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This was an excellent match for Surrey. It illustrated their strengths and suggested they are ready for the tough school that is Division One of the County Championship

Paul Edwards at Old Trafford17-Sep-2015
ScorecardAshwell Prince salutes the crowd after his last innings at Old Trafford•Getty Images

This was an excellent match for Surrey. It illustrated their strengths and suggested they are ready for the tough school that is Division One of the County Championship. Even though Lancashire’s resilient batting on the final day prevented Gareth Batty’s team from winning the game and with it the Division Two title, there was no doubt which team had bossed the contest.But this was also a very useful match for Lancashire, providing they learn the lessons it proffered and recruit the players they need in the close season. Quite regardless of where the title ends up, and Surrey go into the final round of matches with an eight-point lead over their rivals, these four days at Old Trafford surely showed Ashley Giles the gaps he needs to fill if 2016 is not to be a chastening experience.All this matters because Surrey and Lancashire are in the middle of a project which they hope will see them rise to the top of the English domestic game. They have enjoyed promotions only to suffer three relegations apiece over the past 11 seasons. They have had enough of the switchback between joy and disappointment.Although they might not admit it, both counties probably expected to be promoted this season. Now they aim to establish themselves at the top table of the English domestic game.In John Sturges’ classic 1960 filmThe Magnificent Seven hired guns Chris and Vin are defying the local racists to ensure that a native Indian is given a decent burial at the squalid local cemetery Boot Hill. As they make their way to the graveyard Vin voices his fears: “It’s not getting up there that’s bothers me. It’s staying up there that I mind.”Vin’s words need only a slight tweak to be applicable to both Surrey and Lancashire. Getting up to Division was barely the concern; it was expected. It’s staying up there that bothers them now.The final day of the season brought reasons for Lancashire supporters to be concerned and reasons for them to be cautiously optimistic. The chief concern was surely prompted just after midday when Ashwell Prince, who has been the mainstay of Lancashire’s batting for the past four seasons walked away from the Old Trafford wicket for the final time. He had just been caught by Kumar Sangakkara off Matt Dunn for 11.Although often accused of being at Lancashire under a flag of convenience, Prince is leaving the club wearing a badge of honour. This was shown when he received a standing ovation at a members’ forum at Tuesday evening. Somebody is going to have to score Prince’s runs if Lancashire are to survive, let alone flourish next season.However, the rest of the day at Old Trafford was dominated in part by the batting of Haseeb Hameed, an 18-year-old opener whose excellent technique and calm temperament help to explain why Lancashire feel able to dispense with Paul Horton’s services, although Hameed’s undoubted talent may not entirely justify that decision.Hameed’s 91 in 325 minutes suggested that he has the concentration necessary to succeed at the top level of the county game. However, he faced 234 balls and did not score off 195 of them, suggesting that his ability to keep the scoreboard ticking over needs work. That, though, will come with time, experience and hard work.On the final day of this game Lancashire supporters were simply grateful that Hameed stayed at the crease for over five hours and was only dismissed when caught at leg slip by Tom Curran off his brother Sam a few overs before bad light ended the game nine overs early when Lancashire were 195 for 7 and a tense finish was in prospect.Hameed’s success in resisting Surrey’s talented seamers was not shared by too many of his colleagues. In the first hour or so of play Karl Brown was leg before to Tom Curran and  Dunn had removed both Alviro Petersen and Prince to catches in the slip cordon. That left Lancashire on 71 for 3 and almost grateful that Surrey had left with so little time to bat on the third evening and the absurd target of 492 to chase.Steven Croft kept Hameed company in a 91-run stand for the fourth wicket but his dismissal, caught at the wicket by Ben Foakes off Tom Curran just before tea, was followed just after the resumption by the dismissals of Phil Mustard, Jordan Clark and finally, Hameed.It was, though, an excellent day for Surrey’s seamers. Tom Curran bowled economically and well; his brother, Sam, maintained a constant threat; and Matt Dunn, often overlooked recently took 3 for 46. Gareth Batty’s seamers look ready for Division One; whether some Division One batsmen are ready for them is an intriguing question.

The proposed Bangladesh tour of Pakistan, though agreed to in principle by the two countries’ boards, is being threatened by logistical issues stemming from a lack of coordination at the political level

Umar Farooq18-Apr-2012The proposed Bangladesh tour of Pakistan, while agreed to in principle by the two countries’ boards, is being threatened by logistical problems stemming from a lack of coordination at the political level. The PCB has delayed sending its security plan to the ICC because issues between the federal government and the state government of Punjab. Zaka Ashraf, the PCB chairman, urged the Pakistan government to play its role in moving quickly for the tour to fall into place, “for the sake of national interest.”Pakistan and Bangladesh, after reaching a consensus on the short tour, had informed the ICC earlier this week that they will play one ODI and one Twenty20 International at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. The matches are scheduled for April 29 and 30.Ashraf returned to Pakistan on Tuesday night after attending the ICC board meeting in Dubai, calling for an immediate press conference to announce the Bangladesh visit. He did not however elaborate on any substantial plan ahead for Pakistan to host a foreign team for the first time in three years. Every question about the uncertainty surrounding the Bangladesh tour was responded to with a confident reply that all matters would be sorted out in time.Meanwhile, at a press conference at the National Cricket Academy, the Punjab chief minister Shahbaz Sharif, welcomed the Bangladesh tour but was himself not certain of the security arrangements in place. “Bangladesh are our brothers and I welcome them to come and play here in Pakistan,” Sharif told reporters in Lahore. “But the federal [government] is not coordinating with us.”The PCB, whose headquarters are housed in Lahore, the capital of Punjab, wrote a letter to the chief secretary of the Punjab Government on April 16 regarding security arrangements and plans and was still awaiting a reply from the provincial government. “We had dispatched them the letter for the plan (on April 16) that they are yet to respond to, but we will send the plan to the ICC shortly,” Ashraf said. “The ICC actually was asking us to hand them the plan during the [board] meeting but we didn’t carry it. It’s our mistake that it is delayed for some reason but it will be sorted out soon.”Ashraf said that ICC has already promised to send their officials and the security plan that was sought by the ICC was merely a formality. “ICC won’t be sending any of its delegation to assess security. They sought the security plan which we will dispatch to them shortly but that isn’t a big issue for ICC.”ESPNcricinfo understands, though, that the ICC’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit, after receiving the plan from the PCB, may consider outsourcing a company for an independent security assessment of the measures in place for the short tour by Bangladesh.The series broadcasters, Ten Sports, also had their qualms. “They earlier showed reservation about the series being very short,” Ashraf said, “but we told them this is what we have planned and that they have to cover it.”The prospect of an end to Pakistan’s three-year drought of international cricket, Ashraf said, counted as a big victory. “Cricket is a passion in Pakistan and convincing Bangladesh to tour is a victory for all of us,” he said. “The tour will not only benefit the PCB. The whole economy of the country is linked, so it’s about the country not about the federal and Punjab government. I think all should play their role for the one national interest.”The three-day tour, Ashraf said, “will break the ice” and he was also confident of the resumption of Indo-Pak cricket. “The breakthrough achieved during President Asif Ali Zardari’s tour to India will also help in the revival of Indo-Pak cricket.”Ashraf said the situation had changed considerably since 2009. “I thank the ICC Board for the way they appreciated the revival of cricket and approved of it. The situation is not like it was in 2009. Since cricket was suspended in Pakistan our grounds were left deserted but things have improved and I hope more teams will come after the Bangladesh team’s tour.”Edited by Siddarth Ravindran

Dawid Malan struck a brilliant century as Middlesex took control on the third day of their top-of-the-table clash against Northamptonshire

26-Aug-2011
ScorecardMiddlesex’s hopes of forcing a victory over County Championship Division Two leaders Northamptonshire were dashed as the final day’s play of their Wantage Road clash was washed out.Northamptonshire had ended day three on 22 without loss, 181 runs behind their opponents, but second-placed Middlesex were deprived of the chance to press home their advantage as play was abandoned at 2pm. They would have had high hopes after declaring on 479 for 8 yesterday in reply to Northamptonshire’s 276 all out, but have to settle for 10 points from the draw, which puts them 18 points off the pace with a game in hand.Northamptonshire come out of this match with six points and will look to take a giant step towards promotion against Surrey at Wantage Road next week whilst Middlesex face bottom club Leicestershire at Lord’s.

The Sawai Mansingh Stadium remained a fortress for Rajasthan Royals, who made it eight out of eight wins at the venue by bulldozing Kings XI Punjab with five overs remaining

The Bulletin by Siddarth Ravindran07-Apr-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Michael Lumb blazed 83 off 43 to make short work of the target•Indian Premier League

The Sawai Mansingh Stadium remained a fortress for Rajasthan Royals, who made it eight out of eight wins at the venue by bulldozing Kings XI Punjab with five overs remaining. Opener Michael Lumb pummelled 83 off 43 balls to deliver Rajasthan their third straight victory, which lifted them to joint second spot, an unlikely position for a team that was written off after starting with three defeats in a row.Rajasthan sprinted to the highest total of the season in the first five overs (65), after Punjab had mucked about to gather the least runs in the final five overs (27), reflecting the gulf between the two sides. Punjab reverted to being the bumbling bunch that has been entrenched at the bottom of the table all season: the batting lost fizz after a bubbly start, the fielding was the usual butter-fingered effort, and the bowling lacked inspiration.Mahela Jayawardene top-scored again, and Yuvraj Singh briefly showed off his awesome hitting, but with the rest failing to contribute anything substantial Punjab ended up with an inadequate total.The variety of sweeps against the spinners and the trademark carves behind point off the quicks were the highlight of Jayawardene’s innings, in which only seven runs were scored in front of the wicket. He had some luck as well, a leading edge six to third man off Aditya Dole, reprieved when Shane Warne reacted slowly to a caught-and-bowled chance and dropped by Dole at deep square leg.With Kumar Sangakkara’s poor tournament continuing, it was Yuvraj who provided some support for him. Warne was at his bewitching best in the previous game, but had no answer to Yuvraj today. First, Yuvraj muscled him over midwicket for a six, and two overs later clobbered two flat sixes and a four to take 24 runs off eight balls against the Rajasthan captain.The match turned in the next over from Dole: he had Yuvraj dragging a short ball onto the stumps and Jayawardene edged to a wide slip. That sucked all the momentum out of the Punjab innings, and they never recovered.Ravi Bopara pottered about before being run out after racing down the track for a second run which his partner, Irfan Pathan, was not interested in. Watson varied his length and pace well towards the death, and Siddharth Trivedi’s steady servings of slower deliveries proved hard to score off, so much so that Punjab couldn’t hit even one boundary in that period.The Punjab score looked insufficient, but it was not as measly as Lumb and Naman Ojha made it seem. The match was essentially decided after the fourth over of the chase, in which Lumb lashed fast bowler Rusty Theron for 20 runs to blast Punjab to 55 for 0.The template was set in the first over, when Ramesh Powar made a hash of a simple fielding chance to give away two extra runs, and Sreesanth followed that up with gift of a short ball that was pulled for four by Lumb.Sangakkara shuffled his bowlers around but to no avail: Lumb picked off the spinners with a bunch of sweeps and reverse-sweeps, while showcasing his full range of strokes against the quicks. The 100 came up in the ninth over when Irfan was caned for four fours, and Lumb was also eyeing his century. He was dismissed in the next over, but Ojha, who has been quiet when Lumb was blasting, took charge of the chase, and with the help of Yusuf Pathan finished off the game in the 15th over.

Cameron White is second-in-command for Friday’s T20 against Pakistan and there is a push for him to take the reins permanently

Brydon Coverdale03-Feb-2010Mark Waugh believes Cameron White should be Australia’s Twenty20 captain. Justin Langer thinks White can definitely lead Australia in the future. The man himself is more interested in learning from Michael Clarke, but it’s a scenario that might not be far away after his promotion as Australia’s Twenty20 deputy.White is second-in-command for Friday’s game against Pakistan and there is a push for him to take the reins permanently, given Clarke’s ongoing back problems and his struggles in the shortest format. The chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch is in no doubt Clarke can contribute as a Twenty20 player, despite never having passed 50 in 19 internationals.Clarke’s style of batting works perfectly in Tests and he’s an effective one-day player, but he doesn’t typically show the sort of raw power associated with the shortest format. By contrast, White was one of the first batsmen to shine when the 20-over game arrived on the English domestic scene and he has captained Victoria for seven seasons and led them to four Big Bash titles in five years.”Michael’s going to do a great job and I’ll just look forward to working with him,” White said. “I’m still really young in the [Australia] job as well and very inexperienced at this level, so I think I can learn a lot off him.”I’ve been captain of Victoria for six or seven years now and captained a lot of Twenty20 especially, and had some good success there. If that opportunity came that would be great. There would be quite a different level of pressure involved but I’m pretty confident that I could do a good job.”What is not in doubt is White’s suitability to the Twenty20 game. The unbeaten 141 he made for Somerset in 2006 remains the third best score ever made and he is the only man to have two innings in the top 10 of all time.His muscular strokeplay works well in the genre and he will be a key man for Australia in May’s World Twenty20, after inexplicably being left out of the initial squad for last year’s tournament. His Twenty20 international strike-rate is 150 while Clarke’s is 102, but White is confident Clarke can be an influential player for Australia.”There’s times when you have to hit the boundary as well and Michael’s a fantastic player and has shots all round the wicket,” White said. “In this format of the game it takes a while to work out where you can play those particular shots and Michael having played so much cricket will work that out very quickly. I have no doubt that he’ll adapt his very good game to Twenty20.”You’ve got to find the way to take the pressure off and get the ball to the boundary at certain stages. The statistics show there’s still quite a lot of dot balls in Twenty20 cricket as well, so one of Michael’s great strengths in one-day cricket is that he doesn’t face a lot of balls in a row.”The first challenge for the Clarke-White leadership team is taking on Pakistan, the reigning World Twenty20 champions, at the MCG on Friday. It’s a chance not only to complete a Test, ODI and Twenty20 clean-sweep against the visitors but also to sow some seeds of doubt in their minds, with the two teams set to play each other in the pool stage of the World Twenty20 in the West Indies.”They’re the best team in the world at this format of the game. I think it suits them very well, you get to play with freedom and not a lot of fear. They can go out and play the way they naturally do and let their talents shine through. We’ll have to play exceptionally well again to beat them.”

Their statement is in response to criticism that called on CSA to boycott Afghanistan for the Taliban government’s treatment of women

Firdose Moonda19-Sep-2024Cricket South Africa has confirmed it will continue to engage Afghanistan in bilateral fixtures because it does not believe in punishing the men’s team for the Taliban’s actions in their home country.CSA’s statement comes in response to severe criticism including from activist organisation Lawyers for Human Rights, which said that by playing Afghanistan, South Africa were tacitly endorsing a repressive regime and called for CSA to boycott Afghanistan. The Taliban government has not only banned women from playing sport but from most areas of public life which the South African government has expressed grave concern over while not calling for outright sanction. CSA has taken a similar approach.In a statement issued on Thursday, CSA confirmed that although it believes “women’s cricket deserves equal recognition and success,” it would not unilaterally isolate the Afghanistan men’s team for its country’s government policy.Related

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• Temba Bavuma echoes SACA's stand for women's rights in Afghanistan

• SA reaffirms support for women's cricket ahead of Afghanistan series

“CSA remains mindful that gender equity should never come at the expense of one gender over another,” the statement said. “We recognise that advocating for the advancement of one gender should not undermine the rights of the other. CSA believes there is no justification for subjecting Afghan cricket players – both male and female – to secondary persecution for the actions of the Taliban. We will continue to engage with member countries within the formal structures of the International Cricket Council (ICC) to address this matter.”CSA’s stance is also in line with the position of the ICC, which is wary of banning Afghanistan despite their being the only Full Member without a women’s side. ESPNcricinfo understands that among the complexities of forcing the ACB field a women’s team is the risk it could take of retribution from the Taliban, which could include putting those women’s lives at risk.Cricket Australia, on the other hand, has taken the opposite position and on advice from its government has refused to play Afghanistan bilaterally in protest against human rights abuses. CSA does not believe this tactic will be effective and prefers to apply a wide lens on the issue. “Gender advocacy in cricket should never be advanced by meting out punishment on innocent cricket administrators and players for the misdemeanours of a regime that stands to lose nothing from that punishment,” its statement said.South Africa are in a unique position to comment such as this because they were banned from international sport themselves from 1970, as a global response to the Apartheid regime. One of the continued discussion points of their isolation was what it would do to sporting careers. At the time, only white South Africans were allowed to represent South Africa, while people of colour had no hope of a professional sports career. South Africa were readmitted after two decades and questions over racial representation remain part of their reality. When asked whether the banning of their organisation also punished administrators and players, an insider pointed out that while it did, it was not effective in advocating for change. “The apartheid government continued with its atrocious policies despite their athletes being banned from international sport. What truly broke the camel’s back were economic sanctions.”CSA also argues that the situation at the ACB is slightly different as there were steps being taken to have a women’s team prior to the Taliban takeover. “Any measures we consider must take into account the progress made by the Afghanistan Cricket Board in promoting women’s cricket prior to the Taliban’s ban on female participation in sports in August 2021.”In 2020, the ACB pledged contracts to 25 female players, which showed steps towards creating a women’s team were being made. Those players attended a training camp and were due to play against Oman but the games did not take place. Many of them are now in exile in Australia and have called on the ICC to support the creation of a refugee team for them based at the East Asian Cricket office. It is not known if any of the refugee sportswomen are in South Africa.CSA’s statement is also a nod to the South African Cricketers’ Association (SACA) who, last week, issued an advisory supporting the promotion of women in cricket and called on CSA to use its leverage to highlight rights for Afghan women. Temba Bavuma, South Africa’s ODI captain, echoed SACA’s sentiments and called women’s rights “something that is quite strong within my own values.”South Africa and Afghanistan are currently playing a three-match ODI series in the UAE. Bavuma missed the first match, which South Africa lost by six wickets, with illness. The second and third ODIs are scheduled to be played on Friday and Sunday. This three-match contest was not on the original Future Tours Programme (FTP) and was sought by CSA and the ACB with a view to preparing for next year’s Champions Trophy.

For CSK, this game comes with barely any time to prepare and against one of the most consistent teams of recent years

Alagappan Muthu11-May-20243:33

Aaron: ‘Ruturaj should open; he shouldn’t be batting at No. 3 at all’

Match details

Chennai Super Kings (4th; W6, L6) vs Rajasthan Royals (2nd; W8, L3)
Chennai, 3.30pm IST (10am GMT)

Big picture: CSK in a spin

Will this be MS Dhoni’s final home game in the IPL? He played through a severe knee injury last year. He has been pushing through side strains and other discomforts this year. Even under that duress, he has produced some vintage moments, but CSK are suddenly in a bit of a fight to make the playoffs.They would ideally want to win both of their two remaining games but this one comes with barely any time to prepare and against one of the most well-rounded teams of recent years. RR don’t have a title to back the claim but they have been the most consistent unit since 2022. Plus, they have won each of the last four meetings against CSK. Central to that is the performance of their spinners, particularly R Ashwin, who has intimate knowledge of how Chepauk behaves. With this being an afternoon game, there is every chance that spin will dictate terms.

Form guide

Chennai Super Kings LWLWL (last five matches, most recent first)
Rajasthan Royals LLWWW

Team news and Impact Player strategy

Chennai Super KingsCSK have carried Ajinkya Rahane all through this campaign and now at the pointy end, they are stuck with a batter who is out of form. Dropping him now and having a youngster take on a role as important as opener might be just as big a risk but they could potentially use Daryl Mitchell up there and make room for Sameer Rizvi down the order as a ten-ball hitter.Likely XII: 1 Rachin Ravindra, , 3 Ruturaj Gaikwad (capt), 4 Daryl Mitchell, 5 Shivam Dube, 6 Moeen Ali, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 MS Dhoni (wk), 9 Mitchell Santner, 10 Shardul Thakur, 11 Tushar Deshpande, 12 Rajasthan RoyalsDonovan Ferreira attended the pre-match press conference, which suggests he might once again make the XI, which in turn suggests Shimron Hetmyer isn’t quite up to speed yet (and there might be a degree of caution in play here since he is part of the West Indies squad for the T20 World Cup in June). The other question RR face is between choosing Rovman Powell, who will have it tough on a spinning pitch, and Keshav Maharaj, who is an excellent weapon to have as a bowler, but shortens the batting line-up.Likely XII: , 2 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 3 Sanju Samson (capt & wk), 4 Riyan Parag, 5 Shubham Dubey, 6 Donovan Ferreira, 7 Rovman Powell/Keshav Maharaj, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Avesh Khan, 10 Trent Boult, 11 Sandeep Sharma,

In the spotlight: Shivam Dube and Yuzvendra Chahal

Given the expectation of a slow pitch, batters capable of coping with that become instant difference-makers. That is Shivam Dube to a T. With his long reach and incredible power, he has the ability to send good balls soaring over the boundary. Most teams have tried to hide their spinners when he is at the crease – he has faced only 40 balls from them – but RR won’t shrink like that. They have quality in their attack.The Chepauk pitch should suit Yuzvendra Chahal more•AFP/Getty Images

Yuzvendra Chahal has broken back into India’s T20I team through sheer weight of wickets. This is a time when even wristspinners are asked to be quick through the air and Chahal has understood that, occasionally getting the speed gun up to 95kph, but in between those, he still trusts the old, loopy legbreaks that seem like they could go the distance before they end up as catches on the boundary. He has lost some of his form over the last few games – 1 for 48, 0 for 62, 0 for 48, 1 for 41, 0 for 54 – but three of those took place in Delhi, Kolkata and Hyderabad, which have been extremely high-scoring venues. In Chennai, he might have better luck.

Stats that matter

• The MA Chidambaram stadium is the toughest challenge for a visiting team, with a win percentage of only 27.3%. Therein lies solace for CSK. In a crunch match, against a big team, they will be happy to draw on the strengths of their home crowd and familiar conditions. The only thing is, their fortress has been breached twice already this year.
• Jos Buttler has unfavourable T20 match-ups with Mitchell Santner (80 runs off 70 balls, one dismissal), Moeen Ali (74 off 51, with five dismissals) and even Maheesh Theekshana (51 off 45, no dismissals) if CSK consider bringing him in.
• But if CSK go all in on spin, that brings Yashasvi Jaiswal into the fray. He is a left-hand batter, and Ravindra Jadeja and Santner’s stock ball will be turning into his hitting arc. Jaiswal, in the IPL, averages 67 against spin with a strike rate of 144.
• Sanju Samson vs Jadeja is an all-action match-up with 73 runs in 52 balls and three dismissals.
• Dhoni might not be spending too much time at the crease but it is all by design. He is fulfilling his cameo role perfectly, to the extent that he has the highest strike rate (227) by any batter during the first five balls of their innings this season.
• Ashwin has won eight of the 11 matches he has played against CSK. He has 13 wickets against them at an economy rate of 7.75.

Pitch and conditions

There have only been four day games in Chennai since the end of 2019. Three of them went in favour of the chasing team. Two of them produced sub-140 totals by the team batting first. That’s when the ball holds in the pitch, and when the evening comes, it gets better to hit through the line. The problem with chasing, though, is that team will have to spend a lot of time melting away in 40°C heat.

Quotes

“I don’t think really that you can be 100% prepared because this heat and this humidity is crazy. But hopefully we’ve been training in this heat and this humidity the last two days so that should condition us to be ready for the game

Commanding unbeaten 165 leaves newly relegated attack looking toothless once more

ECB Reporters Network12-Apr-2024Opener Emilio Gay struck a stylish, commanding 165 not out, the fifth first-class century of his career, as Northamptonshire took full advantage of being put into bat against Middlesex. The hosts finished in a dominant position on 311 for three on day one of this Vitality County Championship match at Wantage Road.Gay, 24 on Sunday, celebrated his birthday early, striking his highest first-class score off 272 balls with 17 boundaries.He found a supportive partner in his skipper Luke Procter who hit 73 in a 189-run stand in 65.2 overs, eclipsing Northamptonshire’s previous highest second-wicket partnership against Middlesex (179) set by Stephen Peters and Alex Wakely in 2010.Middlesex’s bowlers, who were punished after inserting Glamorgan at Lord’s last week, must have had a sense of déjà vu but stuck diligently to their task on a largely docile wicket, deploying the short ball as the day wore on in a bid to make inroads with the Kookaburra ball.They had cause to celebrate themselves when Ryan Higgins removed opener Jason Broad lbw in the second over of the day. But the next breakthrough would not come until after tea as Procter and Gay took control.Once Procter fell to spinner Josh de Caires, Gay shared an 86-run stand with Karun Nair (41) before the Indian batter played on to a delivery that jagged back from Toby Roland-Jones.The day was also memorable in that Northamptonshire secured their first home batting points of 2024 – a feat they did not achieve until 26 September last year.Procter picked up where he left off after making 92 against Sussex. He was solid in defence, but played some crisp attacking shots during the morning, driving opposite number Roland-Jones down the ground and striking Tom Helm through square for four.Gay at times looked vulnerable outside off-stump early on, playing and missing against the seamers when they found some movement. But he grew in fluency, playing some attractive clips off his legs, taking on the short ball, and driving firmly down the ground. A highlight of the morning session was a classy drive for four through the covers off Helm.The pair had taken Northamptonshire to 106 for one at lunch and it appeared as if they would continue scoring at the same pace after the break as Gay pulled Helm disdainfully through midwicket.Scoring slowed significantly though, with just 24 runs coming in the first hour of the afternoon. Procter grew becalmed in the forties, eventually posting his half-century off 126 balls.As Middlesex banged the ball in short, Roland-Jones struck Procter under the armpit, but otherwise the Northamptonshire captain was largely happy to duck out of the way. Gay took a more attacking approach, his pull shots were mostly well controlled, although at times he kept the leg-side fielders interested.The scoring rate increased as tea approached, Procter taking full advantage of a full toss from de Caires, smiting it over midwicket for the first six of the innings.Gay then reached three figures in style by rocking back and slashing Higgins through point for his ninth boundary.After the interval, Procter put another de Caires full toss away to the ropes, but when he attacked the spinner’s next over, he could only pick out Helm at mid on to leave Northamptonshire on 190 for two. He had faced 194 balls and hit six fours and one six.Karun Nair cut de Caires behind square for four but was troubled by a couple of well-directed short balls from Helm, fending one away which fell safely between a group of advancing close catchers. But he found the sweep and reverse sweep profitable as he took consecutive boundaries off de Caires and soon settled into the groove.Gay meanwhile continued on his way, backing away to slice Helm through the covers and using his feet to de Caires to drive him through the same area.With Northamptonshire approaching 250, Middlesex took the new ball. Ethan Bamber and Roland-Jones found helpful movement off the seam, but Gay looked untroubled, playing an exquisite shot off his legs and a glorious cover drive shortly before stumps.

Ollie Pope left out of England’s four-day warm-up fixture in Antigua

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Mar-2022Dan Lawrence has been given the opportunity to secure a spot in England’s middle order for the first Test against West Indies after being listed at No. 4 for their four-day warm-up match against a CWI President’s XI in Antigua.Lawrence, 24, made his Test debut in Sri Lanka last year and averages 27.23 after eight matches. He was part of the Ashes squad in Australia but did not make an appearance, and has not played any competitive cricket since the end of the County Championship season.Ollie Pope, who was retained in the squad for the West Indies tour despite a torrid series in Australia in which he made 67 runs across six innings, is the only batter not included for Tuesday’s warm-up fixture.Related

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Zak Crawley and Alex Lees will open the batting with Joe Root carded in his new role at No. 3 ahead of Lawrence at No. 4. Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow are due to come in at No. 5 and No. 6 respectively with Ben Foakes keeping wicket at No. 7.England have picked a 12-man side featuring four seamers (Chris Woakes, Craig Overton, Mark Wood and Ollie Robinson) and one spinner (Jack Leach) with one of those five likely to be squeezed out for the first Test on March 8. The uncapped Saqib Mahmood, Matthew Fisher and Matt Parkinson join Pope on the bench.”We’ve done a lot of talking,” Paul Collingwood, England’s interim head coach, told the ECB’s in-house channels. “We’ve had some real open and honest meetings, and a lot of players and a lot of staff have spoken up in those meetings so they’re accountable now. They’ve got to go and live it. They’ve got to put what they’ve said in those meetings out onto the field.”I feel as though the guys have really bought into it. There’s a sense of excitement and genuine enthusiasm about moving the team forward and to build self-sufficiency in the team. I know I’ve only got the job as an interim coach but I guess the challenge is to pass the team onto whoever comes in after the four weeks and the team to be in a better, stronger place than it has been. When you get a role like this, you want to make a difference.”The President’s XI will be captained by Shane Dowrich, who recently returned to the professional game after a 14-month hiatus and scored 116 not out against England in Barbados three years ago.The fixture also marks England’s return to the Coolidge Cricket Ground in Antigua for the first time since the Stanford 20/20 for $20 million in 2008. The ground is the site of CWI’s new headquarters following its redevelopment and hosted men’s international cricket for the first time last year.”The pitch and the outfield are looking in immaculate condition and we are really pleased with what we are seeing,” Rayon Griffith, who will coach the President’s XI, said. “We’ve had some good training sessions and we expect to give a really good account during the four-day match.”England: 1 Alex Lees, 2 Zak Crawley, 3 Joe Root (captain), 4 Dan Lawrence, 5 Ben Stokes, 6 Jonny Bairstow, 7 Ben Foakes (wk), 8 Chris Woakes, 9 Craig Overton, 10 Mark Wood, 11 Ollie Robinson, 12 Jack LeachCWI President’s XI: (possible) 1 Jeremy Solozano, 2 Shayne Moseley, 3 Keacy Carty, 4 Devon Thomas, 5 Alick Athanaze, 6 Raymon Reifer, 7 Shane Dowrich (captain/wk), 8 Shamar Springer, 9 Colin Archibald, 10 Preston McSween, 11 Bryan Charles, 12 Shermon Lewis

Sunrisers unable to get on the board despite fifties for Noami Dattani, Kelly Castle

ECB Reporters' Network12-Jun-2021A half-century by Michaela Kirk and four wickets for Teresa Graves helped Lightning to a second victory in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy as bottom-of-the-table Sunrisers slumped to a fourth defeat from four matches.Naomi Dattani hit 65 and Kelly Castle 52 as Sunrisers posted 206 for 9 after opting to bat first at Loughborough University’s Haslegrave Ground, seamer Graves taking 4 for 39. But Lightning chased down their target with almost 10 overs to spare with South African-born batter Kirk hitting nine boundaries, sharing partnerships of 57 with Sarah Bryce and 47 with Kathryn Bryce.Abbey Freeborn then struck seven fours in a 48-ball 44, her partnership of 51 with Sonia Odedra effectively sealing the win. Freeborn was caught at midwicket with just two still needed before Graves hit the winning boundary.Always ahead of the required rate, Lightning were 47 without loss in the Powerplay. Sarah Bryce was caught at backward point off Castle’s medium pace but she was Lightning’s only casualty in scoring 100 from the first 20 overs.They suffered a double setback when Kirk and Kathryn Bryce fell in consecutive overs to offspinners Katie Midwood and Alice Macleod, Kirk trapped leg before sweeping before Bryce was bowled. But Freeborn and Lucy Higham added 48 for the fourth wicket, bringing the requirement down to 52 from 20 overs, before Higham was lbw to Castle sweeping.Sunrisers were 31 for 3 after their Powerplay overs. Seamer Sophie Munro bowled Grace Scrivens off an inside edge and had Amara Carr well caught by Freeborn at slip, before left-arm spinner Kirstie Gordon took her ninth wicket of the competition so far, trapping Alice Macleod leg before.Lightning captain Kathryn Bryce conceded only seven runs in her first six overs. Once she took a rest, however, runs came more easily as Dattani and Cordelia Griffith added 60 for the fourth wicket before the latter hit straight to mid-on as Graves made the breakthrough.Dattani and Castle put on 87 in 17 overs for the fifth wicket, Dattani completing her half-century off 82 balls with five fours before clearing the rope off Lucy Higham’s offspin for the only six of the innings. But Dattani was bowled attempting to sweep Yvonne Graves’s offspin, sparking a late collapse as Sunrisers lost five wickets for 18 runs in six overs, three of them to Graves.She dismissed Jo Gardner and had Gayatri Gole in the space of three balls before Castle played round one to be leg before, and Bryce picked up a deserved wicket when Freeborn held a good low catch at mid-on to remove Katherine Speed.