Royal London extend sponsorship of English one-day cricket

Royal London, the title sponsors of English one-day cricket, have extended their deal with the ECB for a further two years

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Oct-2017Royal London, the title sponsors of English one-day cricket, have extended their deal with the ECB for a further two years.The partnership, which encompasses England men’s and women’s domestic and international one-day cricket, will now be extended until the end of the 2019 season.The marquee fixtures in that period will include a five-match one-day series against Australia and a three-match series against India next summer, as England’s men build towards the World Cup in 2019.The announcement is a boost for the ECB’s commercial department, who suffered a setback earlier this year when Investec, the title sponsors of English Test cricket, activated a break clause with four years remaining on their £40 million ten-year deal.”It’s exciting that Royal London want to extend their relationship with cricket still further – building on the successful partnership we’ve forged together over the past four years,” said Sanjay Patel, the ECB’s commercial director.”With the England’s men’s one-day team victorious in all three one-day series last summer, the England women’s team winning the ICC Women’s World Cup and the Royal London One-Day Cup serving up a memorable Lord’s final, the 50-Over format continues to enjoy a significant media profile and offer valuable brand exposure.Emma Hill, Group Head of Brand and Sponsorship, Royal London said: “Our initial partnership with the ECB began at an important time in the company’s history as we re-launched the Royal London brand.”Owing to a very successful four years of cricket sponsorship, we’re thrilled to be committing to the sport for another two years as we continue on our brand building journey. Like cricket, we’re a brand steeped in rich heritage and tradition and we’re excited about what we can achieve in partnership together over the next two years.”

South Africa moot adding Tests to winter calendar

Test cricket in winter could become a reality in South African cricket after the experiment to host New Zealand out-of-season was declared a success by players and administrators alike

Firdose Moonda01-Sep-2016Test cricket in winter could become a reality in South Africa after the experiment to host New Zealand out-of-season in August was declared a success by players and administrators alike. The Durban debacle aside, SuperSport Park in Centurion produced a good pitch and pristine outfield, and drew sizable crowds on all four days.”We want to play Test matches at home as much as possible so if that means we have to do it in the winter, we are all for it. Especially in Centurion,” Faf du Plessis, South Africa’s stand-in captain, said. “Everything about the field was really good. The weather was really good, the pitch played well and the outfield was beautiful.”The possibility of dead pitches was one of the reasons why cricket in winter hadn’t been mooted by Cricket South Africa previously. Dry winters everywhere except the Cape – where rain makes it difficult to play – leave surfaces barren. But at Centurion, a significant grass covering ensured assistance for seamers throughout.”This was a great Test wicket – you had all the different combinations and all the factors come into play,” du Plessis said. “Day one, your seamers must play a big role, the wicket must move around and you must be tight as a batting unit. Day two and three must be good batting conditions and then day four and five must bring its different challenges. Maybe the only thing we didn’t see in this match was spin on day four and five, and also, we didn’t see reverse swing. It didn’t happen because the outfield was beautiful, nice and lush, so those are the only things we didn’t see.”Kane Williamson, who regarded South Africa’s first innings total as being ” hugely influential” in the outcome, was a little more measured in his praise of the pitch, which thought may have deteriorated a little too quickly. Batting became progressively difficult as uneven bounce became a factor from the second day.What both captains agreed on was that the outfield was as pleasant to play on as it was to look at. The playing area was re-laid with winter grass for this Test after both South Africa and New Zealand complained of the outfield being too hard, during an ODI series in July-August 2015.The de-seeding process, which involved planting different grass to the usual summer carpet, took place in April. It was far different to the work done at Kingsmead in Durban, where the outfield was decompacted in June, making it hard to recover in time for the first Test.That doesn’t mean Durban is completely unsuitable for winter cricket. Had flash floods in July and unseasonal downpours on the second day of the first Test not taken place, more play may have been possible. Durban’s warm days could be factored in while drawing the winter schedule. However, it is likely that concentration of out-of-season activity is likely to be on the Highveld where clear skies and mild sunshine are a guarantee.One venue that is particularly keen to continue hosting winter cricket is the SuperSport Park. “It’s like asking a kid if they want ice-cream,” Jacques Faul, Titans CEO said. “We would definitely do it again. We considered it a huge success.”While the stadium did not see a sell-out crowd, the local association was happy with the numbers they got. Faul put down the response to proliferation of sporting activities at this time of year, which includes rugby. Attendance swelled to 9000 on days one and two – a Saturday and Sunday – and dropped to around 3500 on day three and 2000 on day four.”That’s what we budgeted for,” Faul said. “We would have liked to start on Friday but that was impossible because of the regulations about the number of days teams needs between Tests. Ideally, we would like to have it Friday to Tuesday.”

Taylor 291 revives England hopes

James Taylor compiled his highest first-class score of 291 to reaffirm his England credentials and give Nottinghamshire control at Horsham

David Lloyd20-Jul-2015
ScorecardJames Taylor fell nine short of a triple-century as Notts took charge at Horsham•Getty Images

There cannot be a bad day on which to score a huge double-hundred and rewrite a few records. But when the country you are desperate to represent once again has been hammered in an Ashes Test just 24 hours earlier, your timing looks absolutely spot-on.James Taylor is unlikely to be first cab off England’s rank – Jonny Bairstow surely deserves his place at the head of the batting queue – but a chanceless innings of 291 suggests quite strongly that the Nottinghamshire player’s engine is running sweetly again after a spluttering early summer.Three years have passed since Taylor made his only two Test appearances, against South Africa, but at 25 he remains a genuine candidate for further opportunities – and they could come sooner, rather than later, if this eight-hour, 385-ball knock proves to be the start of something big in the 2015 Championship programme.

Taylor credits Moores effect

James Taylor highlighted the help given to him by former England coach Peter Moores after scoring 291 at Horsham – the second double-hundred of his career against Sussex. Moores arrived at Trent Bridge recently to bolster the county’s coaching staff and will remain with until the end of the season
“Peter has been outstanding for me,” Taylor said. “It’s no coincidence that over the last three weeks since he joined us I have played some important innings in T20 and now I’ve got this 291. I worked closely with him with England and now for Notts, and he has been brilliant.
“I haven’t scored as many runs this season and haven’t got the big scores I want before now. But as far as England is concerned I’d like to think I’ll be talked about again after this innings.
“It’s three years since I played my last Test and a lot has happened. I feel I have matured as a player and I know my own game a lot better. I’ve got a lot more experience in terms of knowledge of the game too and I’m more mature. I feel in a really good place after that knock and it’s up to me to kick on now.

Splendidly though the little right-hander played while compiling the highest Championship score by a Nottinghamshire batsman for 76 years, and the fourth highest of all time, a couple of points need noting: this Sussex attack – the admirable Steve Magoffin apart – is neither experienced enough nor sufficiently threatening to maintain pressure on a so-far sound pitch while the parched outfield at Cricket Field Road turns even firm pushes into boundary strokes.But, that said, Notts were in a spot of bother at 186 for 5 on Sunday when Taylor and Chris Read joined forces. And, come Monday evening, Harry Gurney – another England possibility should the Ashes continue to go badly from a home perspective – extracted enough bounce from the surface during an impressive, back-bending spell to discomfort Sussex’s batsmen.Back to Taylor, though. Walking out to take guard on the first day, his Championship season had a distinctly underwhelming look about it: a top score of 61 from 16 innings and an average of 29.By the time he left the crease for the final time in this innings, having carved Magoffin to backward point while trying to race to 300, his previous first-class best, of 242, had been put in the shade – as had both the ground record score (262 not out by Ian Bell in 2004) and the biggest individual contribution by a Notts player (268 not out by JA Dixon in 1897) at any venue against Sussex.Much more important to Taylor than any of those statistics, one suspects, is the manner in which he played: careful when required and then supremely confident once in the groove. How much the recent arrival at Trent Bridge of former England coach Peter Moores has had to do with Taylor’s revival is hard for the outsider to gauge but the batsman himself was full of praise for the consultant’s assistance.Resuming on 163, Taylor underlined his determination to cash in by defending resolutely for half an hour while adding just a single and getting his eye in. Thereafter, though, Sussex had next to no answer to either Taylor or Read as a stand of 174 rose, in leaps and bounds, to 365 before the latter thin-edged a catch behind. Oh, and just to keep the statisticians busy, a Notts partnership record against Sussex that had stood for 128 years disappeared along the way.Read’s third Championship hundred of the season was inevitably overshadowed by Taylor’s near triple. But between them the pair had put Notts in a position to dominate – and three wickets for Gurney in a final session that lost eight overs to bad light and drizzle did nothing to help Sussex sleep easy.

Former Sri Lanka wicketkeeper de Alwis dies at 52

Former Sri Lanka wicketkeeper Guy de Alwis, 52, died on Saturday night after a battle with cancer

Sa'adi Thawfeeq13-Jan-2013Former Sri Lanka wicketkeeper Guy de Alwis, 52, died on Saturday night after a battle with cancer. De Alwis is the fourth* Test cricketer from Sri Lanka to pass away after Sridharan Jeganathan, Anura Ranasinghe and Roshan Guneratne.He represented Sri Lanka in 11 Tests and 31 ODIs from 1983 to 1988. De Alwis topped his country’s batting averages in the 1983 World Cup with 167 runs at 55.66, including unbeaten half-centuries against Pakistan and England.”When Guy felt pain in his stomach in the first week of November (2012) he underwent a biopsy test. It was then revealed that he had cancer in his pancreas,” said Ken, de Alwis’ brother. “The doctors said it was too late to do anything. Arjuna (Ranatunga) came to his help and through him we managed to seek ayurvedic treatment. He was under treatment till his death.”De Alwis, who like Ranatunga, played for the Sinhalese Sports Club, served in Sri Lanka Cricket’s interim committee headed by the former captain in 2008. He was also a former chairman of selectors and secretary.”Guy was not only a committed cricketer but a person who fought for justice,” Ranatunga said. “As a selector he was not afraid to pick players on merit. As an administrator he was strongly against corruption and went to a great extent to try and eliminate it. He was one of the best wicketkeepers produced by Sri Lanka.”Standing six foot tall, de Alwis was a hard-hitting lower-order batsman and wicketkeeper for Sri Lanka during the infancy years when the country was fighting to find its feet as a Test nation.Following regular wicketkeeper Mahes Goonatilleke’s decision to go to South Africa on the rebel tour in 1982, de Alwis got a break in the Sri Lanka team that visited New Zealand in 1982-83. He and Amal Silva had a constant tussle for the wicketkeeper’s position in the national side. De Alwis was superior behind the stumps although Silva edged him out on the batting front.After his playing career, de Alwis was coach of the Sri Lanka women’s team and later married one of the national women cricketers. They have two daughters aged ten and eight.* 08:15 am GMT: This article, now amended, earlier referred to de Alwis as the third Test cricketer from Sri Lanka to pass away

'I feel like I'm 21 again' – Brad Hogg

They say 40 is the new 30. Or maybe 40 is the new 20 in Brad Hogg’s case after the 40-year-old left-arm wrist spinner, who retired from all forms of cricket in March of 2008, was selected in Australia’s T20 squad for the upcoming internationals against In

Alex Malcolm23-Jan-2012They say 40 is the new 30. Or maybe 40 is the new 20 in Brad Hogg’s case after he was selected in Australia’s T20 squad for next week’s internationals against India. Hogg, who turns 41 next month, retired from all forms of cricket in March 2008 but made his comeback this summer for the Perth Scorchers and has been one of the standout performers in the Big Bash League.He has collected 12 wickets at an average of 13.50 in helping the Scorchers reach this weekend’s final, but even more impressive has been his economy rate of 5.40. Hogg now has the chance not only to resume his international career next week, but also to earn himself a place at the ICC World Twenty20, to be held in Sri Lanka in September.”It’s unbelievable. Seriously I feel like I’m 21 again,” Hogg said. “I really feel excited about where my cricket’s gone over the last month and to be honest with you it’s just a dream come true.”John (Inverarity, national selection manager) rang me up yesterday morning and just asked me if I was right to go. He woke me up at about 7 o’clock in the morning, the old bugger, but it was just great news. I hardly slept last night. I’m just excited. It’s just like being a kid again and another Christmas present under the Christmas tree.”It is an astonishing turn-around for Hogg, who four years ago ended a 15-year first-class career that brought him seven Test appearances, 123 one-day internationals, and two T20 internatioanls. Despite still being extremely fit, and seemingly enjoying the game, he cited personal issues as the major reason for his retirement, saying at the time “I’ve got things that I want to sort out at home and get my new chapter in my life organised and on the go.”Hogg disappeared from the game completely, surfacing briefly as a television commentator for Australia’s tour of India in 2010, before returning to represent Willetton Dragons in Perth grade cricket last season. After two T20s he was convinced to play two-day cricket again, and he took 5 for 44 in an elimination final, before scoring off a match-winning 144 in the semi-final. Since being recruited by the Perth Scorchers this season he has been a revelation.”I didn’t plan it. It’s just really exciting and I’m going to enjoy every moment of it,” Hogg said. “One thing I’ve realised over the last three years is life only comes once and once cricket was gone I thought it was gone forever. But I’m just really going to make the most of this opportunity. It’s just fantastic. I’m proud to be West Australian and I’m proud to be back in the green and gold as well.”Only Rana Naved-ul-Hasan (15) and James Faulkner (13) have taken more wickets in the BBL than Hogg this summer, while only Mitchell Starc has a better average, and no other player has conceded less than a six per over. However, despite his incredible form, representing Australia had only recently become a possibility in Hogg’s mind.”Probably only about a week ago I started to think if they were interested in selecting me I’d definitely take that opportunity,” he said. “The only thing that’s on my mind for the rest of this week is to make sure that we give it our best to get some silverware on the mantelpiece for West Australian cricket through the Perth Scorchers, and then after that my goal will be to try and get in that World Cup squad and win a World Cup at T20 level for Australia.”Hogg is no stranger to World Cups having been a part of both the 2003 and 2007 triumphs for Australia in the 50-over format. Hogg was quick to point out he was no guarantee to go to the World T20 later this year and was even more cagey when asked about his prospects of playing beyond that tournament.”Firstly I’ve got to be fit around the World Cup and I’ve got to be still showing form. They’re not going to pick me if I’m not showing form, simple as that. Beyond the World Cup I don’t really have any aspirations after that. I think Australian cricket’s got to look forward and go for the younger players, but at the present moment, luckily, I’ve been in form with the ball and they’ve given me the nod to participate in Twenty20 cricket for Australia. I’m not going to complain, simple as that.”Hogg was hoping to go Sri Lanka for the World T20 in any case, having accepted a coaching role with Papua New Guinea.”I’ve had to change a few things. I was meant to be coaching Papua New Guinea and we were hoping to get that squad into the T20 World Cup just coming up. Things have changed. We’ve got to find a new coach over there for the boys.”Andy Bichel was doing the job and then I was going to take over when Bich decided to leave but those things have changed. I’ll stay involved in some capacity there. [I will] keep chatting with Greg Campbell who is in charge. They’re a pretty good, talented squad over there. An interesting group of people but the enthusiasm over there for the way they go about their cricket gave me the joy to come back and play for the Perth Scorchers.”Should Hogg play next Wednesday against India it will be one month shy of four years since he last represented Australia, and more than five years since he played a T20 international. But that pales by comparison to the seven-year, 78-match gap between his first and second Tests. However, Hogg is unperturbed by any of that as Twenty20 has given him a new lease on life.”If I was a little bit younger I’d want to play all three forms of the game but Twenty20’s given me the opportunity to participate for my country at the highest level again and keep me involved in the game as a player,” he said. “Basically I just want to stay involved in cricket as long as I can. It’s been my life from day dot, I’ve enjoyed it. I love my sport and I’m just grateful that cricket’s given me the opportunities that it has.”

Petersen holds talks with Tom Maynard

New Glamorgan captain Alviro Petersen has held talks with unhappy batsman Tom Maynard over his future

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Jan-2011New Glamorgan captain Alviro Petersen has held talks with unhappy batsman Tom Maynard over his future.Maynard handed in his notice to leave Glamorgan after his father, former England batsman Matthew, controversially left his position as director of cricket last November.Matthew Maynard resigned after Colin Metson was appointed head of coaching and Petersen to the club’s captaincy. But after meeting Tom Maynard to discuss the situation, Petersen said: “It’s been a positive discussion.”Petersen, the South Africa opening batsman, took over from Jamie Dalrymple, who promptly followed Maynard through the exit door, as did president Peter Walker in a tumultuous period for the club. Petersen told BBC Sport Wales: “Tom came to my hotel and we sat down for an hour-and-a-half, two-hours and really talked about it. I obviously saw another side of Tom, who is very boyish and really wants to play cricket and hopefully play for England one day.”I assured Tom that I will never stand in his way of playing for England or staying at the club. It’s really up to him. He must make that decision and whether Tom stays here or moves on, I can assure you that Glamorgan cricket will still live on.”It’s been a positive discussion. We really sat down and spoke about it – different issues – and we all know that he’s a very good player and he’s got a lot of potential, but I think it’s important that he must make that decision. I don’t want to make any decisions for him. What I can say is that I will do my bit in leading Glamorgan and Tom must decide if he wants to be part of that.”Glamorgan chief executive, Alan Hamer, has suggested that they will allow the 21-year-old Maynard to find another county, but has made it clear that they would expect compensation for the player. Tom Maynard signed a three-year contract that is set to run until 2013 before his father quit, saying his position was “untenable”.

Blues name Trent Copeland for one-day debut

Trent Copeland’s incredible ten-wicket first-class debut has earned him a call-up to the New South Wales FR Cup squad to take on Queensland at the SCG on Wednesday

Cricinfo staff02-Feb-2010Trent Copeland’s incredible ten-wicket first-class debut has earned him a call-up to the New South Wales FR Cup squad to take on Queensland at the SCG on Wednesday. He won’t be the only debutant in the match, with the rookie Queensland batsman Chris Lynn also named to play his first domestic one-day game.Copeland was included after collecting 8 for 92 in his first innings at first-class level, having never before taken that many in a first-grade innings. The Blues have also named Josh Hazlewood, the fast bowler who has just returned from Australia’s triumphant Under-19 World Cup campaign in New Zealand, and the spinner Steve O’Keefe in their 12-man squad.The trio replaced David Warner and Steven Smith, who will be with the Australian Twenty20 squad in Melbourne, and the fast man Mitchell Starc, who is having his workload managed. New South Wales are in desperate need of a victory as they sit in fifth place on the FR Cup table with three games remaining.Queensland can all but confirm a place in the final if they win on Wednesday, and victory would also give them a strong chance of hosting the decider. They have welcomed back the seamer Ben Laughlin, who has struggled with a side strain that kept him out of the Big Bash. James Hopes has also returned to the squad having not been picked in Australia’s Twenty20 line-up.New South Wales squad Phillip Hughes, Phil Jaques, Simon Katich (capt), Ben Rohrer, Dominic Thornely, Moises Henriques, Grant Lambert, Daniel Smith (wk), Steve O’Keefe, Nathan Bracken, Josh Hazlewood, Trent Copeland.Queensland squad James Hopes, Chris Hartley (wk), Lee Carseldine, Nathan Reardon, Craig Philipson, Glen Batticciotto, Chris Lynn, Chris Simpson (capt), Chris Swan, Ben Cutting, Ben Laughlin, Nathan Rimmington.

Ranji Trophy quarter-finals – teams in the fray, players to watch, and much more

Your ready reckoner for the Ranji Trophy quarter-finals, to be played in Pune, Nagpur, Kolkata and Rajkot from Saturday

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Feb-2025

Fixtures

Jammu & Kashmir vs Kerala in Pune, from 9.30am IST
Vidarbha vs Tamil Nadu in Nagpur, from 9.30am IST
Haryana vs Mumbai in Kolkata, from 9am IST
Saurashtra vs Gujarat in Rajkot, from 9.30am IST

Jammu & Kashmir vs Kerala

How they got here: J&K topped Elite Group A with five wins in seven games, including one over Mumbai, the 42-time and defending champions. Kerala, meanwhile, finished second behind Haryana – by just a point, but a vastly superior net run-rate – in Elite Group C.Top performers
J&K
Shubham Khajuria – 663 runs in 12 innings at an average of 55.25 with a top score of 255
Auqib Nabi – 38 wickets in 13 innings at an average of 13.44 with a best of 6 for 54Kerala
Salman Nizar – 399 runs in eight innings at an average of 66.50 with a top score of 150
Jalaj Saxena – 33 wickets in 11 innings at an average of 14.81 with a best of 6 for 41Keep an eye on… The three J&K quicks, Auqib Nabi, Yudhvir Singh and Umar NazirRelated

  • J&K look at new frontiers, with a bit of luck and a lot of planning

  • How Saurashtra rewired their game to turn their season around

Vidarbha vs Tamil Nadu

How they got here: Vidarbha was the standout team in the group stage, scoring 40 points – five clear of the next best, J&K – with six wins in seven games in Elite Group B. The one that got away was Gujarat, but that too could have gone their way with a bit more time. Tamil Nadu have the bonus points system to thank for their place in the knockouts. They won three of their seven games in Elite Group D, the same as group-toppers Saurashtra, but third-placed Chandigarh actually won four games. That said, Tamil Nadu lost just one game, while Chandigarh lost three.Top performers
Vidarbha
Yash Rathod – 603 runs in 12 innings at an average of 50.25 with a top score of 135
Akshay Wadkar – 556 runs in 12 innings at an average of 55.60 with a top score of 139
Harsh Dubey – 55 wickets in 14 innings at an average of 14.50 with a best of 6 for 36 (he is the top wicket-taker in the competition so far, 17 ahead of second-placed Nabi)Tamil Nadu
N Jagadeesan – 634 runs in 11 innings at an average of 63.40 with a top score of 118 not out
C Andre Siddarth – 532 runs in ten innings at an average of 76.00 with a top score of 106
Vijay Shankar – 449 runs in nine innings at an average of 64.14 with a top score of 150 not out
S Ajith Ram – 31 wickets in nine innings at an average of 17.12 with a best of 5 for 34Keep an eye on… The batters from either side – there’s a lot of firepower there – and Dubey, the 22-year-old left-arm spinner is clearly special. Not to forget Karun Nair, who has had a sensational List A season with Vidarbha and hasn’t been too shabby in the Ranji Trophy either.

Haryana vs Mumbai

How they got here: Haryana did just about enough to top Elite Group C, with 29 points to second-placed Kerala’s 28, both teams winning three and drawing four. Mumbai, for a while, looked like they might not make the knockouts, but they had a party against Meghalaya in their final game, winning by an innings and 456 runs, to get past Baroda, who lost their last game to J&K.Top performers
Haryana
Himanshu Rana – 424 runs from 11 innings at an average of 42.40 with a top score of 114
Ankit Kumar – 427 runs from 12 innings at an average of 38.81 with a top score of 118
Anshul Kamboj – 29 wickets in ten innings at an average of 11.75 with a best of 10 for 49Mumbai
Siddhesh Lad – 518 runs from eight innings at an average of 86.33 with a top score of 169 not out
Ayush Mhatre – 413 runs from ten innings at an average of 41.30 with a top score of 176; Shardul Thakur – 381 runs from eight innings at an average of 47.62 with a top score of 119 and 24 wickets in 14 innings at an average of 23.95 with a best of 4 for 43
Shams Mulani – 34 wickets in 14 innings at an average of 23.00 with a best of 6 for 115Keep an eye on… Shardul Thakur – he could well be in the fray when India play Test cricket next, in England in June

Saurashtra vs Gujarat

How they got here: Saurashtra topped Elite Group D narrowly after the top three – Tamil Nadu and Chandigarh – were tied on points, while Gujarat finished a distant second to Vidarbha in Elite Group B after winning four and drawing three.Top performers
Saurashtra
Harvik Desai – 511 runs in ten innings at an average of 56.77 with a top score of 155
Chirag Jani – 486 runs in ten innings at an average of 54.00 with a top score of 198
Dharmendrasinh Jadeja – 35 wickets in 12 innings at an average of 20.40 with a best of 6 for 51Gujarat
Manan Hingrajia – 487 runs in 11 innings at an average of 44.27 with a top score of 181
Siddharth Desai – 33 wickets in 12 innings at an average of 23.06 with a best of 9. For 36Keep an eye on… If Cheteshwar Pujara is playing, it has to be him. But there’s a lot talent scattered across these two line-ups demanding attention

How to follow

All the four games are going to be streamed on JioCinema. You can get all the latest updates on ESPNcricinfo as usual, too. But if you are in Pune, Nagpur, Kolkata or Rajkot, why not hop across and watch it live, at least over the weekend?

Uncapped Bennett and Gwandu called up in Zimbabwe's squad for Ireland T20Is

They have dropped Chatara, Masakadza, Kaia and Welch among the four changes after the recent T20 World Cup Africa Qualifiers

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Dec-2023Zimbabwe have called up the uncapped duo of middle-order batter Brian Bennett and fast bowler Trevor Gwandu in their squad of 15 for the three T20Is against Ireland in Harare starting Thursday. This will be Zimbabwe’s first series after they recently failed to qualify for next year’s T20 World Cup. Zimbabwe had finished third in the seven-team Africa Region Qualifier that saw Namibia and Uganda progress to the main tournament.Experienced batter Craig Ervine, who had played just one game at the qualifying tournament before picking up a groin injury, is fit again and retained in the squad.The Zimbabwe squad saw four changes overall: legspinner Brandon Mavuta and batting allrounder Tony Munyonga earned recalls, whereas fast bowler Tendai Chatara, left-arm spinner Wellington Masakadza and opening batters Innocent Kaia and Nick Welch were dropped.Related

  • Zimbabwe fail to qualify for 2024 T20 World Cup; Uganda make it

Kaia and Welch had played three games each in the Africa qualifiers and scored just 62 and 39 runs respectively. Masakadza also featured in three games whereas Chatara got one, but they both picked just one wicket each and leaked over eight runs an over.Mavuta, who has played nine T20Is, featured in the home ODIs against Netherlands earlier this year but last played a T20I in May 2022, at home opposite Namibia. He has recently been scoring runs and picking up wickets for Rhinos in the domestic circuit and also helped them reach the Pro50 Championship final. He finished the tournament with a batting average of 65 while scoring 195 runs in six innings, including three fifties, and was also his team’s top wicket-taker with a tally of 15 and an economy rate of just 4.84.Munyonga, too, was prolific in the tournament; he finished as the second-highest scorer with a total of 389 runs that earned him an average of 55.57, with the help of one century and three half-centuries. Munyonga has played 13 T20Is and makes a comeback after last playing against the same opposition he will play next – Ireland – also in a home T20I series earlier this year.Bennett, 20, has played just five T20s so far and has also represented Zimbabwe Under-19s and Under-25s. Gwandu, 25, opened the bowling for Southern Rocks recently, for whom he played eight Pro50 Championship games and picked up 17 wickets, the second-most in the tournament.The three T20Is will be played on December 7, 9 and 10 before the ODIs on December 13, 15 and 17, also in Harare.Zimbabwe T20I squad for Ireland: Sikandar Raza (capt), Brian Bennett, Ryan Burl, Craig Ervine, Trevor Gwandu, Luke Jongwe, Clive Madande, Wessly Madhevere, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Brandon Mavuta, Carl Mumba, Tony Munyonga, Blessing Muzarabani, Richard Ngarava, Sean Williams

Yorkshire agree to pay Andrew Gale, Rich Pyrah compensation

Former members of coaching staff had previously won preliminary case for unfair dismissal

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Sep-2022Andrew Gale and Rich Pyrah have agreed compensation with Yorkshire after winning their case for unfair dismissal.Gale, the former captain and head coach, and Pyrah, who spent more than a decade on the Yorkshire playing staff before becoming bowling coach, were among 16 members of staff abruptly sacked last year in the wake of Azeem Rafiq racism scandal.They were subsequently part of a group of former Yorkshire employees who won a preliminary employment tribunal hearing in June.Yorkshire’s accounts revealed that the club had set aside £1.9 million for compensation and legal affairs, with Gale set to receive a six-figure settlement, according to the .A Yorkshire statement said: “On the December 3 2021, the Yorkshire County Cricket Club Limited took the decision to dismiss its coaching and medical staff. The club has acknowledged that its dismissals of that group of employees was procedurally unfair.”After meaningful dialogue between the club and the legal advisers acting on behalf of Andrew Gale and Richard Pyrah the parties can confirm that acceptable terms of settlement have been reached.”The financial terms of the settlements are confidential and no further public statement will be made about the terms.”Yorkshire have also reportedly agreed an out-of-court settlement with Ian Fisher, the club’s former strength and conditioning coach.

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