England Women will have to get used to playing more cricket after their busiest summer in memory and with a high-stakes winter ahead, Lisa Keightley, their head coach, says. A season in which they won a multi-format series with India by 10 points to six, peeled away to play for their Hundred franchises and then returned to beat New Zealand 2-1 and 4-1 in T20I and ODI series respectively has…
News Opener won recognition with England Lions as well as multiple Championship and T20 titles Varun Chopra, the former England Lions batter who won County Championship titles at Essex and Warwickshire, has retired from the professional game aged 34. Chopra came through at Essex, becoming the club’s youngest Championship centurion in 2006 (a record since eclipsed by Dan Lawrence). He left for Warwickshire at the end of 2009, going on…
News ‘Teething problems’ addressed by board after momentous year for women’s game Tash Farrant, a member of the victorious Oval Invincibles women’s squad, was an early recipient of an ECB regional contract The ECB are set to award a new batch of domestic regional contracts for women’s cricketers. Forty-one domestic players signed deals last year, hailed at the time as “the most significant step forward for the women’s game…
Big picture County cricket rarely needs a trigger for an existential crisis but this week’s Bob Willis Trophy final willingly obliges. The fixture, played between the teams finishing first (Warwickshire) and second (Lancashire) in the County Championship, is essentially a compromise between those who support an end-of-season final which ensures greater broadcast and media coverage and those who argue that the Championship must be decided through a league system, with…
News ESPNcricinfo understands he could miss not just the IPL but also at least part of the 2021-22 domestic season Kuldeep Yadav has left Kolkata Knight Riders’ bio-secure bubble and is back in India to nurse a knee injury. ESPNcricinfo understands the injury is fairly serious, and could cause Kuldeep to miss not just the remainder of the IPL but also at least part of the 2021-22 domestic season. The…
News Lawrence recounted a banana skin being left outside his door by a team-mate in 1981 Gloucestershire have apologised “unreservedly” to David “Syd” Lawrence after he recounted experiencing racism from a team-mate during his time at the club. Lawrence, who played five Tests for England between 1988 and 1992 before a horrific injury nearly ended his career, was one of a number of black cricketers to open up about racist…
News Captain admits to regrets as allrounder chooses to step away from red-ball cricket Moeen Ali was named as Joe Root’s vice-captain for the Oval Test, which turned out to be his final match Joe Root, England’s Test captain, says that Moeen Ali will be remembered as a “wonderful role model” and “one of the great guys to play alongside”, in the wake of his decision to retire from…
News A look at the highlights from Pool A matches of CSA’s domestic T20 competition The Western Cape will be well-represented in the quarterfinals of the Provincial T20 Cup – CSA’s domestic T20 competition – after two teams from the province progressed from Pool A at the weekend. South Western Districts and Western Province finished in first and second place respectively, with two wins apiece. The Johannesburg-based Lions also won…
Preview Andre Russell’s fitness remains a concern for KKR while Marcus Stoinis may be ruled out for Capitals Big picture Delhi Capitals’ win against Rajasthan Royals means they are effectively through to the knockout stages: there is still a mathematical chance that they could be eliminated before but no side has ever missed out on qualification with 16 points, their current tally. Two wins from their final four games should…
News The allrounder could have a vital role to play if Australia’s injury situation doesn’t improve The pink ball won’t prompt Ashleigh Gardner to go back into her shell this week, when Australia’s clean-striking allrounder plays her first Test on home soil. Gardner, 24, made her Test debut on the 2019 Ashes tour but the day-night clash with India, beginning at Metricon Stadium on Thursday, shapes as her first chance…