Shan Masood‘s latest incarnation, as the Test captain of Pakistan, is perhaps the most remarkable in a career not short of rebirths and reinventions. His elevation as the successor to Babar Azam was surprising at a number of levels, not least that he only returned to the Test side last season after a gap of nearly two years or that he has only one fifty since then. Or that earlier…
Brisbane Heat 197 for 5 (G Harris 54, Knott 32*, King 3-30) beat Perth Scorchers 130 for 8 (Sciver-Brunt 36, Voll 4-19, Jonassen 2-25) by 67 runs Grace Harris smashed a half-century to deflate Perth Scorchers before offspinner Georgia Voll claimed four wickets as Brisbane Heat stormed into the WBBL final after a commanding performance at the WACA. Having flown cross-country before playing on consecutive days, an indefatigable Heat relished…
Tom Abell has stepped down from the Somerset captaincy with immediate effect, after struggling for form during the 2023 season. Abell, 29, was handed the Somerset captaincy ahead of the 2017 season, and led the club to victory in the 2019 Royal London Cup, and a trio of runners-up spots in red-ball competitions – a second-place finish in the County Championship in 2018 and 2019, and the final of the…
New Zealand 266 for 8 (Williamson 104, Phillips 42, Taijul 4-89) trail Bangladesh 310 (Joy 86, Philips 4-53, Jamieson 2-52) by 44 runs Taijul Islam kept Bangladesh ahead after the second day’s play in Sylhet, even as Kane Williamson levelled with Don Bradman and Virat Kohli on 29 Test centuries. The left-arm spinner took four wickets to inspire a strong reply from the hosts, who held a 44-run lead at…
Shane Bond, the former New Zealand fast bowler, has been named head coach by Paarl Royals for the upcoming SA20 competition. He takes up the vacant position left by JP Duminy, who between seasons became the permanent batting coach of the South Africa men’s team. Bond has been a part of the coaching set-up of several teams in the past, most recently as head coach of MI Emirates in the…
Victoria 278 (Harper 151, W Agar 5-45, Doggett 4-73) and 12 for 1 lead South Australia 252 (Fraser-McGurk 101, Manenti 51, Scott 50, O’Neill 5-28) by 38 runs Sam Harper‘s record-breaking century helped Victoria to a 38-run lead over South Australia on day two of their Sheffield Shield match, but Jake Fraser-McGurk‘s maiden first-class hundred rescued the home side after a bizarre reprieve. After belting the third-fastest Shield hundred in…
Dravid’s first assignment in his second stint as head coach is India’s tour of South Africa, which starts with three T20Is and three ODIs from December 10 followed by two Tests, in Centurion (from December 26) and Cape Town (from January 3). India then play a five-Test series against England at home, before the T20 World Cup in June. Source: ESPN Crickinfo
Western Australia 2 for 0 trail Queensland 274 for 8 dec (Khawaja 102*, Clayton 53, Richardson 4-36) by 272 runs Jhye Richardson issued an immediate notice to Australia’s selectors with an incisive four-wicket haul on his red-ball return, before Usman Khawaja cruised to his 41st first-class century. Richardson, in his first Sheffield Shield outing since November 2022, looked at his zippy best on his way to 4 for 36 from…
Tasmania 166 for 6 (Owen 70*, Bird 3-46) trail New South Wales 224 (Davies 81*, Henriques 54, Neil-Smith 7-58) by 58 runs Lawrence Neil-Smith took seven wickets for Tasmania in a rollercoaster of a Sheffield Shield match with New South Wales, whose own bowling attack inspired an early collapse in reply on day two. Bad light and rain prevented play from going ahead in the third session after Mitchell Owen…
Incumbent allrounder Mitchell Marsh admitted he’s unsure over his Test position, but vowed to continue batting aggressively if selected for Australia’s opening Test of the home summer against Pakistan in Perth. Marsh, 32, was part of Australia’s memorable World Cup triumph, where he made 441 runs with two hundreds including an unbeaten 177, on the back of reclaiming his Test spot during the Ashes and hitting a rapid century at…