All posts by n8rngtd.top

Delhi overcome slight hiccups and move to the second spot in the standings after four-wicket win

Varun Shetty in New Delhi04-Nov-2017
ScorecardBCCI

Delhi stumbled towards their 252-run target in the last hour of the final day, but eventually came out trumps by four wickets against Uttar Pradesh at Palam A Ground. That meant they were second in Group A, behind Karnataka, while Suresh Raina’s men continued to languish second from last.The day began with UP on 223 for 7, after a security breach had ended the game early on the third evening. The loss of those 20 minutes and the associated momentum was amplified with the loss of overnight centurion Akshdeep Nath early the day when he got a thick inside edge to short midwicket off Navdeep Saini.The fast bowler then took two more wickets as UP were bowled out for 229, leaving Delhi little more than two sessions to get to the target. They lost Gautam Gambhir early when he slashed outside off and nicked to the wicketkeeper. Dhruv Shorey looked every bit as assured as he was in the first innings, and took charge in his partnership with Unmukt Chand.However, extra bounce did him in while he attempted one more of many cover drives on the up. He ended up scooping it to point. Unmukt and Nitish Rana, however, played calm knocks under pressure as they put up 71 to bring Delhi within 122 runs of victory with eight wickets in hand. But Unmukt and Rana were out for 49 and 67, leaving Delhi needing 65 in the final session.Milind Kumar, who had put together 52 with Rana, held one end up as Rishabh Pant took the bowlers on. As Delhi neared the target, UP slowed things down, with Ankit Rajpoot taking an injury break that lasted nearly six minutes. As if that was a warning sign to him, Pant skipped down the track against spinner Mohammad Saif in the next over and drilled him over long-on.The battle was won by the spinner, however, as he pushed one through Pant’s defend and forced him to play on. At this point, Delhi needed 28. Manan Sharma, who has been pushed into an all-round role for Delhi this season, made a nervous start and fell to a poke.With 21 to get, Delhi made a move that would ensure Milind wouldn’t have to switch gears, promoting Saini ahead of Pulkit Narang. The motive was visible as early as the second ball Saini faced as he looked to heave across the line against Rajpoot; it was a big edge that flew past the keeper for four.Saini walked down the track to bump fists with Milind, without bothering to look where the ball had gone. He slapped the fast bowler to the midwicket boundary the next over, and it was followed by a loft over mid-on from Milind as Delhi entered the half-hour extension needing two runs for a win. Saini got them with a clobbered six over long-on. The match was won and their campaign was alive.

Ed Cowan has revealed that Australia captain Steven Smith was surprised at how the national selectors ignored Cricket Australia’s directive to choose younger players for the first Ashes Test

Daniel Brettig22-Nov-20172:43

Shaun Marsh is back. Yet again

Australia’s captain Steven Smith was surprised at how the national selectors abandoned Cricket Australia’s previous directive to focus on choosing younger players in their squad for the first Ashes Test, former opener Ed Cowan has revealed.In pleading for greater clarity and consistency in selection policies, Cowan said that Smith had not expected the panel to turn away from youth in dropping Matt Renshaw and choosing Shaun Marsh and Tim Paine for the Gabba. Those decisions arrived a matter of weeks after Smith had explained to Cowan that there was no room in the New South Wales team for Cowan due to the need to look at younger players, despite the left-hander’s standing as last season’s leading run-maker in the Sheffield Shield.”He (Smith) has had some open and honest conversations with me,” Cowan said ahead of his return to the NSW Shield side. “I think he was surprised – without revealing confidential conversations between us – he certainly had a view that that’s the way the board had indicated selections were going to go. And I think the selection panel, as directed by Pat Howard, has turned that on its head.”Once we got to the bottom of why it happened, I was comfortable with that [being dropped from NSW team]. The only sour element comes from the fact that three weeks ago, I was evidently too old, and then someone [Shaun Marsh] who I played youth cricket with gets picked in the Test team. The policy of the young guys playing, I’ve got no problem with, as long as it is a selection policy that sticks consistently.”The bottom line here is every player in the system wants it to be at its absolute maximum capacity. We love the Australian cricket team. We want it to win and we are wishing those guys all the very best. But from a systemic point of view, we just want a little more consistency and clarity around selection.”Speaking to ESPNcricinfo earlier this month, Smith said Cowan had been left out for the younger Daniel Hughes as a direct result of the board’s directive to think long-term, following a fifth successive Test defeat in Hobart last year. “There’s been a directive from the board last year to try to get younger guys into the Australian team,” Smith said. “Guys like Matt Renshaw and Pete Handscomb, who came in and did really well. That’s got to filter down, I think, into state cricket a bit. I know Ed doesn’t agree with it, but Hughesy’s been in terrific form.”Cowan, who was a longtime team-mate of Tim Paine for Tasmania before returning home to NSW, said that the Blues’ wicketkeeper had reason to be “shattered” by the decision to not recall him, and instead choose a gloveman who has not been the Tigers’ first choice behind the stumps for two years. Paine has only kept wicket in one first-class match this season, for a CA XI against the Englishmen in their tour match at Adelaide Oval.”While Tim Paine’s a friend and former team-mate, and someone whose cricket I admire a lot, I really do feel for Nev, and to a degree, I really feel for Matt Renshaw,” Cowan said. “So I think, generally, the goalposts moving around selection is pretty hard to take, and I’m sure that’s why someone like Pete probably feels very aggrieved and I think he has every right to. Whichever way you want to select the team, it needs to be consistent, and those goalposts of performance need to be set in stone.”I feel for those guys who are really pushing for Test selection and they really don’t know what is required. I can only imagine [Nevill] is shattered, but ever the professional, he’s getting on with what he needs to do to prepare for this next game. You’re talking about a guy who’s a seasoned professional, he’ll continue to be a high performer in our team. I wish Painey well and [hope] the Australian team’s winning, but hopefully we can get some clarity around selections.”

If West Indies concede the match, they will have to return home with nothing to show for their stay in New Zealand

The Preview by Alagappan Muthu31-Dec-2017

Big picture

It may just be arbitrary – an illusion of time even – but a new year can have a remarkable effect. Ask West Indies. They ushered in 2017 with their trophy cabinet bursting at the seams. Then they were booted out of an ICC tournament. They will have to play fringe teams in international cricket to qualify for the next World Cup. And, on the basis of their performance on Friday, even their often infallible T20 game needs work.If West Indies concede the match on January 1, they will have to return home with nothing to show for their stay in New Zealand and the only people that would be feeling worse than Stuart Law, Jason Holder and Carlos Brathwaite would be those who had ended up as designated drivers the previous night. So the Bay Oval better prepare itself. It’ll be hosting a hurt world-champion side looking for revenge.New Zealand may sympathise – they are apparently the nice guys of this sport, even if their bowlers keep picking up seven-fors and their fielders take leave of gravity to snaffle impossible catches – but, with their captain Kane Williamson returning, they won’t offer much quarter. They’ve written the book on winning matches without too many star players. And it isn’t a complicated read either: have plans at the ready, ensure the players buy into that and can execute them under pressure. They’ll get plenty of practice in that regard coming up against a team that has nothing to lose and a whole lot to gain.

Form guide

New Zealand: WLWLL
West Indies: LWWWWThe perfect on-drive from Martin Guptill•BCCI

In the spotlight

With so many of West Indies’ frontline players in T20 cricket missing, it may be time Chris Gayle produces one of his single-handed demolition jobs. Not so long ago, after winning the Bangladesh Premier League, he proclaimed that he was the best to ever play the game. He would be able to lend that statement a little more oomph if he were to, say, beat an international team.New Zealand have their own marauder at the top, even if he is coming off a break. Martin Guptill. An average above 30 and a strike-rate of 130 suggests he likes playing longish innings even in the shortest format and should he do so in Mount Maunganui, New Zealand’s job of winning a third successive trophy, and staying on course for a tour-wide whitewash, will get a little bit easier.

Team news

Ross Taylor won’t be in action on Monday; he was only picked for the first T20I. Williamson will take his place.New Zealand (probable): 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Colin Munro, 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Glenn Phillips (wk), 5 Tom Bruce, 6 Anaru Kitchen, 7 Mitchell Santner, 8 Doug Bracewell/Lockie Ferguson, 9 Seth Rance, 10 Tim Southee, 11 Ish Sodhi*There may be some thought about bringing in Shimron Hetmyer into the batting line-up and Sheldon Cottrell into the bowling attack simply for the sake of variety.West Indies (probable): 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Chadwick Walton, 3 Andre Fletcher/Shimron Hetmyer, 4 Shai Hope (wk), 5 Jason Mohammed, 6 Rovman Powell, 7 Carlos Brathwaite (capt.), 8 Ashley Nurse, 9 Samuel Badree, 10 Jerome Taylor/Sheldon Cottrell, 11 Kesrick Williams

Pitch and conditions

There have been three T20Is at Bay Oval and runs have so far come by at a rate of 8 and above. Perfect conditions for a Gayle storm. The actual weather, though, is expected to be cloudy, with the possibility of showers late in the night.

Stats and trivia

• Williamson goes into the T20I with 133 fours, three less than Gayle. Of course, Gayle (103) has hit six times as many sixes as Williamson (16) has
• New Zealand have never lost a T20I in Mount Maunganui – and over their last 12 matches at home, they’ve only lost two
• Under the condition of at least 100 overs bowled, Samuel Badree has the second-best economy rate in T20Is; his figure of 5.78 is only just behind Daniel Vettori’s 5.70

Quotes

“Fantastic player, probably the best T20 record in the game and can take the game away at any time”

Sri Lanka are no strangers to playing on dustbowls, but Bangladesh can only hope their familiarity with Mirpur, where they recently picked up wins over Australia and England, gives them an edge

The Preview by Andrew Fidel Fernando07-Feb-2018

Big Picture

Thank heavens the first match is over. In Chittagong, bowlers were buffeted by meaningless run-making gales, boundaries came in endless waves, and the game, eventually, was sunk – a few confidence-boosting hundreds the only salvageable thing from the whole affair. It was a pitch so heavily loaded in the batsmen’s favour, it was difficult to get a gauge on how these teams really stack up. Sri Lanka’s batsmen certainly outlasted their counterparts in the first innings, but will the same necessarily hold true on a track that is a sterner test of defensive technique? Lahiru Kumara, the Sri Lanka quick, was ineffective in Chittagong, but would facing him have been a different proposition on a pitch that gave him something – anything – to work with?The track in Mirpur, however, is expected to be substantially different. Here is where Bangladesh roll out the dustbowls that yank their spinners emphatically into the game. In Mirpur have they recently claimed two huge Test scalps – England and Australia.Sri Lanka are no strangers to the “maximum spin” strategy, of course, having employed it with great success at home when certain teams come to visit. But Bangladesh will hope their familiarity with this particular surface will provide them with an advantage – mild though it may be.The hosts are, however, more hamstrung by the absence of Shakib Al Hasan than Sri Lanka are by the absence of Angelo Mathews. In the most recent match here – against Australia last August – Shakib claimed 10 wickets and scored a vital first-innings 84. Even if the likes of Mehidy Hasan and Taijul Islam can be effective in Mirpur, the wonderful balance Shakib adds to the XI will be missed. That he is the leader of this team only makes the loss more acute.

Form guide

Bangladesh DLLLW (completed matches, most recent first)
Sri Lanka DDLDW

In the spotlight

Having not made a century since November 2014, Mominul Haque took full advantage of the Chittagong surface, hitting 281 runs in total to properly reclaim his place in the side. If that Test was the fillip that gets Mominul’s career back on track, the boredom might even have been worth it. A player of obvious quality, and, when he is at his flowing best, scintillating to watch, it is now up to Mominul to get his average above 50, where it belongs, and keep it there.Like Mominul, Dhananjaya de Silva is the most watchable batsman in his side, and he too is re-establishing his place. At Chittagong, he became the joint-fastest Sri Lanka batsman to 1000 Test runs, one innings after scoring an excellent rearguard hundred in Delhi. So far, de Silva has been a confidence player – one good innings rolling into two or three more, just as had been the case in his debut series against Australia, in which he was the top run-scorer. Full of form now, and with a good track record on turning pitches, he may be a key player again in Mirpur.

Team news

Sabbir Rahman is likely to pip Mosaddek Hossain as he appears to be a more aggressive option. Sunzamul Islam’s place is still up for grabs, with Abdur Razzak being slightly ahead of Kamrul Islam and Nayeem Hasan, who could still get a chance.Bangladesh (possible): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Imrul Kayes, 3 Mominul Haque, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim, 5 Liton Das (wk) , 6 Mahmudullah (capt), 7 Sabbir Rahman/ Mosaddek Hossain, 8 Mehidy Hasan Miraz, 9 Taijul Islam, 10 Abdur Razzak, 11 Mustafizur RahmanLahiru Kumara, who fielded poorly, in addition to being wayward with the ball in Chittagong, is likely to give way to Lahiru Gamage. Dushmantha Chameera might have been the preferred replacement, but is in fact back in Sri Lanka after picking up an injury. There may be no other major changes.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Dimuth Karunaratne, 2 Kusal Mendis, 3 Dhananjaya de Silva, 4 Dinesh Chandimal (capt), 5 Roshen Silva, 6 Niroshan Dickwella (wk), 7 Dilruwan Perera, 8 Rangana Herath, 9 Suranga Lakmal, 10 Lakshan Sandakan, 11 Lahiru Gamage

Pitch and conditions

Sri Lanka captain Dinesh Chandimal strongly suspects the pitch will produce a result, as it already appears pretty dry on the eve of the match. The weather in Dhaka is expected to remain good for the duration of the Test, with temperatures in the high-20 degrees range.

Stats and trivia

• Rangana Herath needs only four more wickets to surpass Wasim Akram’s tally of 414 and become the most successful left-armer in the history of Test cricket.
• Herath is also seven wickets shy of becoming the most successful finger spinner in history (counting Muttiah Muralitharan as a wrist spinner). Harbhajan Singh is at 417 scalps, and the only spinners ahead of him are bona-fide legends: Murali, Shane Warne and Anil Kumble.
• No fewer than 34 wickets in the most recent Test in Mirpur fell to spin. In the previous Test, featuring England, 32 wickets fell to spin. Neither match went to the fifth day.
• Having played Sri Lanka in six of his 11 Tests, 29% of Mominul’s 2121 Test runs have come against them. He averages 48.20 overall and 62 against Sri Lanka.

Quotes

“We got out of a tough position in the first match. So this game is a great chance for us to win a Test series. I think all the players are thinking positively, which will help our outcome.”
“When you look at this pitch, definitely there will be a result. The pitch looks dry. Spinners will definitely come into play. It is challenging for both teams. It won’t be like Chittagong. We saw in the ODI tri-series that they were really bad pitches at this ground. It was good for the spinners but not for the batters. This pitch looks similar.”

On a day of uncertainty, Travis Dean played a steady hand, helping Victoria progress to a lead of 184 with five wickets in hand against New South Wales at stumps on day two

Alex Malcolm04-Mar-2018Getty Images

Victoria has progressed to a strong position against New South Wales at stumps on day two despite young batsman Will Pucovski being subbed out of the game after a sickening blow to the head.Pucovski had to retire hurt after he was struck on the helmet attempting to duck a short ball from Blues quick bowler Sean Abbott in an incident that left players on both sides distressed.After a short delay the game continued without incident and Pucovski was in good spirits post-play despite being replaced by Victoria’s 12th man Dan Christian under Cricket Australia’s concussion substitute rule.Travis Dean played a steady hand on a day of uncertainty. He moved to 64 not out by stumps and guided the Bushrangers to a lead of 184 with five wickets in hand after Trent Copeland had taken four wickets to keep the Blues in the game.Earlier, they had conceded a 28-run first innings lead after the Blues batsmen failed to capitalize on a number of starts against the Bushrangers well-balanced attack.

The Bangladesh captain has said he wants his side to remain as relaxed as he had seen them throughout the day

Mohammad Isam17-Mar-2018With just over 24 hours to go before their fifth multi-nation tournament final in limited-overs matches, Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan said he wants his side to remain as relaxed as he had seen them throughout the day. It encouraged him to hope that the rest of the players would keep out the mental blocks and treat the final like just another game.It is easier said than done, especially against India who have beaten Bangladesh in all seven previous T20s, including the 2016 Asia Cup final. In the two league stage matches in the Nidahas Trophy, Bangladesh were outplayed and looked short of ideas on occasions. But Shakib is bound to put a brave front. He insisted that if the Bangladesh players treat it as a mere contest between bat and ball, they could remain focused on the job in hand.”We haven’t discussed the final so we are not thinking about it as pressure yet,” Shakib said. “This, I think, is a big realisation of how we are handling this game so far. If you think about pressure, it is pressure. If you don’t think about pressure, it is not pressure. I am sure everyone is relaxed, and if we can be like this till tomorrow’s match, it will be good for us.”We are not thinking too far ahead. We have to be relaxed and open-minded. It is important to be mentally free to do well in T20s. I hope no one takes any pressure, and stays focused on the process. Everyone has a different mentality. I would hope that none of our players have that mental block. It would help us to play well. If we think it is a big final against India, then it is pressure. Rather, let’s think about a bat versus ball contest.”Given how the R Premadasa Stadium’s pitches have remained mostly similar throughout the length of a game, Shakib wasn’t too worried on whether he wouldd want to bat or bowl first, but much of Bangladesh’s focus would be on their start. During this tournament, their opening batsmen have provided them with better starts than their opening bowlers. Against Sri Lanka on Friday, they bowled well in the first eight overs and then gave away a big partnership.”We have a fair idea of what the Indian batsmen like to do,” Shakib said. “They are quite experienced, so we will try not to make it comfortable for them. We have to start well in the game, and then hold on to the momentum.”

“I have to be very careful with how I go forward with my cricket,” the India captain said, welcoming the break he has been on

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Mar-2018India captain Virat Kohli has welcomed the short break from cricket that he is on currently, saying it has helped him recover from a “few niggles”. Kohli opted out of the ongoing Nidahas Trophy, the T20 triangular series also featuring Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, with Rohit Sharma captaining the Indian team instead.”Physically, I had a few niggles, I am just getting over those,” Kohli said at a promotional event in Mumbai. “The workload has started to disagree with me a little bit. I have to be very careful about how I go forward with my body, my mind, my cricket. Times like these are very, very important. I am totally enjoying it; I do not even have an inch of me missing out on anything because my body really needed this.”Kohli was rested for the tri-series on the back of an almost two-month-long South African tour, where he played every match barring one T20I. The Indian contingent for the Nidahas Trophy excluded several notable limited-overs regulars, including Kohli, MS Dhoni, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Hardik Pandya and Kuldeep Yadav, with MSK Prasad, the chairman of selectors, explaining that the selection committee was mindful of their workload and upcoming schedule.This is not the first time that Kohli has raised concerns about workload management. He had been pretty vociferous about it during the home Test series against Sri Lanka last year. “Definitely, I do need a rest. Why not? When I think of the time when my body needs to be rested, I’ll ask for it. I am not a robot, you can slice my skin and check, I bleed,” he had said then. He was subsequently rested for the limited-overs leg of the tour.India’s players have a long season ahead of them. After the tri-series in Sri Lanka, they will be engaged in the IPL through April and May, then host Afghanistan for a one-off Test in June, before heading England for three T20Is, three ODIs and five Tests starting in July and running through to September.

England’s new national selector has the challenge of trying to solve long-standing issues with the Test side

Andrew McGlashan20-Apr-2018Stick or twistEngland were thwarted by New Zealand’s lower order in Christchurch, falling two wickets short of ending their barren run away from home. In the aftermath, there was a sense that the signs of improvement – particularly from Mark Stoneman and James Vince, who both scored half-centuries – had brought the men in the spotlight some more time. It will be interesting to see whether Smith feels the same way or whether the start of a new season is the time for a blank sheet of paper.Find the x-factorMark Wood and Jack Leach were brought into the side for Christchurch in an attempt to shake up England’s attack. It nearly worked, but the reality is that England have taken 20 wickets just once in their last 12 away Tests. James Anderson remains the attack leader and Stuart Broad looked rejuvenated in New Zealand, but high on Smith’s agenda will be finding bowlers (pace and spin) who can provide a point of difference. Names suggested early season include Olly Stone and Richard Gleeson in the pace debate, but Smith’s desire to delve into analytics may throw up some interesting new faces.Home and awayEngland’s home record has propped up their Test standing in recent years, but that can’t be taken for granted. There is a balance to strike between winning in the here-and-now and having an eye on the types of players who will be needed to arrest the decline overseas. For example, if a certain pace bowler or spinner is viewed as a likely starter in Sri Lanka or West Indies, then do they need to be playing this summer to find their feet in Test cricket? And, also, Smith will need to decide how far ahead to look. The next away Ashes in 2021-22 is likely to be high on the agenda. Players for that need to be identified now.Horses for coursesWith Smith’s emphasis on analytics and a more Moneyball approach to selection, could we see an evolution of the way Test squads are selected throughout a series – especially at home, where there is no restriction on who is available and limited distances to travel. Even if a certain team produces an impressive victory in one Test, does it mean they are the best XI for the next match? How deep will Smith look at conditions and opposition when selecting squads? This, of course, has to be balanced with the dangers of chopping and changing, and the instability it could bring.If it aint brokeRejuvenating the Test side will be Smith’s biggest selection challenge (although the T20 side has also lost some direction in the last couple of years). But the 50-over side is shaping up very nicely ahead of next year’s World Cup – an event with an importance to the English game that cannot be overstated. An era has been staked on winning that tournament on home soil. Smith is a smart man and will know what is working well, but it will be important that he doesn’t feel the need to tinker for the sake of it. Eoin Morgan and Trevor Bayliss probably already know 13 of their 15-man squad for 2019 – things would have to go badly pear-shaped for those selection meetings to stretch Smith too much.

ESPNcricinfo understands financial considerations have prompted the bank to review its investment in sports

Umar Farooq30-May-2018United Bank Limited (UBL), a prominent department with a rich history on the Pakistan domestic circuit, is considering scrapping its cricket team. UBL only returned to the fray seven years ago in 2011 after missing 15 seasons between 1997 and 2010. ESPNcricinfo understands financial considerations are the major reason, with the bank deciding to review its investment in sports.UBL downplayed the development, but one official confirmed that several options were on the table, including the possibility of disbanding the cricket team. The players have not been informed yet but the PCB has been informed about the motion – though they denied any official confirmation. If UBL pull out, which is likely, they will also lose their representation at the PCB governing body, with the bank having been on the board for the last four-and-a-half years.Since the team’s return in 2011, Pakistan’s domestic cricket has been revamped multiple times, but UBL consistently finished among the top four teams in the circuit. They played the President’s Trophy final in 2014, losing to Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), and lost to the same opponent in the 2016 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy (QEA) final. Since being established in 1975, UBL have won the QEA four times, the Pentangular Cup three times, and the Patron’s Trophy once, in addition to several limited-overs titles. UBL has invested significantly in its cricket department, contributing around PKR 50,000,000 (approx USD 432,000) each season towards the domestic franchise across all formats in the country. They were also the title sponsors of the T20I World XI series in Lahore last September.In each era, they invested significantly in young talent, with players like Waqar Younis, Tauseef Ahmed, Mudassar Nazar, Basit Ali, Saeed Anwar, Mushtaq Ahmed, Salim Jaffer, Rashid Latif, Inzamam-ul-Haq and Azhar Mahmood playing for the franchise. The present lot, including Shan Masood, Saad Ali, Sohaib Maqsood, Mohammad Asghar, Mir Hamza, Rumman Raees and Umar Akmal have been nurtured at UBL under the mentorship of Younis Khan.The influx of banks into Pakistan’s domestic cricket began in the early 70s, with Abdul Hafeez Kardar, the then PCB chairman, encouraging them to provide employment opportunities for players. UBL emerged after a merger with the now defunct Commerce Bank, which had been on the first-class scene since 1973.UBL had a large sports department covering cricket, hockey, badminton and table tennis actively until 1997, when it shut following the privatisation of the bank and a change in management. It also owns a sports complex in Karachi with its own first-class cricket ground.

The ECB has moved quell mounting speculation around possible innovations for The Hundred by issuing a statement to say that “no final decisions have been made” about the new competition

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Jul-2018The ECB has moved to quell mounting speculation around possible innovations for The Hundred by issuing a statement to say that “no final decisions have been made” about the new competition planned for 2020.Following a string of reports last week suggesting that the idea for a ten-ball final over had been ditched, Tuesday saw two national newspapers carry stories about the number of players in a team: the proposed 12, while the suggested it could go up to 15. The concept was likened to that of the Super Sub used briefly in international cricket during the 2000s.With trial games for the 100-ball format scheduled for September, there has been increasing debate about the ECB’s plans – which could also encompass bringing 10-over cricket to the UK. In response, the ECB issued a statement to say discussions were ongoing.”No final decisions have been made on the playing conditions for the new competition, which will start in the summer of 2020. To develop the competition, there are a number of ongoing discussions, including within a high-performance group who are planning a series of pilot matches in September.

The Hundred – the fans speak

David Hopps and Dan Norcross are in disbelief as they pore through your wildest schemes for livening up The Hundred on our Talking T20 podcast
Listen on ESPN radio

“Conversations with players, host venues and stakeholders across the game are vital to the development and inevitably lead to speculation on a range of matters. Ultimately, it is the board of the ECB which makes the final decisions on the format and playing conditions for the new competition and that is expected later this year.”The high-performance group, chaired by former England women’s captain Clare Connor, is expected to put its recommendations to the board in November.Meanwhile, Mark Wood, the England fast bowler, added to the sense of uncertainty around the new competition when talking on BBC Radio 5 Live. Saying he had discussed it with Dwayne Bravo, West Indies’ much-travelled T20 veteran, Wood questioned whether international stars would be interested in playing an untested format.”I’m not sure these big players would be necessarily open to it straight away anyway,” Wood said. “I spoke to Bravo, who I played with at the IPL, and he wasn’t interested in the 100-ball at all.”So if the big players already in the IPL, they can see that game’s working – the 100-ball thing, they’re unsure, who’s to say they’re going to come straight away? They might be apprehensive and then we can’t attract the big players.”