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Lauren Winfield-Hill’s 63 goes in vain for Diamonds in rain-affected game

ECB Reporters Network27-Apr-2024Ella McCaughan blasted a half-century to take her past 1,000 Southern Vipers runs and help her side win back-to-back Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy matches.Opener McCaughan was belligerent in her 97-ball 83, with Charli Knott continuing her fine start to life in the UK with 40 – as Vipers totted up 287.Diamonds stuttered in response before Lauren Winfield-Hill’s 63 and Erin Burn’s 45 steadied things before another stumble – with Charlie Dean claiming 4 for 34.Rain ended proceedings with Diamonds 70 runs short of the DLS target of 232 and put an end to Diamonds’ winning start to the season.Diamonds skipper Hollie Armitage stuck Vipers in – with weather around and the benefits of chasing with DLS – but McCaughan and Maia Bouchier began like they were up against some rain.The duo had 50 up inside eight overs, with McCaughan the unlikely aggressor of the partnership, while playing a series of sumptuous shots – none more so than the cut, on drive and cover drive combo in the third over off Lizzie Scott.The 21-year-old had a strike-rate of 55.77 in List A matches before this match but blasted her way to her sixth Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy half-century.Bouchier had been dropped on 14 at gully, one of four drops across the Vipers innings, but fell for an entertaining 26 when she top-edged Phoebe Turner – giving the medium pacer her first.Knott continued the fast pace with some well-judged dabs to the third boundary, as the Australian followed up her 41 and 58 not out in her opening two Viper appearances with a run-a-ball 40.The end of her 93-run stand with McCaughan, coupled with the pair departing in back-to-back overs, began a fightback for Diamonds which stopped Vipers from reaching 300.Emily Windsor, Freya Kemp, Charlie Dean and Georgia Adams all got starts but couldn’t blow the visitors away like the top order had.Australian Burns started finding good turn, which did for Windsor and Kemp, for her 2 for 56, while Phoebe Turner completed her back-to-back three-wicket hauls when she had Adams caught behind.Vipers’ 287 for 9 felt lower than it could have been but Linsey Smith bowling Emma Marlow in the sixth over gave them early control of the reply.In reply, Marlow – opening in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy for the first time with Sterre Kalis on international duty – had her middle stump knocked back by Smith.Dean had Armitage leg-before and Bess Heath stumped in quick succession as the chase struggled to get going.Winfield-Hill and Burns got things pointing in the right direction with a punchy partnership for the fourth wicket.Former England opener Winfield-Hill found the gaps with ease to show her quality in her second fifty of the campaign – coming in 54 – albeit having been dropped on 9.The stand with Burns reached 82, and had almost caught up with the DLS target, before a flurry of wickets ended the Diamonds’ hopes.Burns was brilliantly caught at short third, Winfield-Hill picked out deep midwicket, Phoebe Turner was castled and Leah Dobson missed a straight one to give Dean her fourth.Rain, which had been light for a while, started to come down heavier just after 4pm to take the players off, with the DLS target 232.

Blaze boosted by several valuable contributions, including Kirstie Gordon

ECB Reporters Network01-May-2024Wales international Bethan Gammon’s 39 from No. 7 helped last year’s finalists The Blaze win their first Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy match of the season at the fourth attempt as they chased 189 to beat Northern Diamonds by two wickets with two balls remaining at Scarborough.Blaze were boosted by a number of valuable contributions in this thriller, including captain Kirstie Gordon, who claimed two wickets, two catches and added 19 opening the batting.But Gammon’s 52-ball effort was the most important in only her second appearance for the region where she is also the Pathway Talent Manager and has been called upon partly due to injury and unavailability.Despite failing to reach 200, Diamonds would still have been confident at halfway given the Blaze had been bowled out for 135, 126 and 87 in losing their first three matches of 2024. But Scarborough native Leah Dobson’s recovering 54 from 82 for 5 wasn’t enough for the hosts.Related

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No doubt The Blaze had the better of the batting conditions, despite the pitch being used. Morning mist was replaced by afternoon sunshine. Having said that, they played the much better cricket throughout, with Gammon and Ella Claridge – 26 not out – sharing 61 from 105 for 6.Halifax-born Blaze all-rounder Teresa Graves also had a good day back in her birth county. Having struck once with her seamers, she opened the batting and hit 33. Diamonds have now won two and lost two of their first four games.Diamonds elected to bat first, looking down at the pitch rather than up at the sky. But they stumbled badly from 32 without loss, losing four for 22, including star duo Lauren Winfield-Hill and Hollie Armitage for single-figure scores.Left-arm spinner Gordon had a hand in three of the first four wickets. She caught Winfield-Hill running back from mid-off as new-ball seamer Grace Ballinger struck before bowling Armitage with a beauty that pitched on middle and leg and clipped off-stump. She then had Emma Marlow stumped for 29.Dobson curbed her natural attacking instincts during her 85-ball innings to drag the Diamonds up to a defendable target. This was her second regional fifty. She shared 62 for the eighth wicket with in-form allrounder Abi Glen, whose 38 off 31 balls recovered things from 120 for 7 after 36 overs.Six of the seven bowlers employed by skipper Gordon struck on a pitch showing signs of uneven bounce and turn.Seamer Sophie Munro was excellent with 3 for 28 from 8.4 overs – the pick of the figures, while off-spinner Lucy Higham claimed two wickets.Munro bowled Erin Burns, Glen and Jess Woolston, the latter two as part of a late Diamonds collapse of their last three wickets to fall for only 11 runs.Graves and Gordon shared 43 inside 11 overs for the first Blaze wicket to provide a solid foundation for the chase.Spin was always likely to be the biggest weapon for the Diamonds, and the fabulous Katie Levick with 1 for 13 from 10 overs of leg-spin and the wily off-spin of Burns with 3 for 40 gave them hope.Levick made the breakthrough with her second ball when he she had Gordon caught behind down leg before Burns bowled Gordon and had Daisy Mullan caught and bowled off the leading edge as the score fell to 74 for 3 in the 22nd over.And when Phoebe Turner had Marie Kelly caught behind for 20 with 98 on the board, the nerves were jangling for Blaze.Those heightened further when Munro was run out and Nadine de Klerk was caught at short fine-leg off Woolston.But Gammon and Claridge calmly picked off the runs. When Gammon, aged 23, fell caught at cover off Sophia Turner’s seam at 166 for 7 in the 47th over, the hard work had seemingly been done.But Burns struck again, and the target became five off the last over from Sophia Turner with two wickets left. Higham hit the winning run.

England captain makes second fifty in a row as Western Storm seal 11-run win

ECB Reporters Network19-Jun-2024Heather Knight got herself into form ahead of England’s series with New Zealand with 66 as Western Storm condemned Sunrisers to the wooden spoon in the Charlotte Edwards Cup.England skipper Knight grabbed her second fifty in a row to average 52 in the competition, to put the disappointing Pakistan T20Is behind her before the White Ferns arrive for three ODIs and five T20s from next Wednesday.Her 74-run stand with 20-year-old Emma Corney – who made a CEC best of 46 – put Storm on track for 142 for seven, with Blaze loanee Sophie Munro picking up four for 23.Despite Grace Scrivens and Jo Gardner’s speedy start, Sunrisers fell 11 runs short to end as the bottom-placed side for the fourth year in a row – with Storm ending their tournament a point and a place better off.Storm chose to bat, and used Corney as a facilitator for Dani Gibson and then Knight to score runs quickly at the other end.Gibson used her feet to good effect as she bashed a trio of boundaries before top-edging to short fine, with the visitors reaching a creditable 44 for one in the powerplay.While Corney confidently ticked the runs along from one end, Knight showed all her experience and skill – with the pair putting on 74 for the second wicket.Devon-raised Corney strode past her previous CEC best of 40 – but fell four runs short of a maiden fifty when she slapped to backward point.It began a Storm collapse, which saw them lose six wickets for 41 runs in the final six overs.Fran Wilson was run out by a sensational direct hit from the boundary from Gardner, Sophie Luff chipped to mid-off, Kate Coppack brilliantly pouched Amanda Jade Wellington at short third before Nat Wraith skied one.But throughout, Knight continued to score at a decent pace, slog-sweeping the only six of the innings, as she brought up back-to-back fifties in 34 balls.She was stumped off the final ball – to hand Munro the fourth of her impressive haul – as Storm reached 142 for seven.In reply, Mady Villiers holed out to deep square in the fourth over, but Grace Scrivens and Gardner blitzed Sunrisers ahead of the rate.But the duo fell within six balls of each other either side of the powerplay to begin a wobble they never recovered from.Scrivens had continued her form from the 42 versus Blaze and unbeaten 62 against Stars to crash a quick-fire 26 – before falling to the last ball of the powerplay – while Gardner distributed three consecutive fours off Gibson.But both offered up simple catches, before Lissy MacLeod was caught and bowled first ball by Chloe Skelton.Amara Carr swept to short fine, Flo Miller was bowled and Amu Surenkumar found deep midwicket as Sunrisers never recovered.Jodi Grewcock held firm with 40 – one of two run outs in the last over – but Storm completed their second win of the competition without further anxiety.

Dravid sent a touching message to his successor wishing him luck which featured advice and some humour

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Jul-2024″Even if it’s difficult for you, crack a smile. Whatever else happens, that will shock people.”Outgoing India head coach Rahul Dravid did what many consider the unthinkable – he made Gautam Gambhir smile with the above message. Dravid sent out a touching message to the new head coach, who takes over with the T20I series against Sri Lanka starting on Saturday. In a video posted by the BCCI on social media, Gambhir was made to sit in front of a laptop to play the message which he didn’t know came from Dravid.”As your team-mate, I saw you giving it your all on the field,” Dravid said to Gambhir. “As your batting partner and fellow fielder, I saw your resilience and refusal to surrender. Across many IPL seasons, I noted your desire to win, your assistance to younger players and your drive to extract the best out of your team on the field.”I know how dedicated and passionate you are about Indian cricket and I am sure you will bring all these qualities into the new job.Related

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“As you know, the expectations will be high and the scrutiny will be intense. But even in the worst of times you will never be alone. You will have the support of the players, your support staff, the leaders of the past, the management and never forget for whom you play – for fans who are very demanding but will always be behind the team.”Soon after winning the T20 World Cup final last month in Barbados, Dravid had mentioned the role of “luck” that had helped his team lift the trophy and he hoped the same would help Gambhir too.”I also wish you a little bit of luck, as you know that all of us coaches need to make us look that little bit wiser and smarter than we actually are,” he said.Dravid’s dry humour also gave an appearance to elicit a smile from Gambhir. “Even if it’s difficult for you, crack a smile. Whatever else happens, that will shock people,” he said.”From one Indian cricket coach to another, one last thing. In the most heated of times, exhale, take a step back. I wish you the very best, Gautam. I am sure you will take the Indian team to even greater heights.”Reacting to Dravid’s message which made him “emotional,” Gambhir said there was a lot to learn from his predecessor not just for him but for the entire generation.”I don’t know how to react because this message means so much to me,” Gambhir said. “The reason is not because it comes from the person who I have succeeded but from a person who I have always looked up to when I was playing.”I have always felt that and I said it in a lot of my interviews – I think the most selfless cricketer I have actually ever played with. Rahul has done anything and everything Indian cricket needed.”I think there is so much to learn from, not only for me but for the next generation and the current generation as well. That’s how important Indian cricket is, not me, not individuals.”I don’t get too emotional but I think this message actually made me a lot emotional which normally I shouldn’t. But it’s a great message.”It’s massive shoes that I can hopefully fill. Hopefully, I can do that with absolute honesty, transparency and hopefully, I can make the entire nation and more importantly, the person I have always looked up to – Rahul – proud,” he said.

Find out about the draft order, prices, retention picks and availability issues

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Aug-2024

When will the draft take place?

It all happens on September 1. The WBBL draft will take place first, starting at 3pm AEST, followed straight after by the BBL draft.

What order do the teams pick in?

This was determined by a weighted lottery a few months ago, based on last season’s finishing positions. In the WBBL, Hobart Hurricanes came out with pick No. 1 and Perth Scorchers last with pick No. 8. In the BBL, Melbourne Stars will have first pick and Sydney Sixers the eighth one.Related

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There are four rounds in all. Round one involves Platinum players only; round two Platinum and Gold; round three Gold and Silver; and round four Silver and Bronze.In the BBL, Adelaide Strikers and Sydney Thunder have traded their second-round picks as part of Wes Agar’s move to Thunder. So, in that round, Strikers have pick 11 and Thunder pick 13. In the WBBL, Strikers have traded picks 19 and 30 to Melbourne Renegades, getting picks 22 and 27 in returnThe third round (gold and silver) of each draft goes in reverse order. So, in the WBBL, Scorchers will have consecutive picks at 16 and 17 and in the BBL Sixers will have the same.The round one WBBL order reads: 1 Hobart Hurricanes, 2 Sydney Sixers, 3 Melbourne Renegades, 4 Melbourne Stars, 5 Sydney Thunder, 6 Adelaide Strikers, 7 Brisbane Heat, 8 Perth ScorchersThe round one BBL order reads: 1 Melbourne Stars, 2 Melbourne Renegades, 3 Sydney Thunder, 4 Hobart Hurricanes, 5 Adelaide Strikers, 6 Brisbane Heat, 7 Perth Scorchers, 8 Sydney Sixers.Cricket Australia

How many overseas players will be drafted?

Each team will need to draft a minimum of two overseas players on top of their pre-signed names, meaning they can pass in only one round. The new mechanism was introduced this season to allow clubs in both competitions to sign one player before the draft and on multi-year deals if they wish. All the clubs have already taken advantage of this option.During the draft itself, the clubs will need to nominate which round their pre-signed overseas players are allocated to, based on the value of their contract. While many of them will be Platinum – the highest paid – that won’t be case for all. Renegades, for example, have already confirmed that Tim Seifert won’t be a Platinum pick. It’s also understood that in the WBBL, Brisbane Heat allrounder Nadine de Klerk will go in one of the lower bands.Clubs can sign a fourth overseas player during the draft if wanted, but they would be considered a replacement player. A maximum of three can be fielded in an XI.Replacement players can also be signed after the draft but have to come from those who have nominated, unless the tournament technical committee approves them under special circumstances, as happened with Nat Sciver-Brunt last season.

Full list of pre-signed players

Adelaide Strikers: Smriti Mandhana, Ollie Pope
Brisbane Heat: Nadine de Klerk, Colin Munro
Hobart Hurricanes: Lizelle Lee, Chris Jordan
Melbourne Renegades: Hayley Matthews, Tim Seifert
Melbourne Stars: Marizanne Kapp, Tom Curran
Perth Scorchers: Sophie Devine, Finn Allen
Sydney Sixers: Amelia Kerr, Akeal Hosein
Sydney Thunder: Chamari Athapaththu, Sam BillingsCricket Australia

So how much are the players paid?

There are four price bands. These figures are in Australian dollars.WBBL
Platinum: $110,000 (depending on availability)
Gold: $90,000
Silver: $65,000
Bronze: up to $40,000BBL
Platinum: $360,000-$420,000 (depending on availability)
Gold: $300,000
Silver: $200,000
Bronze: up to $100,000

Can players be retained by their previous team?

Yes, each club gets one retention pick. The basic example of a player who can be retained is one who played for the club the previous season. But there are other ways players qualify for retention. If they were signed last year but did not play (such as Danni Wyatt at Scorchers), they can be retained this year. When a club confirms which round their pre-signed player places into, that classes as their pick in that round and therefore they can’t then also use their retention.

What is player availability like?

Both competitions have now been reduced to 40-game regular seasons, with the WBBL’s new structure coming into effect this year after the BBL in 2023-24. There’s more of a squeeze on the WBBL this year while the BBL faces its usual headwinds from rival T20 leagues (SA20 and ILT20) and international cricket.The WBBL starts just seven days after the T20 World Cup finishes. There’s also various bilateral cricket at either end of the competition. India are due to play New Zealand straight after the World Cup while South Africa face England, which overlaps with the finals. England players selected for that tour will leave the WBBL but some South Africans, including Marizanne Kapp, will be available throughout and miss the T20Is.In the BBL, it’s even more of jigsaw puzzle although most of the pre-signed players have committed to a full season including the finals (that is a requirement for the 2025-26 season onwards, but optional for this one). Last season’s finals were decimated by an exodus of players to the UAE. However, some that are signed in the draft itself will again likely leave early with a host of them stating availability of six to nine games.The fixture congestion has been amplified for this season because the ILT20 has moved forward to make room for the Champions Trophy in February and will start on January 11, two days after the SA20 starts.

When do the competitions take place?

The WBBL runs from October 27 to December 1 and the BBL from December 15 to January 27.

“[Implementing a few things I am working on] in practice it’s different. When you do it in a match, it’s way different”

Shashank Kishore23-Aug-2024Jemimah Rodrigues would have it no other way than test herself in a competitive environment and in clutch moments wherever possible, especially when there’s a bigger picture, like the upcoming women’s T20 World Cup in the UAE this October.An established T20 globetrotter, having featured in the Hundred and WBBL, Rodrigues is currently playing in the Women’s Caribbean Premier League (WCPL) for Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR), alongside India team-mate Shikha Pandey.”These are the matches that I’m actually going to get before going and playing like proper team matches [T20 World Cup],” Rodrigues said at a media interaction organised by .Related

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“I’m really looking forward to a few things that I’m working on to try and implement it here because when you do it in practice it’s different. When you do it in a match, it’s way different and franchise cricket has always excited me.”Rodrigues made her international debut as a teenager in 2018, but when her career hit a rough patch in 2021, she rediscovered her form during her time with Northern Superchargers in the Hundred. In her very first game there, she struck an unbeaten 43-ball 92 to overturn a poor run of form after going more than 18 months without an international half-century. Her 249 runs in seven innings overall were the second-best aggregate in that season. It gave her career a second wind.As she builds towards her fourth T20 World Cup, Rodrigues would’ve had to be content with preparatory camps, match simulation and practice matches if not for the WCPL stint.”I love travelling, I love playing for different teams,” Rodrigues said when asked about the prospect of playing in the Caribbean. “I love meeting new people and new cricketers and getting to know them, how their mind works and how to play in different conditions. Because every time you go play cricket, you don’t get the same kind of situation. Every time it changes.”The more you’re in that situation and in those pressure moments I think that’s the best preparation you can have, so for me, I look at it more as a preparation for the T20 World Cup, and at the same time an added responsibility playing for TKR to do whatever I can to make sure my team wins at the end, so I’m just looking forward to playing these matches and I’m very excited for that.”Known to be a touch player, Rodrigues has had to move out of her comfort zone and bat at No. 5, with India head coach Amol Muzumdar keen on her lending stability to the middle order. At the WCPL, though, it’s likely Rodrigues will bat at No. 3.Could the switching of batting positions pose a challenge?”I think every batter has their own formula,” Rodrigues explained of the challenges of batting on slower Caribbean surfaces. “But I think for me, it’s very important to assess the conditions quickly and know which shots work for me on a slower track. For me, just knowing which shots work and having that clarity and going out there with clarity helps wherever I play. For me, the basic formula is just having clarity and applying yourself and playing wherever you’re playing.”

Warren Deutrom, Cricket Ireland CEO, said the appointment is a step towards Ireland becoming a “fit-for-purpose Full Member”

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Sep-2024Graeme West, the current Cricket West Indies (CWI) high-performance manager, is set to take over as director of high performance at Cricket Ireland (CI).In his stint with CWI that started in 2012, West worked closely with young talent from across the West Indies, and in 2016 was coach of the West Indies team that lifted the Under-19 World Cup. After working with the U-19 and ‘A’ teams, his current role as high-performance manager included the setting up of academy programmes and building a pool of coaches. He is expected to have a similar profile in Ireland, starting next month.Before joining CWI, West spent five years at the Middlesex academy. There, he worked with Ireland internationals Paul Stirling, Andy Balbirnie, Andrew Poynter and Stuart Poynter. West has not played any top-flight cricket, but holds a Level 4 ECB coaching qualification.”I am delighted to be joining Cricket Ireland as the organisation continues to grow and strengthen,” West said in a statement. “The Strategic Plan for 2024-27 is incredibly exciting and I look forward to applying my experience and philosophy to the wealth of talent and expertise that has been assembled as we further establish Ireland as a major cricketing nation.”Warren Deutrom, the chief executive at CI, said the appointment was a step towards Ireland becoming a “fit-for-purpose Full Member”.”When we set out to create and recruit for the role, the profile, initiative and experience that Graeme possesses is exactly what we were looking for,” Deutrom said. “We knew that in order to be successful in this new role, the candidate required leadership experience, exceptional people skills and the ability to be a mentor as much as a manager. In Graeme, we believe we have found that candidate.”As an organisation, we are going through a process of reviewing and evolving our operations to ensure we are fit-for-purpose as a Full Member in a rapidly changing environment. One of the strategic decisions we made was to acknowledge the scale and scope of our work has outgrown our pre-Full Member structures.”The senior men’s team have a busy few weeks ahead, with a white-ball tour of the UAE to play South Africa later this month. The senior women’s team is set to host England for three ODIs and two ODIs starting Saturday.

Ajaz Patel, Daryl Mitchell and Will Young also look back at “dream” 3-0 sweep of India

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Nov-2024Captain Tom Latham was “very, very ecstatic” and stated being “a little bit more aggressive with the bat” was one of the reasons behind New Zealand’s historic 3-0 sweep of India, sealed by a 25-run victory in the third Test in Mumbai. That became the first instance of India being whitewashed in a home Test series of at least three games.”We spoke about it after each Test match. We were trying to back it up, and I guess to finally do it here in Mumbai, on a completely different surface, one that would challenge us certainly with bat and ball – yeah, we’re pretty happy,” Latham said at the post-match presentation. “I think just being able to adapt to each ground [gives the most satisfaction].”Latham pointed out to the “all-round, great team effort” which helped New Zealand become the first visiting side to beat India in a series at home in 12 years. While the fast bowlers and Rachin Ravindra set it up in the first Test in Bengaluru, Mitchell Santner’s 13-wicket haul helped then win the series in the second Test in Pune.Related

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“We wanted to come over here and try to fire a few shots… and I certainly think we’ve done that,” Latham said. “We’ve been a little bit more aggressive with the bat, tried to be a little bit more proactive, and again, with the ball, we’ve tried to keep things simple, understand how India play a little bit, and just try to do our best. The guys have chipped in at different times, which has been the most important thing, and really happy to be standing here in this position.”The win in Mumbai, though, saw another different hero in Ajaz Patel, who bagged 11 wickets in the game after managing just four at an average of 49.25 in three innings before on the tour.”Spin bowling’s a little bit about rhythm, and sometimes when you’re in rhythm, it’s about making the most of it,” Ajaz said after picking up the Player-of-the-Match award in Mumbai, the city of his birth. “And when the conditions present themselves to you, you have to take it by the horns and really do something for your team.”In Mumbai, Ajaz followed a haul of 5 for 103 in the first innings with 6 for 57 in the second. On Sunday, he wiped out most of India’s line-up – from Nos. 3 to 8 – and said that the pitch at the Wankhede Stadium didn’t turn as much in the morning session on day three, even though he had already dismissed Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Sarfaraz Khan and Ravindra Jadeja by lunch.Ajaz Patel took 11 wickets in the Mumbai Test•AFP/Getty Images

“In the period after lunch, it started turning a bit more, so that gave me a bit more confidence to toss it up and use my guile and, I guess, my shape in the air,” Ajaz said. “So, yeah, that’s all I tried to do – make sure I keep it simple, use my shape in the air, and then try and be ahead of the batters.”Despite wickets falling around him, Rishabh Pant kept attacking Ajaz from one end. That made Ajaz bowl much quicker to Pant in comparison to the other India batters, as Ajaz thought “outside the box for him a little bit more”.”I knew that if I just bowled good balls to him, he’s probably going to send them out of the park,” Ajaz said. “So I had to make sure I came up with a new plan and something a little bit different, and try and stay ahead of him.”But before Ajaz, Daryl Mitchell had contributed with a solid 82 in New Zealand’s first-innings total of 235 after they had opted to bat. That was Mitchell’s first half-century on this tour where he had not gone past 20 even once in three innings. Runs apart, Mitchell was a permanent presence for the spinners at slip, where he took eight catches across the three Tests.”It’s something you dream of, and to come over here and actually achieve it, it’s pretty special against a world-class Indian team,” Mitchell told the host broadcaster.Daryl Mitchell and Will Young also starred for New Zealand on the India tour•BCCI

New Zealand had landed in India without Kane Williamson, who missed all three Tests due to injury. But his replacement Will Young tallied 244 runs in the series to take home the Player-of-the-Series award. He started with a composed 48* in the chase in Bengaluru, where New Zealand had lost early wickets, and scored twin half-centuries on a tricky track in Mumbai.”I need to trust my defence, and at times, [it’s about] just being really clear on where I wanted to score,” Young said. “And do it for as long as I possibly can… If I know where I want to score and I can trust my defence, it makes the mind a lot clearer.”But it was Mitchell who summed it up succinctly, as New Zealand toasted the series win, not long after the women’s team lifted the T20 World Cup in the UAE last month.”We’re just a bunch of Kiwis taking on the world, and very proud to represent our country,” he said. “We know how good India are – they’ve got a number of world-class players – and for us, it’s just [about] hanging in there, keep doing what Kiwis do, and yeah, very proud of this group today.”

The 35-year-old takes over from Glenn Maxwell who resigned at the end of last season after five years in the role

Alex Malcolm10-Dec-2024Marcus Stoinis has been confirmed as the new Melbourne Stars captain for the upcoming BBL season, replacing long-time skipper Glenn Maxwell who resigned at the end of last summer.Stoinis, 35, has led Stars once previously in Maxwell’s absence last season. He had been a candidate to be interim captain when Maxwell missed the entire 2022-23 BBL season due to his broken leg but Stars opted to give the role to Adam Zampa.Stoinis is only the second player behind Maxwell to play 100 BBL matches for Stars and signed a three-year contract extension at the end of last season, meaning he will remain at the club until the end of 2026-27.Related

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Stoinis said he was honoured to take over the role.”I had a little bit of a taste of captaining the side in Maxi’s absence last year and loved the opportunity so to be given the role full-time is a great honour,” Stoinis said.”The Stars have been such a constant in my life every summer for the last 10 years and I truly believe that the group we have assembled both on and off the field can bring some long overdue success to the club.”Stars General Manager Blair Crouch acknowledged Maxwell’s contribution as the leader over the past five seasons.”First of all, I want to acknowledge and thank Glenn Maxwell for all his efforts in leading the side over the past five seasons and he will continue to be a wonderful resource for everyone at the club,” Crouch said.”Marcus demonstrated his leadership ability last year and has been a senior member of the side for a long time.”It’s wonderful to have someone who has been at the Stars almost from our inception lead our club in BBL14.”Stoinis is likely to lead a depleted line-up in the early part of the season. It is unknown when Maxwell will return from his hamstring injury but he seems unlikely to play in the first match of the season at least. Scott Boland and Beau Webster are also set to miss out while with Australia’s Test squad. Overseas signings Ben Duckett and Osama Mir will also miss the first three games of the season.Meanwhile, Victoria duo Marcus Harris and Xavier Crone have been signed by Melbourne Renegades to complete their list for the upcoming BBL.Brisbane Heat have signed allrounder Jack Wildermuth in the final spot on their list. But Heat will add three local replacement players in the coming week with Michael Neser set to miss the early part of the season due to a hamstring injury, while Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne are unavailable until the end of the Australia-India Test series on January 8.

Shamar Joseph is unfit and Alzarri Joseph has chosen the ILT20 over the Test series in Pakistan

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Dec-2024Trinidad & Tobago batter Amir Jangoo has earned a maiden call-up to the West Indies Test squad for the two-match series against Pakistan, which begins on January 16 in Karachi. Meanwhile, left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie returns to the side, having missed the two Tests against Bangladesh at home last month as he was playing at the inaugural Global Super League in Providence.Motie will be leading West Indies’ spin-bowling contingent, which also has Kevin Sinclair and Jomel Warrican.Jangoo and Motie replace the fast-bowling duo of Shamar Joseph and Alzarri Joseph. While Shamar is suffering from shin splints which forced him to miss the ODI series against Bangladesh earlier this month, Alzarri is unavailable because of a clash with the ILT20 in the UAE, where he will be turning out for MI Emirates, which CWI termed as “other engagements” in their release.Jangoo was rewarded for his consistent performances in the domestic four-day competition in 2023-24, when he scored 500 runs in five matches at an average of 63.50, with two centuries and a fifty, to be Trinidad & Tobago’s highest run-getter. Jangoo also recently smashed a century on ODI debut against Bangladesh to help West Indies ace their third-highest chase in the format.”Motie rejoins the squad to bolster the spin attack, while Jangoo’s selection comes on the back of his consistency across formats in regional cricket, as well as his demonstrated high level of competency against spin bowling,” West Indies head coach Andre Coley said. “For the Test series against Pakistan in January 2025, the focus is on building on what we have done well, and transforming the learnings from 2024 into tangible results.”The rest of the squad remains on expected lines. Kraigg Brathwaite will lead the side, with wicketkeeper-batter Joshua Da Silva as his deputy. Mikyle Louis, Alick Athanaze, Keacy Carty and Justin Greaves will form the crux of the batting unit.On the fast-bowling front, Kemar Roach will lead the attack, and will have Jayden Seales and Anderson Phillip for company.Next year’s tour of Pakistan will be West Indies’ first Test series there in more than 18 years. They had last played Tests in Pakistan in November 2006, although they did play Pakistan in a Test series in the UAE in October 2016.The 15-member West Indies squad will depart on January 2, and arrive in Islamabad on January 6. The first Test will run from January 16-20 in Karachi, before the teams depart for Multan, where the second Test will be played from January 24-28.

West Indies squad for Pakistan Tests

Kraigg Brathwaite (capt), Joshua Da Silva (vice-capt), Alick Athanaze, Keacy Carty, Justin Greaves, Kavem Hodge, Tevin Imlach, Amir Jangoo, Mikyle Louis, Gudakesh Motie, Anderson Phillip, Kemar Roach, Kevin Sinclair, Jayden Seales, Jomel Warrican