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Lancashire are unlikely leaders of Division One after promotion last season but in a stop-start season they refuse to be cowed

Jon Culley at Trent Bridge05-Jul-2016
ScorecardStuart Broad clubbed useful runs•Getty Images

A persistent breeze stiffened enough from time to time to ask less hardy spectators to consider putting on a jacket but at least it was a day that looked like summer. On the field, Stuart Broad worked up a sweat, eager to show his county the commitment that comes naturally to him in Test cricket. But an increasingly benign pitch was giving him very little back.Steven Mullaney, captain against his former county in the absence of Chris Read, was proactive, rotating the bowlers, frequently tweaking his fields, trying to make something happen. Broad ran willingly to where he was directed, chipping in too with suggestions on tactics to try. Deep into the last session, though, Lancashire’s openers had their sights on batting through to the close, determined that their concentration would not crack.They look like a side who believe in themselves. Promoted teams tend these days to find the step up a difficult one but Lancashire have established themselves among the front-runners. It would be a surprise if they are in first place at the end of the season but their players are not easily cowed.Tom Smith, a solid professional in the best traditions of county cricket, turned 30 now and with the wisdom and experience to go with it, locked horns again with Imran Tahir, as he had in the first innings. After a protracted battle, the legspinner had the last word then but this time Smith, so far, has the upper hand.At the other end, moreover, he had an ally who already looks equally at home playing the long game. Haseeb Hameed is not yet 20 in years but temperamentally seems much older, at least with bat in hand. The pair have been Lancashire’s best opening partnership so far this year, the first to put 100 or more on the board.In doing so, they have probably saved this game for Lancashire, who trailed by 198 on first innings, a scenario that looked unlikely after Nottinghamshire had lost half their wickets while still 35 runs behind.Steven Croft, as willing and versatile as he is, is not a wicketkeeper and it is a demanding position from which also to captain a side. Whether he could have done much differently, though, is a moot point, given that of all the things Mullaney tried later, none achieved a breakthrough.It has been a different match for Neil Wagner, who took 11 wickets when Lancashire beat Nottinghamshire handsomely at Old Trafford in May. His reward for 33.1 overs of toil this time was 3-107.”It was hard out there, on an unresponsive and flat wicket,” he said. “I thought we bowled well, we asked questions and we bowled better than we did yesterday, when we did not hit our lengths consistently and got hurt.”We thought if we could get a couple of quick wickets this morning we might be in with a shout but credit to Nottinghamshire they batted very well. Riki and Samit batted really well, as did Broady and the others who came in after. They never really gave us a chance.”But it was a great partnership between Haseeb and Tom and although there is a lot of work to do yet hopefully we are in a good position now to save the game.”Patel and Wessels could not be parted for more than an hour, adding 43 to an overnight lead of 27 before Patel, who had been watchful for the most part, feathered the thinnest of edges to Croft off Smith, who dismissed Wessels soon afterwards. Looking to accelerate the pursuit of bowling points, Wessels went after Smith and picked up his ninth boundary but was undone by the next delivery, which pushed him on to the back foot and took the edge, Liam Livingstone backpeddling from slip to take the catch.Wessels had to leave the field with a finger injury later in the day, handing the wicketkeeping gloves to Brendan Taylor for a period, but was able to resume after treatment.The end of one significant partnership, one that was worth 105 runs, merely introduced another. Broad, who has given good value to his county with the bat as well as the ball this season, combined with Brett Hutton to add another 79 for the eighth wicket, 31 of which came within the space of 18 deliveries, 24 from Broad’s bat, to clinch maximum batting points for Nottinghamshire with just one ball to spare.In an innings notable for unconverted starts – nine players made between 30 and 67 – neither Broad nor Hutton reached 50 but the lead kept stretching. Even Harry Gurney, a genuine number 11, made it into double figures, for only the eighth time in 95 first-class innings.The win that Nottinghamshire need rather more urgently than their opponents seems unlikely, however, unless Tahir can do something remarkable on the final day.

SLC and Muttiah Muralitharan have traded caustic verbal blows following an altercation between Murali and the Sri Lanka team manager over Murali’s consulting role with the Australia side

Andrew Fidel Fernando25-Jul-2016Sri Lanka Cricket and Muttiah Muralitharan have traded caustic verbal blows following an altercation between Murali and the Sri Lanka team manager. SLC has made a formal complaint to Cricket Australia over the altercation, and has also contended Murali had conducted centre-wicket training at the Pallekele ground without permission.With consternation about Murali’s role as spin-bowling consultant with Australia already high at SLC, a rumour began to circulate that Murali had influenced the preparation of a turning pitch at the P Sara Oval for Australia’s practice match last week. Having represented Tamil Union Cricket Club for much of his career, the P Sara Oval was effectively Murali’s home ground. It is a venue where he commands substantial respect.Sri Lanka would have preferred Australia to play their practice match on a seaming deck at odds with the surfaces that would be prepared for the Tests. Yet, Australia spinners Steve O’Keefe and Nathan Lyon shared 12 scalps in that game, on a surface that had begun to take significant turn by day three.Having caught wind of the suggestion that he was responsible for the nature of that pitch, Murali said he confronted Charith Senanayake, whom he believed to be the source of the accusation. Murali denies having had any influence over the preparation of the P Sara pitch. Senanayake denies having sparked the rumour.”Charith has accused [me] and told the media that I have cut the grass on the pitch to help Australia’s spin bowlers to take the wickets in the three-day game. That’s a lie,” Murali said. “When I met him I asked him: ‘We played together and respected each other, why are you telling lies?’, he told me that they have just made an inquiry.”The Tamil Union wicket was made at the time by Janaka Sampath, who is the SLC board curator. They should clarify from him what actually happened, rather than going on rumour.”Tempers are understood to have spilled over during the exchange. SLC was eventually notified, and on Monday, its president Thilanga Sumathipala said the board was “deeply disappointed” by Murali’s actions and had lodged a complaint with CA.”There are two problems here,” Sumathipala said. “The first is that Charith Senanayake has made a complaint that he had been berated. The second is that a certain training session for the Australia players at Pallekele had been carried out without permission.”We’re very disappointed because Murali is a player the board spent a lot of effort saving. We saved him three times. From a professional standpoint, there is no problem with him working with the Australian team. But the issue here is an ethical one. We’ve named the trophy the Murali-Warne Trophy.”And I remember once when we went to Kandy with Murali, he was on a truck and there was so much support for him that it took four hours for him to get home. Kandy is his hometown, and he’s now had to coach an opposition team at Pallekele. Regardless of professionalism, we’re very hurt by this.”SLC vice-president Mohan de Silva attempted to calm tensions, stating the board had not lost respect for Murali, but others within the cricket establishment had continued to express their dismay. When Sri Lanka’s sports minister also expressed “disappointment” over him taking the Australia job, Murali reacted by admonishing the board for casting aspersions upon his “ethics”, and drew attention to his substantial body of humanitarian work.”About two years ago, the board headed by Nishantha Ranatunga asked me to do some work with the spinners and I said yes, and I went and worked with the Sri Lankan spinners for 10 or 15 days,” Murali said. “Since then no Sri Lankan board has asked me to do any job. If they had asked me before the [Australia] series to be a consultant, I would have said yes. They didn’t want me, and someone else wanted me. How could I be a traitor to this country? Australia asked me to coach for the entire series, but I told them I can only do 10 days because I don’t want to be in the opposition dressing room during the match in Sri Lanka, that’s not ethical.”Sri Lankan people have done a lot for me, and I think I have done a lot for them as well. Along with a friend I’ve opened the Foundation of Goodness, where every year we help 50,000 families. We built 1000 houses after the tsunami. Cricket-wise, through the foundation, we made about 30-40 wickets in the Northern and Eastern provinces. We hold an annual reconciliation tournament. We do more than what Sri Lanka Cricket does, with our own funds.”Murali said Sri Lankans pursuing coaching opportunities with other countries was a result of their being unfairly treated by the SLC.”These people who are accusing me should go and look in the mirror [and compare] what they are doing to the country and what I am doing. The other fundamental wrong is that when our players become brilliant coaches, the board chases them off. I’m talking about Chandika Hathurusingha, Chaminda Vaas, Marvan Atapattu, Mario Villavarayan, and Thilan Samaraweera, who went to Australia. These people are all working in different countries where they are valued more than they are here.”What we do is bring all the top coaches from abroad when we already have the talent. We are not using it. Am I the traitor or are they the traitors? When they pay also – the foreign coaches are paid so much more than the Sri Lankan coaches.”Murali was also incensed by how much had been made of his association with Australia in particular, a role which he felt offered personal vindication given his travails in Australia during his career. He had initially worked with the Australia spinners during a series in the UAE in 2014, before being approached again ahead of this series.”I know in ’95 and ’96 I had problems against Australia, and the whole of Sri Lanka backed me. I thought that when Australia asked me to coach, that’s them saying that I don’t do anything wrong – that I am correct and they were wrong at the time. That’s their proving it by asking me to train their spinners.”Does SLC think that just because I coach Australia for 10 days, Australia will win? If that’s the case I am the best coach in the world, and Sri Lanka should hire me every time, and we will win every time.”Former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara tweeted in support of Murali on Monday evening. “Murali is a great son of Sri Lanka and he doesn’t have to defend himself. He loves his country,” Sangakkara wrote. “He is free to consult or coach anyone. If SLC had ever asked him to coach Sri Lanka, he always will. His consultancy with anyone is a way he can give back to the game.”He has given his best to his country on the field and off. He is always available for his country, all they have to do is ask. We [should be] proud of him. If any Sri Lankan spinner walks up to [Murali] and asks him about bowling, he will be the first to spend as much time as needed to help. Free.”

Given Sri Lanka’s growing injury concerns, the national selectors will pick a squad ahead of each Test for their upcoming three-match series against Australia, which begins on July 26

Sa'adi Thawfeeq17-Jul-2016Given Sri Lanka’s growing injury concerns, the national selectors will pick a squad ahead of each Test for their upcoming three-match series against Australia, which begins on July 26.Chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya and co-selectors Romesh Kaluwitharana, Eric Upashantha and Ranjith Madurusinghe face a dearth of fast-bowling options after injuries to several first XI players. Dhammika Prasad’s shoulder injury is likely to keep him out of the Test series, while Dushmantha Chameera and Suranga Lakmal, who will undergo a fitness test on Monday for a hamstring strain, will be assessed later. Shaming Eranga’s suspect action leaves Nuwan Pradeep as the only seamer available for selection from the recent tour of England.”It is very difficult times as a selector to pick a balanced squad with so many injuries,” Jayasuriya, who is in his second stint as chief selector, said. “It’s a bit tough but we will try and pick the best possible team. I hope the players picked also know what is expected of them and that they will do their best.”Whoever is fit and whoever is doing well in the Sri Lanka A team, we’ll have to give them the opportunity. It is the feeding place for the senior side. If we feel there is somebody who is very good in the Sri Lanka A, emerging or Under-19 squads, we will not hesitate to pick them.”I am really happy the way some of the Sri Lanka A players have been performing in England. Fast bowlers Vishwa Fernando and Asitha Fernando, batsmen Dhananjaya de Silva and Roshen Silva are quite a few players.”When we play in Sri Lanka we have a better chance of performing than when you are overseas. I am confident they can do well. But it’s a lot of hard work to come out and show their character.”Jayasuriya said despite the bowling concerns, Sri Lanka’s young batting core is headed in the right direction.”Our main concern is the bowling but this is also a good time for a youngster to put his hand up and perform and show his character,” he said. “The batting line-up is a fairly good one and stable. If you see the way they progressed in the Tests the batting was really good. It’s the one key department we can think that we are on the right direction.”With players like Kusal Mendis, Kaushal Silva, Dinesh Chandimal and Angelo Mathews, the batting line-up did really well. Some of the innings of 20s and 30s, I would like to see them go and get a big 100 or 200.”The unfortunate thing about the Test series in England was that we had a very good bowling line-up but we started getting injuries from the first Test onwards and before long our main three fast bowlers – Prasad, Chameera and Eranga – were out of the scene. We were basically left with only another two fast bowlers Pradeep and Lakmal to run through the rest of the games. If not for those injures we would have done really well. But injuries are part and parcel of cricket and you have to face them.”Jayasuriya also felt the increased workload of international cricket was responsible for Sri Lanka’s fast-bowling injury crisis.”At the moment, they are playing a lot of cricket – Tests, ODIs and T20Is. In our days, our cricketing life span would have been about 15 years but now it has come down to about eight years.”In the present context if you play for 10 years you will have played more than 150 Tests and almost 300-400 ODIs on top of T20Is. A human body cannot take such a workload. The main thing is how the player manages and rehabs himself. It is easy to come and say ‘I am injured’. To play with the pain is the key. No fast bowler can play without any pain. They have to play with niggles here and there. We are currently working on the players with one of the best trainers, Michael Mann, who has been trying to get them into shape.”Jayasuriya said Chandimal will continue to be Sri Lanka’s designated wicketkeeper during the Test series with Kusal Perera as a middle-order batsman.”At the moment Chandimal is the better keeper, Kusal is a bit out of touch. Chandimal normally bats at No. 4 but because of the conditions in England, we pushed him to No. 6 and it was successful. We will discuss with him what position he is comfortable batting, he is flexible.”Although many Australian players have not played a Test in Sri Lanka, Jayasuriya warned against complacency.”They (Australia) have come early and started practice to get to know our conditions and they have hired (Muttiah) Muralitharan to get information about Sri Lankan conditions and pitches. They are very smartly doing their homework. At the end of the day they are also professionals, their coach has played here. We can’t take things lightly.”

The ECB delegation left Dhaka on Saturday evening after inspecting venues in Mirpur, Chittagong and Fatullah ahead of England’s tour of the country in October

Mohammad Isam20-Aug-2016The ECB delegation left Dhaka on Saturday evening with its host hopeful of England’s tour of Bangladesh going ahead as scheduled in October. The delegation inspected venues in Mirpur, Chittagong and Fatullah, giving special attention to detail when looking at the venues and hotels in Mirpur and Chittagong. The three-member delegation also had meetings with intelligence agencies and BCB officials in Dhaka, and were shown the security plan for the tour at the home ministry.A top official at the home ministry said the delegation was happy with the plan. The BCB, however, refrained from any overly confident statements before hearing from its English counterpart.The delegation included the ECB’s security advisor Reg Dickason, Professional Cricketers’ Association chief executive David Leatherdale and the ECB’s director of cricket operations John Carr, and arrived in Bangladesh after completing a venue inspection for England’s tour of India later in the year.The BCB’s media committee chairman Jalal Yunus said: “We will know whether it was a positive tour for them when they report back to the ECB. They will decide only then. They visited all the hotels and ground facilities, and were briefed about security.”There’s no time frame, and we won’t put any pressure. They took everything quite seriously here, and spoke to nearly everyone, including the country’s security intelligence. They were given a detailed security plan at the home ministry.”England’s tour of Bangladesh is scheduled to begin on September 30, and includes three ODIs and two Tests.Yunus also said that Bangladesh’s top government officials were aware of the developments, but did not comment on whether government-to-government contact had been established regarding the tour. The need for such an assurance from the Bangladesh government towards the UK is being discussed as a necessity, given the July 1 attack in Dhaka.England’s tour is set to be the maiden bilateral Test and ODI series in Bangladesh this year. So far this year, international cricket in Bangladesh has included the Under-19 World Cup, T20Is against Zimbabwe, and the Asia Cup.

England’s bowlers and middle-order were given a thorough test but stabd-in skipper Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali ensured they came out of the Fatullah practice match with a four-wicket win and their confidence boosted

Mohammad Isam04-Oct-2016
ScorecardImrul Kayes struck a century but Jos Buttler had the last laugh•Getty Images

England’s bowlers and middle-order were given a thorough test but they came out of the Fatullah practice match with a four-wicket win and their confidence boosted.Imrul Kayes’ hundred kept them in the back-foot but they fought back in the slog overs. Later when they slipped to 170 for 5 chasing 310, the stand-in ODI captain Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali pulped a challenging target as they won with 22 balls to spare. They added 139 runs for the sixth wicket in just 16.5 overs.England started off the chase as they should have, going after the home bowlers. Jason Roy struck couple of sixes, over midwicket and mid-on, and two more fours in his 22-ball 28. James Vince was also going well but in the ninth over, Roy fell to the rookie paceman Ebadot Hossain in the deep leg-side field where Kamrul Islam Rabbi took the catch.Vince fell two short of a fifty after he was caught behind off Ebadot in the 13th over. His 39-ball stay had eight fours and while the innings wasn’t long enough, it seems enough to suggest that England may as well go for the Roy-Vince opening partnership.Jonny Bairstow and Ben Duckett kept the run-rate almost intact but in the 19th over, Bairstow was caught behind off Kamrul Islam Rabbi for 11. Duckett who took a bit of time to get settled under the fading light, struck three fours in his 37-ball 29 before Shuvagata Hom bowled him in the 24th over.Ben Duckett cools off on his England tour debut•Getty Images

Things got a little nervy for the visitors exactly five overs later when Ben Stokes fell to Al-Amin Hossain for 28, having struck three fours and a six in 40 balls.From 170 for 5 however, new captain Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali mounted a counter-attack that would put them in good stead for the first ODI, especially if they are chasing under lights.By the 35th over, the pair had settled down with some boundaries and maintained the required run-rate. Five overs later, they accelerated further as they made it to 251 for 5, needing 59 runs in the last ten overs. Moeen fell when England needed just one run, after making 70 off 51 balls with eight fours and two sixes. Buttler was unbeaten on 76 off 63 balls with two fours and four sixes.When the home side batted first, Imrul wasted no time in setting his innings in motion, blazing the first ball of the innings, bowled by Chris Woakes, for a cover-driven boundary. There was no let-up whenever he got strike but at the other end, Soumya Sarkar struggled to get the ball off the square. He fell in the fifth over, beaten by Woakes’ pace and, judging by his slight crouch, a bit of uneven bounce. By that time Imrul had sped to 26.Imrul was excellent on the off-side whenever the English bowlers were too full or slightly short. He blasted sixes over midwicket off the front foot, and was severe on the spinners, particularly Adil Rashid. With Nazmul Hossain Shanto, he added 85 runs for the second wicket in 15.5 overs. Nazmul struck four boundaries in his 46-ball 36, at times matching Imrul shot for shot.Imrul reached the mark in the 27th over and hardly showed any let up, hammering his fifth and sixth sixes in the David Willey over in which he was finally bowled, leaving 21 overs remaining. His 121 came off 91 balls and included eleven fours and the six sixes. Imrul had added 71 runs for the third wicket with Mushfiqur in just eight overs.Mushfiqur too showed that he could middle the ball, adding another 69 runs for the fourth wicket with Nasir Hossain. During this partnership, Mushfiqur reached his first 50-plus score since June this year. He soon fell to Stokes in the 41st over, bowled for a 57-ball 51 that had five fours.Despite their brilliance for 40 overs, the BCB XI made only 49 runs in the last ten overs, losing five wickets. England’s bowlers, hitherto struggling to find their bearing in the heat, came back strongly. Woakes finished with three wickets while Stokes and Willey picked up two wickets each. Between the two England spinners, Rashid and Moeen, there was only one wicket giving away 117 runs in 17 overs.Ben Stokes bowls at Fatullah•Getty Images

Craig White, the former Yorkshire and England allrounder, is to join Hampshire’s coaching set-up ahead of the new season

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Nov-2016Craig White, the former England allrounder, has been named as Hampshire’s new head coach, following the departure of Dale Benkenstein midway through the 2016 season.White, 46, made his name at Yorkshire in an 18-year first-class career that included more than 12,000 runs and 395 wickets, and played 30 Tests and 51 ODIs for England between 1994 and 2003.He joined Hampshire as assistant and bowling coach in 2012, and was handed the reins for the final six matches of their County Championship campaign in 2016. Although he was unable to prevent their relegation, the club was handed a reprieve when the ECB sanctioned Durham for receiving financial support, and sent them down to Division Two instead.”I’m flattered and honoured,” White told BBC Radio Solent. “It’s a fantastic opportunity for me and I can’t wait to get started in the job.””I was thrust into the job and I really enjoyed it. It was something I didn’t think I was quite ready for. Maybe another two or three years learning the trade might have been the right time.”But when [director of cricket] Giles White mentioned would I take on the job full-time, I said I would. I think some big names applied, so to be given the job permanently is a great honour.””Craig has been an integral part of the coaching set-up for a few years now,” said Giles White. “He has experience, a great understanding of the game and is respected by everyone here at Hampshire. For all those reasons he is the ideal person to take on this important role.”

While the BCB release didn’t specify the nature of the breach, ESPNcricinfo understands that the incidents took place during the Chittagong leg of the ongoing season

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Nov-20161:25

Isam: Fine amounts unprecedented

Sabbir Rahman and Al-Amin Hossain have been handed heavy fines for “serious off-field disciplinary breaches” during the Bangladesh Premier League.While the BCB release didn’t specify the nature of the breach, ESPNcricinfo understands that the incidents took place during the Chittagong leg of the ongoing season.”A Governing Council investigation has found both players guilty of serious off-field disciplinary breaches during the current tournament,” a BCB press release read. “As a consequence, Al Amin has been penalised 50% of his BPL contract fees while Shabbir has been fined 30% of his BPL contract amount.Sabbir, placed in Grade A+ in the BPL player draft, was acquired by Rajshahi Kings for Tk 40 lakh (approximately USD 50,000), while Al Amin in Grade A was retained by Barisal Bulls for Tk 25 lakh (approximately USD 31,000).”The players have been reminded of their responsibility as national cricketers and have been warned that any repeat of similar acts of indiscretion in the future will result in harsher penalty,” the statement said.

Suzie Bates made a 46-ball 64 and put on 100 quick runs for the first wicket with Sam Curtis (55*) as New Zealand women beat Pakistan women by eight wickets in the first ODI

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Nov-2016
Scorecard
Suzie Bates’ dominant 64 took her side to a comfortable victory in the first ODI•Getty Images

Captain Suzie Bates made a 46-ball 64, and put on 100 quick runs for the first wicket with Sam Curtis (55*), as New Zealand women beat Pakistan women by eight wickets, with 27 overs to spare, in the first ODI in Lincoln.Bates’ decision to put Pakistan in was vindicated when the visitors were reduced to 27 for 3 in the ninth over. Nain Abidi (49) put on a 62 with Nida Dar (19) for the fourth wicket to begin a recovery, but Pakistan collapsed after Abidi’s dismissal. They went from 89 for 3 to 90 for 6, with medium-pacer Lea Tahuhu (3-37) removing Abidi and Dar, while captain Sana Mir was caught and bowled to 16-year old debutant legspinner Amelia Kerr (1-21).Allrounder Asmavia Iqbal scored an unbeaten 49, but was one of only three batsmen to reach double figures as Pakistan folded for 156 in 49 overs.Bates and Curtis knocked 100 off the target in just 13.3 overs, before the New Zealand captain was caught behind off Sana Mir. Amy Satterthwaite fell four overs later. But the wickets only marginally slowed down New Zealand’s scoring rate, as Curtis took them home with her first ODI fifty.The second ODI in the five-match series will be played in the same venue on November 11.

Jack Leach was shocked when England raised doubts about the legality of his action

George Dobell20-Dec-20162:24

Trott: Never noticed anything odd about Leach’s action

Jack Leach, the Somerset left-arm spinner, says he was “shocked” not to be considered for a call-up to England’s tour of India due to concerns over the legality of his bowling action.The ECB confirmed on Tuesday that the problem was raised during routine testing at the national academy in Loughborough following the end of the season in which Leach had taken 65 wickets at 21 in the County Championship. Leach has never been reported for a suspect action by the umpires.While Somerset – Leach’s club – insist the issue was minor, it is likely it convinced the England selectors not to consider him as a replacement for Zafar Ansari when he was forced home from India due to injury. Hampshire’s Liam Dawson was called up in Ansari’s place.Instead, Leach took his place on the England Lions tour of the UAE, where we underwent remedial work on his bowling action while also continuing to play. He claimed 3 for 7 in a one-day match against UAE and 2 for 25 in the four-day encounter against Afghanistan, then was named in the squad for the tour of Sri Lanka in February.Leach has admitted he was “shocked” when ECB tests showed he had an illegal bowling action.”When I did the test and they told me I was as shocked as anyone,” said Leach. “It was only a very small thing in terms of my body position – and it wasn’t helping me bowl a doosra or anything like that.”After that I just worked my nuts off to be honest, with Peter Such from the Lions and Jason Kerr back at Somerset, in terms of making the changes I needed to. I’ve made a hell of a lot of progress, and I was pleased with the way it went out in the UAE.”The important thing is I’ve come to terms with it, and I feel like I’m going to be a better bowler in the future for sorting it out.”The news – and timing of the news – is intriguing. In contrast to most illegal bowling action reports, there had hardly been a whisper of protest about Leach’s action throughout the county season. Quite the contrary: it appeared orthodox and strong and it is understood that no umpires reported any concerns with it. Coming just as England slipped to a 4-0 defeat, it might be seen to deflect attention from some surprising selections and suggest the selectors were powerless to offer alternatives to India’s spin attack.”Jack really has worked like a Trojan since the initial assessment,” Such, the ECB’s lead spin-bowling coach, said. “He’s only made slight modifications but they make a big difference, and we’ve seen really significant progress.””Jack had a tremendous season for Somerset and is an outstanding player and team member,” Matthew Maynard, Somerset’s director of cricket, said. “Whilst he was picked up for a minor abnormality in his bowling action during routine testing at the end of the season, this was quickly addressed with remedial work, allowing him to play for England Lions over the last few weeks. I have every confidence that he will be playing for England in the future and that there is no major issue with his bowling action.”Towards the end of the 2016 season, as Leach spearheaded Somerset’s push for a maiden Championship title, his captain Chris Rogers suggested he was not yet ready for Test cricket.”I am still a big believer that you need more than one good season to play for England,” Rogers said after Leach had taken 6 for 64 at Headingley. “With Jack, I think his game’s in order, I think emotionally he still has a bit of a way to go and I don’t think he’s be upset with me saying that.”He is still a young guy, he has only ever been in Somerset and the challenges in international cricket are a lot more difficult.”

The Melbourne Renegades kept their chances alive in the BBL with a six-run win that knocked the Adelaide Strikers out

The Report by Geoff Lemon16-Jan-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMarcus Harris reached his fifty off 29 balls•Cricket Australia/Getty Images

Strikers struck off, Renegades surviveThe Melbourne Renegades stayed alive in the sixth edition of the Big Bash League, finally closing out a contest after a couple of thrilling losses, and knocking out the struggling Adelaide Strikers with a six-run win.Asked to bat at the Adelaide Oval, the Renegades set a decent total of 171 for the loss of nine wickets, built around Marcus Harris’ dominant innings of 85. No other batsman really got going, Callum Ferguson the next best with 26, though all of the top five got starts.Ben Laughlin bowled an exceptional spell of 2 for 15 from his four overs, while Michael Neser returned 2 for 14 from three, but the Renegades made up for it by punishing Kieron Pollard, Liam O’Connor, Ish Sodhi and Wes Agar.The final result looked closer on paper than it was in the flesh, the chase effectively extinguished when captain Brad Hodge was out 37 runs short of victory with 20 balls to spare, after little substantial support from the top order. Jono Dean clubbed the Strikers to within some hope of a comeback win, but Thisara Perera finished off with the ball after so famously failing to do so in last week’s record chase against the Hobart Hurricanes.We’ll always have HarrisThe Renegades opener was the difference, and proved his value as a recruit from Western Australia, belting his 85 from 53 deliveries. Six of his shots went to the fence and four cleared it, his moderate start dropping into gear with three consecutive fours off Agar in the third over.He flew past a half-century thanks to a couple of sixes off Pollard in the eighth. Cameron White and Tom Cooper fell around him, but Harris pushed on to within reach of a maiden T20 century in his 20th game.When he fell with the score on 149 and four overs to go, a possible Renegades score of over 200 went begging, as the last six batsmen kept to single figures. In the end, though, Harris alone had been enough.Strikers waste another good chancePeter Nevill is accompanied off the field after being struck in the face by Brad Hodge’s bat•Getty Images

Tim Ludeman and Ben Dunk got the start that should have enabled the Strikers to chase comfortably, with 53 runs from the first six overs. But not for the first time this season, the rest of the innings lost its way. Ludeman holed out, Dunk missed a straight ball from part-time offspinner and part-time Dutchman Cooper, and the slide began.”I’ll just look to be super positive against Perera. Pollard is great against spin, so hopefully that takes some pressure off him.” That was Hodge’s offering to the commentary team during the chase. “We know Perera will be bowling a lot of slower balls, so hopefully we get onto a few.”It was Pollard rather than Hodge who got onto one, a ball that dropped short and sat up. Pollard hammered it out to deep square leg, flying for a flat six. Or that’s what everyone thought had happened, except that a screamer from Callum Ferguson at the boundary intercepted it.Once again it was poor Hodge trying to herd a bunch of kittens across the finish line. That paved the way, though, for a fluke accident that took the shine off the win for the Renegades. As Hodge looked to lift the rate, his bat flew out of his hands after a particularly violent slog sweep, and flew behind the pitch where Peter Nevill stood a few paces back.With the wicketkeeper’s eye on the ball at deep backward square, he didn’t see the bat that then hit him in the side of his face, forcing him to come off with a massive swelling on the right side of his jaw. Perera knocked over Hodge later the same over, while opposing captain Aaron Finch deputised with the gloves.Be the crowd favouriteThe competition for bringing the crowd into the game was split between Harris and Neser. Aside from Neser’s bowling providing a couple of deep catches, he put on a show himself by the fence.First he hung on to one at deep midwicket to dismiss White. Then he dropped Ferguson at long-on, held Perera at long-off, and snared James Pattinson at deep midwicket towards the end of the innings.Harris brought onlookers into the game literally via the last of his sixes from a gorgeous straight hit off New Zealand legspinner Sodhi. A security guard on a camp chair at the boundary wasn’t watching play, and only just responded to the crowd’s calls to yank his head out of the way. Harris tried to send him the next ball as well, but the pull shot hung just inside the rope for Dean to claim.The late season wash-upVery simple. This was a knockout match, even as the second-last of the season for both teams. The Strikers and Renegades went into the game at the bottom of the ladder on four points each, needing to win their last two to match the eight points of the teams currently occupying the finals positions.The Renegades had certainly had the better season on the field, losing twice from the last ball of matches, while the Strikers had struggled. In the end, things went to form, and Red Melbourne stayed in contention.