5:04 PM GMT Sreshth Shah Among left-hand batsmen who have scored more than 1000 T20 runs from the start of 2018, England captain Eoin Morgan (158.62) is one of the only two players – along with Rishabh Pant (159.11) – to boast a strike rate upwards of 155. As Morgan flies to the UAE to link up with the Kolkata Knight Riders following Wednesday’s ODI cliffhanger against Australia, Nitish Rana,…
Varying quarantine period for IPL-bound players from England bubble
Aaron Finch and Eoin Morgan could be available for the opening games of RCB and KKR respectively in IPL 2020 3:09 PM GMT The 21 players travelling from the England-Australia limited-overs series into IPL will need to isolate themselves for a varying period ranging between one and six days once they land in the UAE on Thursday evening. For the group travelling to Dubai, comprising 18 players from six teams,…
IPL-bound England players counselled to be on guard against burn-out by Chris Silverwood
Jos Buttler and Jofra Archer will be heading to the IPL straight from England’s bio-bubble © Getty Images England’s IPL-bound players have been cautioned by Chris Silverwood, their head coach, to keep checking in with the management to guard against burn-out, as they prepare to swap a summer of bio-secure bubbles in England for another seven-week stint in Abu D, Dubai, Sharjah between September 19 and November 10 A total…
CSA, SASCOC at impasse over forensic report disclosure disagreement
11:31 AM GMT Cricket South Africa (CSA) and the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) appear to be at an impasse, with the former continuing to deny the latter unrestricted access to the forensic report which it used to fire former CEO Thabang Moroe. SASCOC, who last week instructed CSA’s Board and executive to stand down while it appoints a task team to investigate the cricket board’s affairs,…
Virat Kohli: This IPL, we're playing to bring smiles back on people's faces
11:17 AM GMT Shashank Kishore Virat Kohli feeds off the energy of crowds and packed stadiums, but despite IPL 2020 set to be played behind closed doors in the UAE, the Royal Challengers Bangalore captain foresaw no drop in his playing intensity. “The intensity and passion won’t drop even if there are no crowds,” Kohli said at a media session to launch Royal Challengers covid warriors campaign. “Yes, empty stadiums…
England should be proud of ensuring the show did go on – Chris Silverwood
England coach Chris Silverwood addresses his players in training © Getty Images Chris Silverwood, England’s head coach, says that his team should be proud of their role in ensuring that the show went ahead this summer, despite their disappointment at losing out to Australia in a thrilling finish to the men’s international season on Wednesday night. Against all the odds, England completed their full schedule of 18 international fixtures this…
Suspended UAE batsman Ashfaq Ahmed: 'I have done absolutely nothing wrong'
10:20 AM GMT ESPNcricinfo staff UAE batsman Ashfaq Ahmed has denied the allegations of wrongdoing that had resulted in the ICC on Sunday formally charging him and medium pacer Amir Hayat with five counts of breaching the game’s anti-corruption rules. Ahmed was also provisionally suspended for the alleged offences, which all relate to the 2019 men’s T20 World Cup qualifier. “I have done absolutely nothing wrong,” Ahmed, who has represented…
ICC ODI Rankings: Chris Woakes moves to second among allrounders, fourth among bowlers
9:20 AM GMT ESPNcricinfo staff England’s Chris Woakes has jumped to a career-best ranking of fourth in the latest ICC ODI rankings for bowlers. Ahead of Woakes on the bowling charts are Trent Boult – who leads the rankings with 722 rating points – Jasprit Bumrah and Mujeeb ur Rahman. On the back of his six wickets and 89 runs in the series against Australia, he has also moved to…
Steven Smith's extended concussion symptoms leave Rajasthan Royals with question mark
9:14 AM GMT Steven Smith was still experiencing concussion symptoms as he was ruled out of all three ODIs against England, and will need to recover fully before returning to action in the IPL for the Rajasthan Royals, whom he also captains. Smith is supposed to land in the UAE on Thursday evening, with Royals playing their first match on September 22. ESPNcricinfo understands that the franchise remains confident Smith…
Rohit Sharma: 'I opened for entire tournament last year and will continue to do that'
9:10 AM GMT Vishal Dikshit Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma will continue to open along with Quinton de Kock for the upcoming IPL, head coach Mahela Jayawardene confirmed on Thursday. Mumbai also have Australia’s Chris Lynn in the squad this time but given his poor run of scores in the CPL recently, and that the Sharma-de Kock combination gives Mumbai a prolific opening pair, Jayawardene said there was no need…