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The committee of administrators overseeing the daily running of the BCCI has said the problem is largely a consequence of demonetisation and will be resolved soon

Arun Venugopal08-Feb-2017Members of the India Under-19s team, who are currently playing at home against England Under-19s, have not received their daily allowance for nearly two weeks now. In response, the committee of administrators, appointed by the Supreme Court to oversee the running of the BCCI, has said the problem is largely a consequence of demonetisation in the country and that it will be resolved soon.According to a report in the , the players were not paid their entitled daily allowance of INR 6800 [the figure couldn’t be independently ascertained]. The support staff, including coach Rahul Dravid, too, have not received any payment as allowances.”It is not intentional, that is due to demonetisation,” a member of the committee of administrators told ESPNcricinfo. “Normally daily allowances are paid by cash, but because there were limits we could not withdraw so much cash. Even now the English boys are being paid by the ECB.”The weekly cash-withdrawal limit from savings bank accounts from ATMS or banks is currently INR 24,000. The member believed that with the withdrawal limit increased to INR 50,000 from February 20, and the subsequent removal of such restrictions from March 13, there would be greater cash-flow.There were multiple reports of players facing a cash crunch during the 2016-17 Ranji Trophy season as well, and some teams tried to work around the problem by crediting the allowance to the players’ accounts. In this case, according to the member, funds couldn’t be transferred online as some players do not have bank accounts.”The senior team players are getting debit cards, which are topped up with the allowances they are supposed to receive,” the member said. “But, these are Under-18 boys, so the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) doesn’t allow you to give debit cards. Some of them don’t have bank accounts also.”The member said the issue of payment of allowances was communicated to the BCCI CEO Rahul Johri, who responded by saying that Ratnakar Shetty, the BCCI’s general manager (administration and game development), and chief financial officer Santosh Rangnekar would look into the matter.”We are getting the players to open bank accounts. Now, something new has come up with the Yes Bank, who is the official banker,” the member said. “They have debit cards for Under-18 [Under-19] boys, which isn’t subject to restrictions from the RBI. Arrangements are underway and in a day or two, everything will be settled.”Asked if transferring funds online would be the way forward in disbursing allowances, the member admitted it was a “better way of doing it”, but said the board had to work on the details. “We still have to work on this. These are the nitty gritties that we can’t just talk off hand.”India Under-19s took the five-match one-day series against England 3-1. The teams will now meet each other in two four-day games in Nagpur, the first of which begins from February 13.

Half-centuries from captain William Porterfield and Andy Balbirnie helped Ireland ace their chase of 203 and secure the two-match series against UAE in Dubai

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Mar-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFile photo – William Porterfield scored his 13th ODI fifty•International Cricket Council

Half-centuries from captain William Porterfield and Andy Balbirnie helped Ireland ace their chase of 203 and secure the two-match series against UAE in Dubai. Balbirnie remained unbeaten on 58 off 67 balls as Ireland completed the victory with eight wickets and 49 balls to spare.The win was set up by seamer Craig Young and offspinner
Andy McBrine, who claimed three wickets each to help dimiss UAE for 202 in 47.5 overs.Young struck in his first over when he bowled Mohammad Naveed for 4. McBrine too struck in his first over – the fifth of the innings – when Ghulam Shabber lobbed a return catch. Shaiman Anwar and Rameez Shahzad then mounted a fightback by adding 76 for the fourth wicket in 19.2 overs.From thereon, things went downhill for UAE. Muhammad Usman pitched in with 29 but UAE lost their last six wickets for just 57 runs. George Dockrell and Jacob Mulder, playing his first ODI, complemented McBrine and Young with two wickets each.Porterfield and Paul Stirling then laid the foundation for the chase with a 94-run opening stand. Ireland simply launched from there and completed a handsome win. Porterfield struck eight fours during his 76 while Balbirnie hit seven fours in his third ODI fifty, as he and Niall O’Brien finished off the chase.

Quinton de Kock said he wasn’t affected by facing Jeetan Patel despite falling to the spinner in his last four international innings, and just focused on turning the pressure around on the hosts

Firdose Moonda in Wellington17-Mar-2017Quinton de Kock “knew straightaway” that he would come up against Jeetan Patel, but instead of dreading facing the offspinner who had dismissed him in his last four innings, de Kock was “not at all” anxious. Quite the opposite.”I was looking forward to the battle again,” de Kock said.Patel was brought on to bowl the last over before lunch, nine balls after de Kock had arrived at the crease, and de Kock decided he would not be done in. “I have played against so many offspinners in my life. I know Jeetan is a good bowler and he has me four out of four but I knew I could still get on top of him if I just put my head down,” de Kock said. “It happened today, so it was nice to finally get one over him.”Not only did de Kock survive Patel, but he also combined with Temba Bavuma to wrest the advantage in South Africa’s favour.”We knew the pressure was on us. The mindset was to somehow shift the pressure onto them. I didn’t want to get bogged down, so the only way forward that I knew was to play my natural game,” de Kock said. “I was obviously a little bit more aggressive than usual, but it was something that needed to be done.”Bavuma and de Kock scored 114 runs in 28 overs in the second session as the surface eased.”As conditions flattened out, they made the most of it and played well,” New Zealand fast bowler Neil Wagner conceded. “Full credit to de Kock and Bavuma, who showed lot patience and grafted through that period. You expect that from a quality team.”While de Kock already regarded South Africa’s 81-run lead as good enough and anything more “a bonus,” Wagner said New Zealand were “pretty happy with the position they are in.” Southerly winds are set to pick up on Saturday, which will make bowling tough for South Africa, and if New Zealand can make sure they set a decent target, Wagner hopes Patel can still have a say – if not on de Kock, then on the outcome of the match.”If it’s a southerly and quite cold, it’s going be tough work [to bowl]. It’s quite hard to control your length and line at times,” Wagner said. “I think Jeets [Patel] is definitely in the game. It does tend to bounce here and the footmarks deteriorate. It depends on how it deteriorates but Jeets definitely has a big role for us in the second innings.”

Michael Carberry closed in on a first Specsavers County Championship of the season with a fine 84 not out on the second day against Middlesex

ECB Reporters Network15-Apr-2017
ScorecardMichael Carberry stood up to the challenge of a strong Middlesex attack•Getty Images

Michael Carberry closed in on a first Specsavers County Championship of the season with a fine 84 not out on the second day against Middlesex.The Hampshire opener is making his first Ageas Bowl appearance in the Championship since he was diagnosed with cancer last June.Carberry pulled his side into a strong position as they replied to Middlesex’s 356 as they ended the day 148 runs in arrears with six wickets remaining.Carberry showed off his attritional side, wearing down Tim Murtagh, Steven Finn and Toby Roland-Jones in his crab-like style he saves for when he knows the pitch has gremlins.His blocking and leaving, especially against the troublesome Roland-Jones in his first spell, helped forge partnerships with Jimmy Adams, Liam Dawson and Sean Ervine.With opening partner Adams he played the role of defender as his long-standing friend could free his arms a little. The duo added 57 for the opening stand before Adams got an edge on Ollie Rayner to give James Franklin a simple catch.The same two Middlesex players reversed their roles to see off James Vince who was tempted too far into the corridor of uncertainty to find a thick edge, kicking the ground on his exit.The hallmarks of a good Carberry innings are his cutting and pulling, and while the former was forthcoming with genius precision, the latter was made to wait.But when the big pull shot came it was the shot of the day, as he swivelled and connected off Murtagh to see his shot slam into the advertising hoardings – never seeming to deviate from about five metres off the ground.Carberry’s fifty came from 154 balls – brought up, fittingly, with a stinging cut to the boundary – one of 12 shots which reached the fence in one form or another.Liam Dawson was not impressed when umpire Jeremy Lloyds lifted his finger to the last ball before tea, with the batsman adjudged to have tickled one behind off Rayner.Carberry’s longest standing partner turned out to be Sean Ervine, with the pair scoring at the quickest rate of a slow-going day. Ervine scored a 70-ball fifty and appeared impenetrable until Finn returned to the attack with six overs left in the day to make him play on.Kyle Abbott, in as nightwatchman, looped a simple chance to Sam Robson at gully but the ball somehow hit the turf.Earlier, Middlesex were bowled out for 356 with Brad Wheal ending up with figures of 4 for 98. Abbott struck first – when he had Franklin feeling a foot outside off-stump – the ball flying to Vince at third slip.After Roland-Jones had hit an exhilarating 38, Wheal accounted for him when he nicked to second slip, Dawson pinned Rayner, then Wheal had Finn leg before.

Liam Livingstone and Mason Crane are among five uncapped players included in England’s 16-man squad for three T20s against South Africa

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jun-2017England have named five uncapped players in their 16-man squad for three T20s against South Africa at the end of June. Liam Livingstone and Mason Crane have won first call-ups, while Dawid Malan, Tom Curran and Craig Overton are also included ahead of potential debuts.Joe Root is among several white-ball regulars rested for the T20 series, meaning he can play Championship cricket for Yorkshire ahead of his first Test as England captain in July. Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid, Jake Ball and Ben Stokes have also been released to their counties, while Tymal Mills is missing through injury.Mark Wood will only be available for the first match of the South Africa series, with his workload likely to be managed by England after a starring role in their run to the Champions Trophy semi-finals. For the final two matches, his place will be taken by Somerset’s Craig Overton – who was previously called into the ODI squad in 2015, alongside his twin Jamie, but did not play. Jonny Bairstow is included for the first two matches before returning to Yorkshire.The inaugural round of day-night Championship matches on June 26-29 will see the involvement of Root, Moeen, Rashid, Ball, Stokes, Wood and Bairstow, as well as former England captain Alastair Cook and fast bowlers Stuart Broad and James Anderson, who is expected to have recovered from a groin injury.Livingstone had been tipped for inclusion in England’s one-day squad at the start of the summer and has been in impressive form for Lancashire and the Lions. “I found out yesterday and it’s obviously a very nice moment for me and I’m really looking forward to next week,” he said.”I’ve really enjoyed my time with the Lions whenever I’ve been involved. You’re given a lot of freedom and a free role to play. It’s a great environment to be involved in and especially with the way I play my cricket, it’s very exciting … I’ve always tried to not change how I am or the way I play so I’ll just go in and try to do what I’ve done for Lancashire.”From the very first day of hitting a cricket ball, it’s what you want to do and it’s what you work hard to achieve. A lot of hard work has gone into it, so if I was to make my debut it would be a very special moment for me and my family.”Crane, the Hampshire legspinner, made headlines when selected as an overseas player for New South Wales during the winter and was among the leading wicket-takers in the group stage of the Royal London Cup with 14 at 27.42. Malan, 29, is a former captain of Middlesex’s T20 side and was a non-playing member of the squad for the one-off T20 against Sri Lanka last year, while Surrey seamer Curran won his maiden England call-up to the ODI squad on the tour of the Caribbean in March.”The T20 series against South Africa presents us with an opportunity to incorporate several players who have come through the talent pathway into the senior group,” James Whitaker, England’s national selector, said. “The squad has an exciting blend of youth and experience and we are looking forward to a competitive series against strong opposition.”With five uncapped players selected, there is undoubted talent coming through the system and we are excited to see some of these players showcase their skills at the highest level.”Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Tom Curran and Craig Overton have impressed for the England Lions over the past 12 months and have transferred their skills across all formats, in particular with their respective counties.”Young legspinner Mason Crane is another player with great promise and he has made great strides with Hampshire this season and has added to his experience with stints in the North-South Series earlier in the season, where he took crucial wickets and even earned selection for New South Wales in Australia’s premier domestic competition the Sheffield Shield.”England T20 squad: Eoin Morgan (capt), Jonny Bairstow (first two matches of series), Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Mason Crane, Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, Alex Hales, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Craig Overton (last two matches of series), Liam Plunkett, Jason Roy, David Willey, Mark Wood (first match of series)

Joe Denly took two late wickets to follow scores of 119 and 71 not out as Kent closed in on victory over Sussex

Paul Edwards at Tunbridge Wells28-May-2017
Scorecard”There will be days and days and days like this,” says Susan Traherne at the end of , the film David Hare adapted from his own stage play. Susan is wrong; that final scene is a flashback and we know that her later life will be filled with unhappiness. All the same, as spectators watched Kent’s bowlers press hard for victory over Sussex on the third evening at Tunbridge Wells it would have been easy for them to echo Susan’s blamelessly optimistic sentiments as she looked over the French countryside. The ovations that greeted Matt Coles’ two early wickets and Joe Denly’s two late ones were also outpourings of pleasure from people grateful to be watching their sport at one of English cricket’s other Edens. And surely there will be more Sundays like this?Such assumptions are dangerous. As reported in the on Friday, this game was nearly moved to Canterbury because of concerns about both the outfield and the pitch, the latter having flooded because of inadequate covering by employees of Tunbridge Wells council, the body which “owns” this ground. Hours of work by Kent’s groundstaff and members of the Tunbridge Wells club saved the Festival but it was a close-run thing and the county’s officials are clear they will not go through such a shemozzle again.All of which may not have troubled some of those who had seen Kent’s batsmen do much as they wished with Luke Wright’s bowlers in the morning session. Sean Dickson had made 74 when he was leg before on the front foot to Danny Briggs. The batsmen looked down at his leg and back at the stumps when Peter Hartley gave his decision; perhaps he was regretting all those Friday afternoons when he dozed off during geometry lessons.Daniel Bell-Drummond seemed set for a hundred when he inside-edged an attempted square-drive on to his stumps and departed with 90 runs against his name. At that point Kent were 188 for 2 but the real entertainment was to come as Denly and Sam Northeast scored 70 runs in 35 minutes before lunch. The crowd enjoyed this, too, although their pleasure was alloyed somewhat by the need to protect their strawberries and Sancerre from cricket balls travelling at ferocious velocities. Denly cleared the rope three times in successive overs as he and Northeast sought to pile up the sort of lead that would allow them to set very aggressive fields while giving Sussex nothing but a draw on their dance card. Thirty years ago the picnics may have been more modest – Scotch eggs and Blue Nun, perhaps – but no one doubted that the Tunbridge Wells festival would continue, rather as it had since 1901.Northeast and Denly brought up their century partnership in 72 balls and the declaration was applied 20 minutes after the resumption. Sussex were challenged to score 504 to win and one or two Kent supporters may have pledged that they would breakdance in the Pantiles if Darren Stevens and his congregation of bowlers allowed this one to slip.Immediately the self-respect of the Sevenoaks faithful, not to mention the ambience of Tunbridge Wells’ most stylish quarter, seemed secure. Harry Finch was leg before to a full delivery from Coles in the third over of the innings; ten minutes later Luke Wells played too early at a delivery from the same bowler and gave an shin-high return catch to the Maidstone mountain. Poor Wells, his misery seemed beyond conception. He dropped his bat, bowed his head in his hands and took longer to leave the ground than a substituted Premier League footballer when his team is winning 1-0 and there are moments to play.Two balls later Chris Nash could offer his sympathy. His foot movement restricted by Adam Rouse’s decision to stand up to the stumps, the Sussex opener had his off stump knocked back and its bail broken by a good ball from Stevens which nipped away a shade. Sussex were then 8 for 3 and we were wondering whether we might be home before evensong.It did not turn out that way. Partly this was because Wright hit Stevens’ more attacking deliveries for eight boundaries in 38 before he nicked a leg-side catch to Rouse off James Harris. More persuasively, however, it was explained by Stiaan van Zyl and Michael Burgess’ obduracy, the pair batting for 30 overs and deep into the evening session as they sought to make Kent fight for their points. Van Zyl’s shot selection was particularly impressive and he had made 78 off 134 balls when he was judged caught behind off Denly’s part-time legspin. To say that he was not pleased by Hartley’s decision does little justice to his apparent ire.Next over, Chris Jordan collected a pair when he gave a gentle return catch to Denly and, once again, a three-day finish threatened. But David Wiese and Burgess batted stoutly through the final 11 overs and Burgess in particular will have gained more than 44 runs from his 157-minute innings. Kent’s victory, though, should be confirmed at some stage on Monday and one could wish that the future of cricket at the Nevill was as certain. One hopes, indeed, that the banks of dark asperatus cloud which encircled this sacred place in the late afternoon did not symbolise something.There is clearly a need for all parties to talk and to do so soon. More responsibility should be given to Steve Niker and his staff at the Nevill; they would break their backs to ensure that the festival continues. It would be easy to demonise the local authority but they have pressing financial priorities and may wish to delegate to people who actually know something about cricket outfields and pitches.On the other hand, Tunbridge Wells council may be under the misapprehension that they own this blessed plot. They do not; rather, they are the guardians of one of the finest cricket grounds in England and they are properly charged with the task of ensuring that the Nevill’s full glory is available to the next generation. Kent, meanwhile, are doubly blessed: “God or whatever means the good” has granted them the use of the St Lawrence and Nevill grounds; they must honour such gifts and do whatever they can to stay at both venues. Tunbridge Wells is a demi-paradise and we have seen so much good cricket this weekend. Surely there will be days and days like this?

Two Caribbean Premier League squads will play warm-up fixtures against the USA men’s team in the build-up to this year’s pair of CPL double-headers in Florida

Peter Della Penna21-Jul-2017Two Caribbean Premier League squads will play warm-up fixtures against the USA men’s team in the build-up to this year’s pair of CPL double-headers in Florida on August 5 and 6.The first fixture will involve USA and St Kitts & Nevis Patriots on August 2 while Jamaica Tallawahs will play USA on August 3. Both games will take place at the Central Broward Regional Park in Lauderhill.The fixtures follow up efforts made by CPL organizers in 2016 to include USA national team players as part of the week’s festivities in Florida. A USA XI played a CPL Developmental XI in an exhibition T20 game during the four-day CPL tour of Florida last year. Each of the six CPL squads also included two USA players in their training squads throughout the week.Several first-choice players will be unavailable for USA, primarily because five players are contracted with CPL franchises during the tournament. Allrounder Timroy Allen is in his second year with Jamaica Tallawahs. Akeem Dodson is in his inaugural season with Barbados Tridents, as is legspinner Timil Patel with St Lucia Stars. Ali Khan returns to Guyana Amazon Warriors for his second year while USA captain Steven Taylor was drafted by Amazon Warriors earlier this year after spending the previous two seasons with Tridents.

A BCCI official confirmed that the board would approach the court “very soon”

Arun Venugopal11-Aug-2017The BCCI is set to appeal against the Kerala High Court judgement that had ordered the board to lift the life ban on fast bowler Sreesanth for his alleged involvement in the 2013 spot- fixing scandal in the IPL. Confirming the development, a BCCI official told ESPNcricinfo that the board would approach the court “very soon”.In its judgement on Monday, the Kerala High Court had, according to media reports, observed that the BCCI’s refusal to lift the ban was a violation of natural justice. After Sreesanth and two other Rajasthan Royals bowlers – Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila – were arrested for alleged fulfilling of promises made to bookmakers in May 2013, they were banned for life by the BCCI.The court’s observations factored that in 2015 Sreesanth had been exonerated of spot-fixing charges by a Delhi trial court due to insufficient evidence under the MCOCA act, a special law passed by the Maharashtra state government to tackle organised crime syndicates and terrorism.The BCCI, however, has consistently detached its decisions from the outcome of any legal proceedings. Following the board’s investigation in 2013, conducted by the BCCI’s then anti-corruption unit chief Ravi Sawani, the BCCI maintained that its decisions “independent to any criminal proceeding” and “based on its independent disciplinary action, shall remain unaltered.”Consequently, Sreesanth’s request for a no-objection certificate to play league cricket for Glenrothes CC in Scotland was shot down in January. However, soon after his ban was lifted by the court, the Kerala Cricket Association, Sreesanth’s home body, wrote to the BCCI requesting the board to allow his return to active cricket in the forthcoming domestic season. Sreesanth last played official cricket during IPL 2013.”Sreesanth had met me a day after the judgement and communicated his availability for Kerala,” KCA secretary Jayesh George told ESPNcricinfo. “So, we wrote to the board asking it to consider the matter favourably and allow him to play domestic matches this year. The BCCI hasn’t replied to the letter yet.”For his part, Sreesanth said he was overwhelmed by the support from the cricketing community. “Since 2015, once I got the clean chit a lot of support has been coming, especially from the cricketers, first-class as well as international, but then especially from yesterday they have been bit more public and I am very happy that people are coming out in open and supporting me,” he told . “Everybody is looking up to me to perform and get back to the squad. That’s a great sign. All the first-class cricketers especially in Kerala and some international cricketers too have messaged me and motivated me saying ‘We always had faith in you and it’s just a matter of time, hope you have not put on weight.'”

Richie Berrington’s patient 129 helped Scotland to a 110-run first-innings lead, but two strong batting performances from Papua New Guinea thwarted their push for a win

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Oct-2017
ScorecardPeter Della Penna

Scotland remained the only team without a win in the Intercontinental Cup after a high-scoring draw against Papua New Guinea in Port Moresby. Scotland are still fifth on the table, three points above sixth-placed PNG. Richie Berrington’s patient 129, off 297 balls, gave Scotland a chance to win their first game after they took a handy 110-run first-innings lead.However, quick half-centuries from Lega Siaka (83 off 135 balls), Tony Ura (75 off 112) and Assad Vala (61 off 92) in the second innings ensured the game petered out into a draw.After electing to bat, PNG posted 404 on the back of top-order contributions from Vani Morea (53) and Siaka (48), and lower-order fifties from Chad Soper (60) and Norman Vanua (64). Fast bowler Safyaan Sharif returned 4 for 94.Scotland were reduced to 223 for 5 in their reply but three consecutive fifty-plus partnerships carried them to a position of strength. Berrington added 91 for the sixth wicket with Michael Leask (58), 52 with Sharif (25) for the seventh, and 61 with Mark Watt (81) for the eighth.

The ECB has been forced to delay its plans to finalise the commercial terms of the new-team T20 competition after key aspects were rejected by the first-class counties

George Dobell23-Oct-2017The ECB has been forced to delay its plans to finalise the commercial terms of the new-team T20 competition after key aspects were rejected by the first-class counties.The ECB recently circulated a framework agreement for the tournament in the hope it would be signed by now, but feedback from several counties suggested they felt the goalposts had been moved significantly since they agreed to support it. As a consequence, the ECB chairman Colin Graves, wrote to the counties on Friday to reassure them he was “very aware” of the “legitimate questions and concerns” they had raised and to inform them the ECB was “dropping the deadline” for feedback over the agreement to allow a longer period of consultation.That means counties will be asked to tender to host the matches without an accurate idea of the costs or revenues involved.The ECB will distribute tender documents to the counties (and the MCC) on Tuesday for the allocation of major matches from 2020. It will be followed by a presentation period in January – an opportunity for the grounds to show what they can offer – with the allocation set to be announced on February 14. There will, as ever, be significant winners and losers from the announcement with the decision over which clubs will host the new-team T20 competition and the 2023 Ashes series especially intriguing.Central to the delay in agreeing the commercial terms of the new-team T20 competition is a divide between those clubs likely to host it and those that will not. While some of the hosting clubs feel the financial rewards are inadequate, some of the smaller venues are concerned they are too generous and will put their own clubs at a significant long term disadvantage. The current plans would see the hosting clubs receive an annual fee of £150,000 and 30 per-cent of their own gate revenues. The first-class counties have already been guaranteed £1.3m a year each for lending their support to the new competition.Some of the hosting clubs are also uneasy that the ECB’s demand for ‘clean grounds’ during the tournament will incur huge costs and damage their own commercial agreements. A clean ground, as defined by the ICC, means the hosting club cannot use it for games (or, potentially, conferencing purposes) or retain any of its own sponsorship agreements visible in the stadium for the entirety of the tournament. Effectively, therefore, clubs would have to move out of their own grounds for five-weeks in mid-summer. They are also concerned that the offer of 30% of gate revenues is nebulous until the ECB establishes the price of tickets. Previous comments suggest they will be priced low to attract as wide an audience as possible.There are also concerns that new competition will not, in the short term at least, offer the increase of funding to grass roots cricket that was anticipated. While there is an appreciation that the new competition – and a partial return of free-to-air broadcast coverage – will provide the oxygen of publicity the game has long required, it was also initially suggested that 10% of the new-competition revenues would go to grassroots cricket. But the framework agreement makes clear that figure will come from “net revenues”. Many (though not all) insiders do not expect the competition to make a profit in its opening years due to set-up costs, so the benefits to the grass roots game may be less tangible than originally hoped.Managing such expectations may be a recurring theme at the ECB in the coming years. Having secured an impressive-looking broadcast deal – £1.1 billion over five years from 2020 – they have raised hopes for increased funding across the game. They are now finding the demands for that money, not least in terms of player salaries, is going to require careful negotiation and planning.Meanwhile, the ECB hopes to finalise the composition of the board that will run the new-team T20 competition before the end of the year. The board, effectively a subcommittee of the full ECB board, will comprise two directors elected from the county game and five independent directors.