Head Coach Trevor Bayliss believes a collective team effort was the key to their 2-1 Test series victory away to South Africa. England ended their four-match series with a 280-run defeat in the fourth Test at Centurion but despite the manner in which they lost, Bayliss was proud of the achievement of his side. The 53-year-old can add an away Test victory against the world top-ranked Test team to their…
Big names signing up for Blast
[embedded content] Chris Gayle will bring his gun-slinging style back to the NatWest T20 Blast this summer as the big names continue to be confirmed for next summer’s tournament. Somerset confirmed at lunchtime today that the big-hitting Jamaican would return to Taunton after a blistering, but brief, spell last year that saw him pile up 328 runs in just three matches including an unbeaten 151 from 62 balls against Kent…
Lawrence over the moon with Fiji thrashing
Centurion Dan Lawrence was delighted to contribute to England Under-19s’ thrashing of Fiji in their opening World Cup pool game in Chittagong. The Essex batsman smashed 174 from 150 deliveries, the highest England Under-19s score in a 50-over match, and shared a second-wicket stand of 303 with Durham’s Jack Burnham, who made a 137-ball 148. That lifted England to a mammoth 371 for three from 50 overs, a total that…
New Zealand v Pakistan 2nd ODI called off
The second one-day international between New Zealand and Pakistan has been abandoned without a ball being bowled due to rain in Napier. After a series of inspections, match umpires Billy Bowden and Bruce Oxenford decided to call off the match as they deemed the outfield at McLean Park was too wet for play. The Black Caps lead the three-match series 1-0 after their 70-run victory in Wellington on Monday. The…
Hales and Compton could swap places – Bayliss
Play 02:47 The winners and losers from England’s series victory Trevor Bayliss, the England coach, has sought to reassure his top-order batsmen that their modest displays in the victory over South Africa will not necessarily lead to their exclusion from the Test side that takes on Sri Lanka in England in May. But Bayliss has conceded that, with batsmen unable to cement their positions in the team, “there are possibilities”…
England U19s demolish Fiji in opener
England showed no mercy to World Cup debutants Fiji in a record-breaking 299–run demolition in their opening pool game in Chittagong today. Essex opener Dan Lawrence smashed 174 from 150 balls, a new one-day record for England Under-19s, and shared a second-wicket stand of 303 with Durham’s Jack Burnham, who made 148 from 137. Then Lancashire’s Saqib Mahmood and Surrey’s Sam Curran each took three wickets with the new ball…
Scotland gain extra T20 preparation in UAE
Josh Davey will be a key bowler for Scotland © Peter Della Penna Scotland will play T20Is against UAE and Netherlands in Dubai as part of their preparations for the World T20. The matches on February 4 and 5 will take place as Scotland head home from their current tour of Hong Kong. They will also face a County XI – expected to be an amalgamation of cricketers who will…
India-Bangladesh clash to kick off Asia Cup
India and Bangladesh will kick off this year’s edition of the Asia Cup © AFP India and Bangladesh will kick-off the main round of the Asia Cup on February 24, but the weekend clashes may garner more attention. India and Pakistan play each other the following Saturday and hosts Bangladesh takes on Sri Lanka, the current title holders, on Sunday. The tournament will be played in Twenty20 format for the…
Somerset return for Gayle
[embedded content] Big-hitting West Indian Chris Gayle will play in the NatWest T20 Blast again this year after re-signing for Somerset on a six-match deal from June 1. The brutal opening batsman took the competition by storm in 2015, smacking a century and two fifties in amassing 328 runs in just three innings. And Somerset will be hoping Gayle can cause the same type of carnage this time around when…
England U19s aiming to emulate Class of '98
When England Under-19s begin their World Cup campaign against Fiji today, they will be aiming to follow in the footsteps of the triumphant Class of ’98. Owais Shah’s young side opened the tournament in South Africa with a four-wicket win over New Zealand in what proved to be a dress rehearsal for the final. Graham Napier, who went on to become a key player for Essex, told ecb.co.uk that England went into…