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An unbroken fifth-wicket stand of 109 between Amy Satterthwaite and Ellie Threlkeld was the second-highest partnership in KSL history and helped Lancashire Thunder secure a notable 33-run win in the Roses match

ECB Reporters Network27-Jul-2018
ScorecardAn unbroken fifth-wicket stand of 109 between Amy Satterthwaite and Ellie Threlkeld was the second-highest partnership in KSL history and helped Lancashire Thunder secure a notable 33-run win in the Roses match at Emerald Headingley.The Thunder recovered from 25 for 4 to post 134 for 4, with New Zealander Satterthwaite 57 not out and wicketkeeper Threlkeld unbeaten on 53 amidst a standout afternoon. The 19-year-old later claimed a record four stumpings and affected a run out as Diamonds replied with 101 all out.The Diamonds got off to a bright start in reply with a 43-run opening stand between captain Lauren Winfield and Australian Beth Mooney. But they were two of four wickets to fall for 16 runs inside four-and-a-half overs as the score slipped to 59 for 4.Both sides, who lost their opening fixtures on Sunday, had success with pace off the ball. In the end, England left-arm spinners Sophie Ecclestone and Alex Hartley were the pick with 3 for eleven off 3.2 overs and 3 for 19 from four as the Thunder won for only the second time across the two-and-a-bit seasons of the KSL. It also broke a run of two successive Roses defeats.After eight overs, this looked set to be a procession for the Diamonds as spin duo Chamari Atapattu and Katie Levick struck, while Alice Davidson-Richards’ medium-pacers claimed two wickets in three balls in the seventh.Lancashire reached halfway at 33 for 4, with left-handed Satterthwaite and Threlkeld, who has replaced Sarah Taylor behind the stumps this year, in the early stages of a 12.2-over alliance. And they batted confidently without taking too many risks before expanding.In the 16th over, Threlkeld slog-swept legspinner Levick for six before Satterthwaite lofted her straight for a second maximum. The pair reached their fifties in the penultimate over – Threlkeld off 40 balls and Satterthwaite off 30.They were only Lancashire’s second and third fifties in KSL history, while their stand has only been bettered by the unbroken 161 opening stand between Rachel Priest and Heather Knight for Western Storm against the Diamonds at York last August.Winfield then helped the Diamonds get off to a bright start in reply, twice handsomely driving Kate Cross for four, although she was dropped at point on 19 by Emma Lamb off the same bowler.The England World Cup winner hit a brisk 28 before miscuing her international team-mate Ecclestone to mid-on as the score fell to 43 for 1 in the sixth over. That became 56 for 2 in the ninth when Mooney hold out to deep midwicket off Hartley in her first over.Ecclestone then had Davidson-Richards stumped by Threlkeld at the end of the 10th before Hartley bowled Sri Lanka’s Atapattu at the start of the 11th. The run-out of talismanic England allrounder Katherine Brunt in the 14th over following a mix-up with Delissa Kimmince left the score at 71 for 5 and was a key blow.Kimmince later fell the same way before Threlkeld’s second stumping helped Hartley remove Thea Brookes. She then ran out Alice Monaghan and had Levick stumped off Danielle Hazell and Helen Fenby stumped off Ecclestone to wrap things up.

With several senior players returning to the fold, the coach is confident his team will put on a better show than they have in the recent past

Liam Brickhill28-Sep-2018Zimbabwe’s coach Lalchand Rajput is oozing optimism ahead of the first ODI in Kimberley on Sunday. It’s one trait by which his short tenure – he took over the position full-time in August after filling in on an interim basis in July – has been characterised.”South Africa has to be aware that this is not the Zimbabwe team of the past,” Rajput said. “This is a team that is going to give them a good run for their money. We have come to show the world that we are a competitive team and every game is important. We are here to show we can play aggressive cricket and we are here to win.”That’s fighting talk, and Rajput has inspired teams before. Part of the Indian team’s think-tank for a couple of years, including when they won the inaugural World T20 in 2007, Rajput was also in charge of Mumbai Indians in the 2008 IPL and oversaw many of Afghanistan’s recent achievements during his tenure as their coach. On his watch, Afghanistan won six out of 10 limited-overs series, secured Full Membership, and even toppled West Indies in an ODI in Gros Islet – their first win in the format over a Full Member other than Zimbabwe or Bangladesh.Rajput is no doubt looking to replicate that success with Zimbabwe, and is hoping the challenge of taking on South Africa for the first time in three years will spur his team on. “South Africa is always a big challenge, but a challenge always gets the best out of me and the players,” he said.Rajput’s optimism, however, is yet to translate to success on the field. While Zimbabwe stayed just about afloat in their T20I tri-series against Australia and Pakistan, they floundered in the ODIs to lose 5-0 as Pakistan set numerous records.”The series we played when I took over was not good for us, but it was never going to be easy to face Australia and Pakistan in the T20I triangular series and then Pakistan in the ODI series when we were missing seven to eight players,” Rajput explained.”But now that the players are back, it looks a balanced team – a team that wants to do well. Apart from Graeme Cremer and Sikandar Raza, most of our senior players are back and, when experience and youth combine, we can get the best out of the team.”

Surprisingly, Brendan Taylor went unpicked but he will be part of the Abu Dhabi T10 League that overlaps with the MSL

Liam Brickhill17-Oct-2018Legspinner Brandon Mavuta and allrounders Sikandar Raza and Sean Williams have all secured contracts to play in the Mzansi Super League in South Africa in November and December.Both Williams and Raza were picked up by Tshwane Spartans, Williams securing R 350,000 (USD 24,500) while Raza earned R 100,000 (USD 7,000). They will join a strong line-up that also includes AB de Villiers, Eoin Morgan, Lungi Ngidi and Dean Elgar.Mavuta will join Durban Heat for the league, which runs from 16 November to 16 December and includes 32 games in total. The 21-year-old Mavuta picked up a R 180,000 (USD 12,600) deal and will allow his team the cover of a second legspinning option, when Rashid Khan is away at the Abu Dhabi T10 League, from 23 November to 2 December.The three Zimbabweans were part of a group of 11 who were included in the MSL player draft, among 342 international and South African cricketers vying for 96 spots in the six league teams. Brendan Taylor, Craig Ervine, Solomon Mire, Tendai Chisoro, Chris Mpofu, Elton Chigumbura, Kyle Jarvis and Neville Madziva had all also thrown their names into the hat. Surprisingly, Taylor went unpicked but he will be part of the Abu Dhabi T10 League that overlaps with the MSL.As is becoming the norm worldwide T20 league cricket has become increasingly important to Zimbabwe’s cricketers, who don’t play as often as their international colleagues. This year, Raza was also at the Global T20 Canada and played an important role for Paktia Panthers in the Afghanistan Premier League (APL) before joining the Zimbabwe squad on tour in Bangladesh. He is also due to take part in Nepal’s Everest Premier League, playing for Kathmandu Kings XI, in December.Malcolm Waller also played in the APL, for Balkh Legends, and is one of the many Zimbabweans who took part in the 2017-18 Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), along with Graeme Cremer, Raza and Mire. Elton Chigumbura and Hamilton Masakadza had also been part of the BPL before.

The former Australian legspinner was unimpressed by the words and catchphrases unveiled around Australian cricket this week

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Nov-2018Shane Warne was unimpressed by the new buzzwords and catch phrases in Australian cricket, saying it was “verbal diarrhoea” and that “it makes you vomit,” as the administration and team attempt to recover from the fallout of the ball-tampering scandal at Newlands in March.”Can I cut to the chase here? They need to find the best captain, find who’s going to be the best captain for each form of the game and say ‘guys, run with me’,” Warne said while commentating for during the first ODI against South Africa in Perth, where Australia suffered a heavy defeat. “Forget all the words, forget all the verbal diarrhoea and all that sort of stuff. That’s all rubbish, seriously, it makes you vomit.”Warne’s comments, which won’t come as a huge surprise, came after a week of tumult in Australian cricket, following the release of a team and culture review. A 38-word Player Pact was unveiled, and on the eve of the Perth ODI, photos revealed words such as “patience”, “pressure” and “elite honesty” emblazoned in the Australian dressing room. “Elite honesty,” in particular, came under a lot of scrutiny on social media.”You can write your 200-page document, you can have sports science and high performance and all that other ridiculous stuff,” Warne said. “I think some of the stuff they’re worrying about is trying to look like they’re doing the right thing. You can’t forget what Australians are, their DNA, and that is hard, aggressive, positive cricket and then play fairly.”At the end of the day you’ve got to play cricket, it’s a simple game and it’s a performance-based game. You’ve got to perform on the field. All these words and everything, it’s all about actions and I think it’s all about basics. The captain and vice-captain lead the way and the rest come after you. You inspire, inspire from within with your performances and the way you perform on the field.”None of this writing words, 200-page documents, just get out and play better.”

With a decade’s experience of running IPL teams behind him, Arvinder Singh hopes to bring an emphasis on sporting excellence to go with T10’s entertainment value

Barny Read27-Nov-2018One month out from the second edition of the T10 League, the tournament chairman Shaji Ul Mulk was in Mumbai for an important meeting. He was bringing a new CEO on board.Arvinder Singh was closely involved with the IPL for ten seasons, serving as CEO of Kings XI Punjab from 2008 to 2015 before moving to Gujarat Lions for the 2016 and 2017 seasons.Arvinder hadn’t thought much of the T10 League’s inaugural season. But the Mumbai meeting with Ul Mulk convinced him of the potential of the format.Now sitting in the stands as the game roars around him, Arvinder explains his main task as the league’s CEO: to turn T10 into a bona fide tournament in cricket’s calendar.”I did not see [the first tournament] live,” Arvinder tells ESPNcricinfo. “I had heard about this but, to be frank, I did not take it seriously. I don’t blame anybody for what happened last year. It started off as four days of cricket, carnival and entertainment.”At the end of the day leagues are not made of all of that. While that’s okay to keep that in the stands and the entertainment high, if the cricket is not good and the cricket is not serious then you won’t be taken seriously.”That’s the change that you see here and that is something I put my foot down to ensure it stays.”Arvinder’s appointment came in the middle of a testing build-up to the league’s second season. Salman Iqbal, the league’s president, had stepped down, and one of the tournament’s eight franchises had to be rebranded following an order from the Sindh High Court. At one point, it seemed as if the 2018 season wouldn’t get underway at all.”It is certainly a big challenge but I’m not too concerned with what happens behind the scenes,” Arvinder says. “If the product is good and the product is good on the ground, that is what I’m focused on. I think the league itself needs to have the strength within itself to bear the challenges off the pitch and continue to focus on what the product is.”I believe there is tremendous potential for this format. It’s the fourth format sanctioned by the ICC and we have first-mover advantage and very exciting performances.”The ICC’s approval, and the big names on the tournament’s roster – Chris Gayle, Shahid Afridi, Rashid Khan, Eoin Morgan – are evidence to Arvinder that the wider world could fall in love with T10.”You name them, they are all here, so there must be something right about this,” he says. “I keep talking to the players and everybody is pretty excited about this format. It’s up to the league now to take this forward and ensure that we’re able to showcase it in the manner of a professional league.”From a crowd-engagement perspective I appreciate the fact that the crowd wants to be engaged and be a part of the game as well.”This is fine in the stadium but there are also hundreds of thousands watching on TV. From that perspective, if I do not get the eyeballs for serious cricket then all of this has no meaning.”

India wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant and South Africa fast bowler Duanne Olivier were also big gainers

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Jan-2019Cheteshwar Pujara’s tally of 521 runs in the four Tests in Australia, his best-ever returns on an overseas tour, has vaulted him to third spot in the ICC rankings for Test batsmen. His runs were crucial in India’s historic 2-1 series win that extended their run at the top of the team standings, while Australia remained fifth despite losing a point.Pujara struck his overseas best of 193 in the drawn fourth Test in Sydney, to follow centuries in Adelaide and Melbourne, and was named Player of the Series. Elsewhere, Rishabh Pant, who also brought up his best Test score of 159 not out in Sydney, was another big gainer, jumping 21 spots to vault into the top 20. No Indian wicketkeeper has been ranked higher in the batting rankings than Pant, who now sits at No. 17.Pant’s aggregate of 673 points are the highest-ever by an Indian wicketkeeper. MS Dhoni, who retired from Tests in December 2014, held the previous highest rating points (662), and his highest ranking was No. 19. Pant was India’s second-highest run scorer in the series with 350 runs. In addition, he also collected 20 dismissals.In the first Test in Adelaide, Pant took 11 catches to equal the world record for most catches by a wicketkeeper in a Test. He eclipsed the all-time India record of 10 catches by Wriddhiman Saha, and drew level with England wicketkeeper Jack Russell and South Africa’s AB de Villiers.Meanwhile, Ravindra Jadeja gained one place to be listed fifth among bowlers, even as he surpassed West Indies captain Jason Holder to climb to second place among allrounders. Jadeja played only the final two Tests, picking seven wickets in addition to a counter-attacking half-century in Sydney.A few South Africa players also moved up the rankings table, having taken an unassailable lead in the three-match series, with victories in the first two Tests in Centurion and Cape Town. Opening batsman Aiden Markram moved back into the top 10 after scoring 78 in South Africa’ eight-wicket win over Pakistan in the Cape Town Test. He slotted in at No. 10, while team-mate Temba Bavuma moved into the top 30 for the first time.Among the bowlers, Vernon Philander has gained one position to reach third place while Duanne Olivier, who picked 16 wickets in two Tests, continued his surge to move up to 32nd place from 36th.

Joe Root challenges Test debutant Joe Denly to make the most of his chance as England look to bounce back against West Indies

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Jan-2019England captain Joe Root has challenged Joe Denly to seize the moment after being named to make his debut in the second Test against West Indies in place of axed opener Keaton Jennings.Root confirmed Denly would come into the side for the match in Antigua starting on Thursday with England trailing 1-0 after a comprehensive 381-run defeat inside four days in Barbados.”It’s disappointing for Keaton, he’s done some very good things and he’ll continue to keep developing,” Root said. “He’s very much a part of this squad moving forward but it’s a great opportunity for Joe to show what he’s capable of.”At 1-0 down in the series I feel it’s proactive to change things up at the top of the order.”Fast bowler Stuart Broad, controversially left out of the team for the first Test, comes into England’s 12-man squad, as does spinner Jack Leach, with Adil Rashid granted permission to return home for the birth of his second child after being omitted from the final XII. Rashid claimed 0 for 117 in 26 overs during the first Test.Pressed on whether Broad would play, Root said: “We’ll wait and see, won’t we?””Stuart adds an extra seam option and if we were to play two spinners it’s a change of mentality and approach of the spinners, having a more controlled bowler like Leachy,” Root said.”It’s not necessarily a reflection on how Adil has gone about things. When he comes into the side you want him to make things happen and take wickets, to show off all of his tricks. On balance we think a slightly different approach might be more effective here.”Root said Jennings’ omission was by no means final.”He is someone who is always developing, constantly improving his game,” Root said. “It’s been a tricky start for him over here and he’ll be disappointed to miss out but he’s got a very good attitude.”I’m sure he’ll go away, work on his game, keep looking to improve. I definitely don’t think it’s the end for him. He is doing all the right things. He felt he might not have been far away but the position we’re in in this series… we’re out here to win. We’re not here to look forward to the Ashes.”Root was similarly open-minded about Denly’s future, meaning England’s search for a long-term opening pair is by no means over.”We have to keep a pretty open mind,” Root said. “He’s definitely got an opportunity to show what he’s capable of. He’s obviously worked extremely hard, impressed on the two tours he’s been on. Hopefully he can continue the fine form he had last year for Kent.”Denly, 32, returned to the international limited-overs arena in 2018 after an eight-and-a-half-year hiatus. He was also named Professional Cricketers’ Association Players’ Player of the Year after an outstanding season in all formats for Kent, where he scored 1729 runs and took 57 wickets.Root believes his side is “more than capable” of bouncing back from their dismal performance in Bridgetown and, just as Denly is in a prime position to make the most of the opportunity presented to him, Root expects Broad to make the most of his chance, should he play at North Sound.”No-one likes being left out. Especially someone as experienced as him,”Root said. “I expect him to come back and try and prove a point.”He’s someone who can be quite stubborn sometimes and likes to prove people wrong. That’s a very good strength of his and something that can work in our favour.”

Former England fast bowler replaces Steve Kirby, who left Lord’s in October

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Feb-2019Ajmal Shahzad, the former England fast bowler, has been appointed as MCC’s new head coach.Shahzad, 33, played for England in all formats of the game as well as representing five different first-class counties. He replaces Steve Kirby, who left Lord’s in October to become part of Derbyshire’s coaching team.Shahzad will begin in the role immediately and lead the MCC Young Cricketers programme, as well as providing elite coaching in the MCC Cricket Academy.”It is a huge honour to be appointed to the role,” said Shahzad. “There has been a lot of hard work behind the scenes but it’s all been worth it, and now I’m looking forward to the years ahead.”I believe that the 16 years of experience in international and county cricket I have is invaluable, and I am sure that this will be of benefit to the MCC Young Cricketers.”Our job as coaches and mentors is to help these young players both on and off the field. We know enough as a coaching group to help them on the cricketing side, but it is that personal touch that counts.”2019 is a massive year at Lord’s, and with so much international cricket taking place, it’s an opportunity for the Young Cricketers to eat, live and breathe what they want to become.”The YC’s programme is looking to give players who have missed the opportunity through their county age groups, or been involved with counties and not really progressed. We can potentially give them a second chance.”Shahzad embarked on his coaching career in 2017, having represented Yorkshire, Lancashire, Nottinghamshire, Sussex and Leicestershire in an 11-year playing career. He became Head Coach of senior cricket at Ampleforth College in York, whilst also working with Kirby at MCC as a one-day specialist bowling coach for MCC Young Cricketers, a role which developed into the Assistant Coach position.The MCC Young Cricketers programme has run since 1972, and includes among its graduates England’s Ian Botham and Phil Tufnell, Australia’s Mark Waugh and New Zealand’s Ross Taylor.John Stephenson, MCC Assistant Secretary (Cricket) said: “After a rigorous recruitment process, we are thrilled to be able to announce Ajmal as our new Head Coach.”His energy, passion and enthusiasm is evident and with him being fresh from the professional game, I am sure that he will be successful in driving forward the club’s coaching structure.”

Bowler runs through Lancashire line-up before lunch on final day

ECB Reporters Network14-Apr-2019
A seven-wicket haul to Charlie Morris has led Worcestershire to an emphatic victory by an innings and 18 runs over Leicestershire on the final day’s play of their County Championship match.Worcestershire needed just one session to take the six wickets required to complete a maximum-point victory at the Fischer County Ground, Grace Road, with Morris adding his first-class career-best 7-45 to his 1-48 from the first innings.Seamer Morris had dismissed Ateeq Javid, Paul Horton and Mark Cosgrove on day three to reduce the Foxes to 31 for 3 in their second innings after acting Worcestershire captain Ben Cox had decided to bowl again, having dismissed them for 302 in their first innings, a deficit of 251.Leicestershire resumed on 132-4, still needing another 119 runs to make Worcestershire bat again, and the end appeared nigh when they lost three more wickets in adding just three runs to their overnight score.Nightwatchman Chris Wright lost his middle stump to a Josh Tongue delivery which came back and stayed low, Harry Dearden his leg stump to a ball from Morris which swung back in to the left-hander, and Lewis Hill edged his second ball, also from Morris, to wicketkeeper Cox to leave Leicestershire on 135-7.Tom Taylor, whom Leicestershire regard as a genuine all-rounder, gave Colin Ackermann solid support as South African Ackermann raised his half-century. The pair had added 59 for the eighth wicket when former Derbyshire all-rounder Ross Whitely, bowling for the first time in the match, had Ackermann caught behind flashing at a delivery pushed across him for 69.Ben Mike did not last long, caught at third slip by Tom Fell off Morris. Taylor continued to bat with aplomb, reaching 57 before top-edging a pull at Morris and being caught at deep midwicket by Whitely.

Wyatt and Jones lead the line as England seal 96-run victory in final match of tour

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Mar-2019England women 204 for 2 (Jones 57, Wyatt 51) beat Sri Lanka 108 for 6 (Karunaratne 44) by 96 runsEngland’s women completed their second 3-0 clean sweep on their tour of Sri Lanka, wrapping up the T20I series with their most dominant display yet in a 96-run win in Colombo.Batting first after Sri Lanka won the toss, England’s batsmen made hay throughout their 20 overs, with Danni Wyatt and Amy Jones each making half-centuries at the top of the order before Tammy Beaumont and Nat Sciver cut loose in the closing overs.Wyatt was the first of only two wickets to fall, prised out for 51 from 33 balls after a 96-run opening stand that spanned the first ten overs, before Jones departed 20 runs later for 57 from 38, once again to the toiling Oshadi Ranasinghe, who was one of only two bowlers to concede her runs at less than 11 an over.With the platform set, Sciver and Beaumont climbed onto the offensive, crashing an unbroken stand of 88 in just seven overs. Sciver smashed 10 fours in her 49 not out from 24 balls, while Beaumont scampered between the wickets to keep pace with 42 from 25.In reply, Hansima Karunaratne saved face for Sri Lanka with a hard-fought 44 from 53 balls, but her team-mates struggled to show much resistance.Linsey Smith struck with her first ball to remove Umesha Thimashini, lbw for 1, before Freya Davies had the captain Chamari Atapattu caught behind for 10 with the first ball of her second over.Kate Cross, playing her first match of the T20 leg, chipped in with two wickets, either side of two further breakthroughs from Heather Knight and Laura Marsh.From 82 for 6, Karunaratne at least ensured that Sri Lanka batted out their 20 overs, but the game was long since gone.