Month: April 2020

2:44 PM GMT Dane Paterson, the seamer who made his Test debut for South Africa in the 2019-20 summer, has ended his career in his home country and intends to play professionally in England from this season. Paterson could be left in limbo, however, after an interview to confirm his Kolpak deal with Nottinghamshire, scheduled for March 23, was postponed by the COVID-19 pandemic, amid great uncertainty around the fate…

1:30 PM GMT The way Mohammad Amir and Wahab Riaz “ditched” the Pakistan Test set-up, retiring from the format to focus on white-ball cricket, ahead of the matches against Australia last year left bowling coach Waqar Younis hurt but not holding a grudge. “Just before the Australia series, they ditched us and we had the only choice to pick youngsters,” Younis told presspersons during a video conference arranged by the…

10:55 AM GMT ESPNcricinfo staff Dom Bess, the Somerset and England offspinner, has opened up about his mental health battle, which came to a head in a County Championship match last year when he broke down crying to the club’s psychologist while waiting to bat. In an interview with the Sun, Bess said that he suffered from anxiety and depression while preparing for exams in sixth form, taking him to…

9:42 AM GMT ESPNcricinfo staff Jock Edwards, the former New Zealand Test wicketkeeper, has died at the age of 64. A short, stocky, big-hitter, Edwards made his Test debut in the home Test series against Australia in 1976-77 as a specialist batsman, before taking the gloves when England toured the following season. He then travelled to England and played The Oval and Trent Bridge Tests, but had a poor showing…

9:18 AM GMT ESPNcricinfo staff Former Glamorgan and England allrounder Peter Walker has died aged 84 following a stroke. A dependable option with bat and ball, Walker’s standout attribute was his close catching: he managed 697 catches over the course of his first-class career, including a club-record 656 for Glamorgan, with the vast majority at either slip or short leg. Partly educated in South Africa, Walker spent two years in…

7:35 AM GMT After announcing his retirement from first-class cricket, Steve O’Keefe has implored for spinners in the Australian domestic game to be given more of a chance to shine as a “matter of urgency” if the national team is serious about becoming a force in the subcontinent. O’Keefe, the New South Wales left-arm spinner who took 301 first-class wickets at 24.66 and earned nine Test caps, ended his first-class…

1:09 PM GMT India 287 for 8 (Sidhu 93, Jadeja 45, Mushtaq 2-56) beat Pakistan 248 for 9 (Sohail 55, Prasad 3-45, Kumble 3-48) by 39 runs Pakistan’s reign as World Champions has come to an end at the hands of their bitterest rivals, after the most richly anticipated clash of the 1996 World Cup served up a seething, bare-knuckle confrontation under the Chinnaswamy floodlights. The margin, 39 runs, looked…

‘I was disappointed when I was told that I wasn’t getting a contract’ – Steve O’Keefe  3:21 AM GMT Steve O’Keefe, statistically the best fingerspinner in Australian domestic cricket since Ashley Mallett, has ended his Sheffield Shield career following New South Wales’ decision not to offer him a contract for next summer. Not since Mallett’s 344 wickets at 23.75 for South Australia and Western Australia in the 1960s, 70s and…

Apr 4, 2020 With the English domestic season in great danger of being completely lost, the impact will be felt well beyond the UK’s borders. Several Pakistani cricketers rely on the English season for their livelihood, playing league cricket there and coaching for various clubs in England. A cancellation will hurt them financially. More than two dozen Pakistani cricketers who aren’t part of the national and domestic set-up have been…