room.”My favourite moment was seeing AT score a hundred,” said Bancroft, who was part of all three titles this season. “It’s been a big journey for him in red-ball cricket. He spoke that morning [on day two] about being really brave and taking the game on, which is what he does best. To watch that come into action was pretty special and something all the team is proud of.”The camaraderie is a far cry from the dark days of WA cricket in the 2000s during a period marked by ill-discipline and little silverware leading to the recruitment of Langer as coach in 2012.”We’ve been building for some time. [The turnaround] probably started when JL came on board and he showed the core group of players that we have now what it truly means to be professional athletes and professional cricketers,” Paris said. “Winning Shield titles is so hard. We’ve identified this as a special group….I’m really lucky to be a part of.”While WA’s players were diplomatic of their feats as per the organisation’s well-worn mantra, the revelry was starting to kick-in from the terraces with those involved savouring this new golden era.”Six titles in a couple of years is pretty unheard of. The challenge is to keep being consistent,” Bancroft said. “But that’s not a conversation for today. We’ll enjoy tonight and this win.”

Wicketkeeper-batter moves north looking to secure opportunities across all three formats

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Sep-2022Ollie Robinson, the Kent wicketkeeper-batter, has agreed a three-year deal to join Durham from the end of the season.Robinson, 23, made his Kent debut in 2017 and has played for England Lions, but went on loan to Durham earlier in the summer in order to gain opportunities in T20 cricket, where he has had to contend with Sam Billings and Jordan Cox being above him in the pecking order.”We currently have two wicketkeepers who are in and around senior England squads In Sam Billings and Jordan Cox, and Ollie Robinson has toured with England Lions,” Kent’s director of cricket, Paul Downton, said. “Kent has produced three fantastic wicketkeeper-batters through the club’s academy in recent years, and at some stage this situation was going to come to a head.”From my own personal experience as a player, I can understand Ollie’s decision to move clubs to guarantee playing time. Of course, we would prefer that Ollie stayed at Kent, but he has to do what is best for his career.”Ollie has been a brilliant servant to the club, and he leaves with our very best wishes.”Robinson has been Kent’s first-choice keeper in the Championship since his breakthrough season in 2019, when he scored the first of his four first-class hundreds for the club. This summer saw him become only the fifth Englishman to score a List A double-hundred, as Robinson averaged 59.33 in the Royal London Cup.He also scored 226 runs across 12 innings for Durham in the T20 Blast, including a career-best 56 against Yorkshire.’I’m thrilled to be joining Durham Cricket from next season and beyond,” Robinson said. “Having been a part of the group during my loan stint I know how much quality the squad possesses, and I feel there are some exciting times ahead, hopefully I can make some major contributions and help Durham win some trophies.”I want to thank all the staff on and off the field for making me feel so welcome earlier this season – I look forward to meeting up with everyone again and getting down to business. I feel Durham is the right place for me to help fulfil my goals and next season can’t come fast enough. I’m looking forward to seeing what the north has to offer.”Durham’s director of cricket, Marcus North, said: “We’re extremely delighted that Ollie has chosen to join Durham and we have been able to secure the signature of one of the most talented and skilful wicketkeeper-batters in England.”At only 23, Ollie has already established great foundations in all formats of his game, and we look forward to nurturing this very exciting talent in his next stage of his career at Durham.”This is the quality and skillset we have been looking for that will strengthen our playing squad in all formats. We look forward to him joining back up with us during pre-season and the impact he will have with us next season and beyond.”

India A will play three four-day games and as many List A matches against New Zealand

Shashank Kishore16-Aug-2022The BCCI is set to resume the India A programme in early September, with incoming tours from New Zealand, and possibly, Australia. It will be helmed by VVS Laxman and his NCA support staff group of Sairaj Bahutule and Sitanshu Kotak.ESPNcricinfo has learnt that New Zealand A will arrive in India by the end of August for three four-day games and as many List A matches, with all of them likely to be held in Bengaluru. The BCCI is also contemplating the possibility of a pink-ball fixture during the series, but a final nod is awaited.New Zealand A played a pink-ball game on their previous tour to India in 2017-18. That game in Vijayawada, though, was a day fixture despite being played with the pink ball. And if the game in the upcoming series next month does go ahead, it will be played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.The New Zealand A tour is expected to overlap with the Duleep Trophy, the zonal first-class competition, which will open India’s domestic calendar for the 2022-23 season. The six-team tournament will be played from September 8 to 25 in Chennai and Coimbatore.The home series against New Zealand will be India A’s first assignment since their tour to South Africa late last year, just prior to the national team’s three-Test series in December.The BCCI is also understood to be in negotiations with Cricket Australia for a tour towards the end of the year – most likely in November – prior to the start of the Ranji Trophy and India’s next Test assignment, which will be in Bangladesh.The Bangladesh tour, consisting of two Tests, will be India’s penultimate World Test Championship (WTC) assignment. They will culminate the current leg of the WTC with a four-Test series at home against Australia in February-March.

Cricket has made its first-ever appearance at ESPN’s annual awards, the ESPYS, after an acrobatic catch by West Indies allrounder Dwayne Bravo at the IPL was nominated as a ‘Best Play’

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Jun-2015Help Dwayne Bravo win cricket’s first ESPY by voting hereCricket has made its first-ever appearance at ESPN’s annual awards, the ESPYS, after an acrobatic catch by West Indies allrounder Dwayne Bravo at the IPL was nominated as a ‘Best Play’.Bravo was recognised for a leaping, one-handed take on the boundary to dismiss Shane Watson in Chennai, a feat that also earned him the IPL’s ‘catch of the season’ award. He sprinted to his left from long-on to get in line with what seemed a certain six from Watson, before jumping and arching back to pluck the ball over his head, and then kept his balance to avoid the rope.”I admit I am still shocked on many levels,” Bravo said. “Firstly, I am shocked and happy that cricket is being recognised by the American market, and on their biggest and most prestigious night in sport. Secondly, I am in a category with athletes that I look up to and admire, titans of their sports, and I am humbled.”Bravo is also the first ESPYS nominee from Trinidad & Tobago. “I am proud to represent my country and value every opportunity to showcase the talent that exists here,” he said. “Of course I would love to win, so I take this opportunity to ask my fans around the world to vote, not just for me but for our beloved cricket.”Bravo’s effort was among a shortlist of 16 plays from a variety of sports. Other nominees include Lionel Messi’s mesmerising goal against Athletic Bilbao in May, plays from NFL, NBA, lacrosse and more. The winner will be determined by a public vote, and the contest follows a bracket format. Bravo’s immediate challenger is a last-minute Hail Mary pass in a college-football game.The ESPYS, which were first awarded in 1993, is an annual event to commemorate the past year in sports, recognising both sport-specific achievements, such as Best NBA Player, and best-in-sport winners, such as Best Team or Best Female Athlete, that pit nominees from different sports against each other. There is no specific category for cricket, and Bravo’s nomination is the first time the game has featured at the ESPYS. The 2015 ESPYs will be awarded on July 15.Help Dwayne Bravo win cricket’s first ESPY by voting here

Monty Panesar has been fined by police after urinating on nightclub bouncers who ejected him from a club in Brighton in the early hours of Monday.

George Dobell07-Aug-2013Monty Panesar has been fined by police after urinating on nightclub bouncers who ejected him from a club in Brighton in the early hours of Monday.Panesar, the left-arm spinner who was included in the England squad for the third Investec Ashes Test, was reportedly asked to leave the beachfront club, Shooshh, after a group of women complained that he was bothering them. Panesar, who had been part of the Sussex team defeated by Derbyshire in three days in a match that ended on Sunday, then walked up to the promenade above the club and urinated on the bouncers.While Panesar ran off, the bouncers gave chase and caught up with him in a pizza parlour and, having restrained him and dragged him back to the club, called the police. Panesar was fined £90 and, through his spokesman, released a statement offering an “unreserved apology” for his behaviour.Sussex CCC released a statement confirming that “an incident took place involving Monty Panesar in the early hours of Monday 5th August,” just hours before England retained the Ashes at Old Trafford. Sussex continued to say “the matter is under full investigation.”A Sussex Police spokesman said: “A 31-year-old man received a fixed penalty notice for being drunk and disorderly after being seen urinating in public near the Shooshh Club in King’s Road Arches, Brighton, around 4.13am on Monday.”The episode will do nothing to revive Panesar’s career. Quite apart from the uncouth nature of the incident and the unsettling image of an international sportsman being asked to leave a club for bothering women, the England management will be unimpressed by Panesar being “drunk and disorderly” at 4am during an Ashes series in which he may yet take a part.Panesar was dropped by Sussex earlier this season in part due to a poor on-field attitude. Struggling with a sore shoulder, he had fallen into the habit of stopping the ball with his boot in the field and throwing it back to the wicketkeeper underarm.Panesar was also arrested and interviewed by the police in 2011 after a heated argument with his wife in a pub car park. He was subsequently released without charge.Despite a tricky few months, however, Panesar enjoyed a fine tour of India at the end of 2012 where his 17 wickets in three Tests played a large part in England’s victory. He has taken 164 wickets in his 48 Tests and, aged 31, could yet replace Graeme Swann in the England side when Swann, 34, retires.

Phoenix, Invincibles make new signings after Matthew Fisher, Saqib Mahmood ruled out

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Jun-2022Tom Helm and Gus Atkinson have signed contracts in the Hundred for Birmingham Phoenix and Oval Invincibles respectively.Matthew Fisher and Saqib Mahmood, the fast bowlers who made their Test debuts for England in the Caribbean, have both been ruled out of the competition with stress fractures of the lower back, leaving both teams seeking replacements.Phoenix have brought Helm back as Fisher’s replacement. He was expensive for them last year, conceding more than two runs per ball and taking five wickets in seven appearances, but was considered unfortunate to miss out on selection at April’s draft.Related

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• Mahmood ruled out of season with stress fracture

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• Hasnain, McDermott among picks in Hundred overseas wildcard draft

“Whilst we’re naturally disappointed to lose Matt Fisher, we’re very pleased to have re-signed a talented pace bowler who we know well in Tom Helm,” Craig Flindall, Phoenix’s general manager, said.Helm impressed in the early rounds of the County Championship season for Middlesex this year, bowling with good pace, but took 1 for 56 in four overs in his comeback from a minor injury in the T20 Blast on Thursday night.Atkinson, meanwhile, was an unused member of Southern Brave’s squad last year, signing halfway through the tournament as a replacement. He has not featured for Surrey in the Blast this year due to their seam depth but is highly rated by their management and is likely to play when they lose Reece Topley and Sam Curran to England’s ODI tour to the Netherlands.Each team in the Hundred – both men’s and women’s – signed an extra overseas player in Thursday’s wildcard draft, and men’s teams will add a final domestic wildcard player in early July.

WI’s new white-ball captain said that matches against Netherlands are an opportunity for some of the youngsters to grab their spots

Matt Roller30-May-2022Nicholas Pooran, West Indies’ new white-ball captain, has said he will be an “instinctive” leader ahead of his first assignment in the role on a permanent basis, a three-match ODI series against Netherlands in Amsterdam starting on Tuesday.Pooran, 26, has previously captained West Indies in two ODIs and eight T20Is and Guyana Amazon Warriors in the CPL, and was confirmed as Kieron Pollard’s successor earlier this month after serving as his deputy in recent years.”I’ll try my best to lead from the front,” Pooran said at a virtual press conference on Friday. “I want to talk the talk and walk the walk.”I’m very instinctive. On the field, I like to make decisions on how I feel. My team-mates know I’m very instinctive when I’m batting as well. As a captain, I want to approach it in the same way.”[I want to] live in the present, try to be the best version of myself, try to be the best leader I can be. It’s as simple as that.”West Indies have picked an inexperienced squad for this series and the upcoming tour of Pakistan, with Jason Holder (rested) the most high-profile absentee.Related

• No Holder, Lewis or Hetmyer for WI's ODI tours of Netherlands and Pakistan

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Pooran said that the tours would ensure younger players are given opportunities but downplayed the idea that playing the Netherlands – who have only one of their county-contracted players available this week – represented an ideal introduction to the full-time role.”I wouldn’t say there’s a right time,” he said. “We want to win games, it doesn’t matter who the opposition is. We’re not looking at it like that. The time is now and that’s all we need to focus on.”Everyone deserves an opportunity at some point in their career and it’s really good that the younger players are getting an opportunity now. It’s a good opportunity for them to showcase their talent and try to grab a spot in the team.”It has been good. I think a lot of guys are happy in terms of it being free here and Amsterdam is a beautiful place. We’re looking forward to the opportunity to play some cricket and feed off each other.”Availability has been a constant concern for West Indies in the era of franchise leagues and the management of freelance players could be a defining trait of Pooran’s reign.On the eve of the series opener, Pooran confirmed that fast bowler Alzarri Joseph, fresh off a title-winning IPL stint with Gujarat Titans, would be in “contention for selection” for Tuesday’s ODI.”Yes, Alzarri arrives today,” Pooran said. “He would be in contention for selection for tomorrow’s game. Hopefully, he’s ready to play and we can have him on the park. Hopefully, he can bring in his IPL experience across as well for us.”Pooran had earlier added that Sunil Narine’s availability for the T20 World Cup later this year was a matter for him to discuss directly with the selectors.”What Sunil wants, I’m in no control of that,” he said. “But that’s a conversation between him and the selectors – what his aspirations are when it comes to West Indies cricket.”The end goal is to win cricket games and to win tournaments. But obviously there is a process behind that. It’s a new time for us. I believe that we have a lot of talented players with us here but we need to really work hard and come up with the goods.”