Month: March 2016

England stars Alastair Cook, Nick Compton and Lauren Winfield will be turning their hands to painting and decorating when this year’s NatWest CricketForce kicks off with a trio of showcase events next week. The England Test captain will be heading to Dymock Cricket Club, accompanied by former England captain Mike Gatting, to launch the annual volunteering initiative, which encourages clubs to rejuvenate their facilities ahead of the new cricket season. More…

Surrey have further bolstered their bowling attack ahead of the new county season with the signing of West Indian Ravi Rampaul on a two-year deal. The 31-year-old, who played 18 Tests, 92 one-day internationals and 23 Twenty20s for the Windies, follows young South African pacemen Conor McKerr and Mathew Pillans through the door at the Kia Oval in recent weeks. Surrey director of cricket Alec Stewart said: “Ravi will add…

Faf du Plessis says South Africa will be prepared for a significantly different surface in Nagpur © Getty Images Nagpur and pitches. It has always been a tetchy relationship and it grew a little more strained when, two days before it was set to host a World T20 match between South Africa and West Indies, the pitch for the game was switched. According to media reports, the move from the…

Steven Smith called Shane Watson adaptable and said he has seen him bat well in a number of positions, indicating that Australia are open to the idea of changing their opening combination © Getty Images At around 3.15pm, with Australia’s pre-match press conference over, Shane Watson called his team-mates into a huddle. Not the kind they have with their arms around each other just before going out to field. A…

Australia Women 125 for 1 (Lanning 56*, Villani 53*) beat Sri Lanka Women 123 for 8 (Manodara 38, Atapattu 38, Schutt 2-25, Beams 2-25) by nine wicketsScorecard and ball-by-ball details File photo – Meg Lanning formed an unbeaten 98-run stand with Elyse Villani to take Australia home © Getty/ICC Meg Lanning and Elyse Villani feasted on a toothless Sri Lanka Women attack to convert a tricky chase of 124 into…