All posts by n8rngtd.top

Ben Duckett and Harry Brook make first appearances following the Ashes

ECB Reporters Network03-Aug-2023Torrential rain brought an abrupt end to the Hundred match at Headingley between Northern Superchargers and Birmingham Phoenix with just 62 balls possible in Phoenix’s first innings. With puddles forming on the outfield the umpires were left with no choice but to call a halt to proceedings after a heavy shower engulfed Leeds.It was frustrating for the hosts who had got themselves into a decent position during the play that was possible with Reece Topley removing opener Jacob Bethell for 0 in his opening set of deliveries.That brought England star Ben Duckett to the middle and he introduced himself with a ramped shot for six before hitting an unbeaten 34 off 26 balls before the rain came.Spin also played its part with Matthew Short removing Dan Mousley and Shadab Khan in quick succession with England’s Adil Rashid claiming the wicket of Jamie Smith who was bowled for 13 with the visitors 84 for 5 at the close.England batter Harry Brook was also involved after making himself available for Superchargers’ opening fixture, following the conclusion of the Ashes on Monday.

He was granted strict conditional bail on the drug charge and has had to surrender his passport

AAP15-Sep-2023Former Australian Test bowler Stuart MacGill has been charged over the supply of a commercial quantity of cocaine that led to his purported kidnapping.Six men have been charged over the alleged kidnapping, which took place on Sydney’s lower north shore in April 2021.Police launched an investigation into an alleged drug supply operation after the incident was reported to officers and on Friday they confirmed MacGill, 52, was arrested on Tuesday at Chatswood.He has been charged with one count of knowingly taking part in the supply of a large commercial quantity of a prohibited drug.MacGill told police after the alleged kidnapping that he was repeatedly punched in the head during the incident, causing him to become concussed.He said he was forced into a car at Cremorne on Sydney’s north shore and taken to Bringelly, south of Sydney.Three assailants allegedly tried to extort money from him before dropping him at Belmore about an hour later.At a previous hearing for two of the alleged kidnappers, a judge said there was “some question” of whether MacGill got into the car willingly.MacGill has denied any involvement in the abduction, telling Nine’s A Current Affair in 2021 that he had done nothing wrong.The ex-spinner was granted strict conditional bail on the drug charge and has had to surrender his passport.He is due to appear at Manly Local Court on October 26.

Captain Hayley Matthews has promised her team will take an aggressive approach

Andrew McGlashan30-Sep-20231:09

Healy: Build-up to the next T20 World Cup starts now

There will be an Australian influence on West Indies as they aim to topple the world champions on their home soil over the next two weeks with Shane Deitz taking charge for his first series as the new head coach.Deitz, the former South Australia wicketkeeper-batter who has previously coached the Bangladesh and Netherlands women’s sides, took up his role last month but this tour has been the first chance for him to get the squad together.Although Australia stumbled in the Ashes, losing both white-ball series to retain the urn with an overall draw, they will start strong favourites against West Indies, for whom this is a first bilateral tour of the country since 2014. They have won their last five T20Is, following a run of 15 consecutive defeats, but the end of the losing streak came too late to save their T20 World Cup campaign in South Africa.Deitz has a simple message for them ahead of the opening T20I in Sydney: play with freedom and have fun.Related

• Matthews' all-round heroics hand Barbados Royals WCPL title

• Megan Schutt: 'I didn't have the skill or work ethic, I just happened to be able to swing a ball'

• Perry may not bowl during West Indies series following knee injury

“Got out there and enjoy it. Enjoy the challenge and play with freedom,” Deitz told ESPNcricinfo. “We’ve got nothing to lose. Australia is the world’s best team for a long time now. We’ve got to find an identity for how we want to play. Using that natural ability and talent and letting that flow is the way I’m looking to do it. Play with a smile on your face, have fun.”It’s a philosophy that captain Hayley Matthews, who will join Melbourne Renegades for the WBBL after this tour, is fully onboard with as the pair look to build towards next year’s T20 World Cup in Bangladesh.Matthews made her ODI debut as a 16-year-old on the 2014 tour and scored half-centuries in each of the three ODIs. She was elevated to the captaincy last year to replace Stafanie Taylor.”We are definitely up for the challenge,” she said. “At the end of the day if we are going to compete with the best teams in the world that’s the brand of cricket we are going to have to play. Teams are now scoring 160-170 runs in T20 games and don’t reckon anyone’s going to score or win games by just nudging it around.”Not only the younger players, but everyone within the team has to have freedom to go out there and push their boundaries, push their limits and that’s what we are encouraging.”Matthews, who is averaging 43.33 with the bat 15.78 with the ball in T20Is this year, having been West Indies’ leading run-scorer and wicket-taker at the 2022 ODI World Cup, will be pivotal to what they want to achieve. She comes into the tour after a player-of-the-match performance in the WCPL final.Hayley Matthews comes into the tour with some good form under her belt•CPL via Getty Images

“Her performances over the last 12 months or longer have been unbelievable,” Deitz said. “She’s one of the best in the world, for sure. I’ve been so impressed with her leadership and captaincy within the group. It’s amazing for her age to be such a great leader. We are enjoying our time working together, we think along the same lines. Think the team’s in good hands with her.”Matthews added: “He’s gelled really well with the group and tried to get into the culture of the girls a little bit. At the same he’s spoken a lot about us progressing in the right direction and getting the youngsters to a certain standard and becoming a more consistent team.”West Indies warmed-up for the T20I series with a four-wicket win over New South Wales although they slipped to 8 for 3 in their chase. The experienced Shemaine Campbelle top-scored with 33 while 18-year-old Zaida James, one of a group of young players included for the tour, helped complete the chase.”There’s definitely a lot of youth coming through, [it’s about] harnessing that talent and putting in a world-class high-performance programme around them to produce international standard players,” Deitz said. “There’s definitely lots to work with. We want to win every game, but you have to have a longer-term vision to develop players and allow them to make mistakes along the way.”We want to find a nucleus of players for that [T20] World Cup, it’s a year away now, we are definitely building towards that, so we have to work with the players to get them ready.”Australia captain Alyssa Healy, who is continuing in the role in the absence of Meg Lanning and plays her 250th international on Sunday, is wary of West Indies’ threat.”I think they are a really damaging side,” she said. “Maybe the results over the last 12 months don’t quite represent the side they are and how much damage they can do. They’ve got two of the best players in the world at the top of the order and some really damaging new-ball options as well. If Hayley Matthews gets going at North Sydney Oval it will be really hard to stop.”We aren’t taking them lightly at all, don’t think you can take any team in world cricket lightly at the moment, everyone is beating everyone which is great for our sport, so we’ll have to put our best foot forward.”

Did Babar not say he wanted to lead Pakistan’s rebuild? Does the PCB’s interim committee have the power to take big decisions? And what does all this mean for the coaching staff?

Danyal Rasool16-Nov-20233:16

Hayden: Pakistan’s issues are never to do with leadership group

First things first, why did Babar Azam resign?

Well, some degree of change invariably tends to follow poor ODI World Cup campaigns. When Pakistan failed to make the semi-finals in 2019, head coach Mickey Arthur and batting coach Grant Flower were sent packing. Within a year, Sarfaraz Ahmed was gone as ODI captain.Related

• Mohammad Rizwan named Pakistan T20I vice-captain

• 'This will hurt Pakistan cricket' – Wahab slams Rauf for opting out of Australia Tests

• Wahab Riaz is Pakistan's new chief selector

• Mohammad Hafeez to serve as Pakistan head coach for tour of Australia and NZ

• Babar Azam resigns as Pakistan captain in all formats

Pressure had begun to mount on Babar’s captaincy, and lingering concerns about his decision-making, particularly when it came to in-game situations, never really went away. When Babar was appointed Pakistan captain, it wasn’t for technical astuteness; that was widely believed to be a weak spot in his game. Rather, he was the best batter in the side, and the only guaranteed all-format starter at the time.He oversaw a poor run of late with the Test side, including home defeats against Australia and England, the latter Pakistan’s first ever home whitewash. A home series draw against New Zealand was followed by an impressive 2-0 away win in Sri Lanka, but those were Pakistan’s first Test wins in a year. Aside from his first series as captain in January 2021, Babar never oversaw a Test match win at home.The 2023 Asia Cup was viewed as a disappointment, with Pakistan finishing fourth and, at the 2023 World Cup, they lost five of nine games, including one against Afghanistan, which sent them tumbling out in the first round.

Reluctant resignation, you say?

There is limited evidence Babar truly wanted to step aside. Following Pakistan’s final match at the World Cup, he told Michael Atherton at the post-match presentation that he wished to lead the rebuild, and he reiterated that at the press conference. The PCB said it told him yesterday it had decided to remove him as white-ball captain, and offered him the chance to keep the Test captaincy. Babar appears to have seen the writing on the wall after that, and decided to resign across formats.While still key to Pakistan’s fortunes with the bat, Babar Azam has not had a good time of it as captain of late•ICC/Getty Images

Wait, this is an interim management committee. Can it really sack a captain?

Almost certainly not. The PCB chairman has the authority to appoint and remove captains, and while Zaka Ashraf is currently performing that duty, he is the head of the PCB management committee on a temporary basis, a role he had extended for three months by the Pakistan caretaker prime minister. A court in Pakistan ruled the committee did not have the power to make significant changes during its tenure, and was to operate only on a caretaker basis.So to get rid of Babar as captain, it needed Babar to offer his resignation himself. Theoretically, had he refused, he would have remained Pakistan captain in all formats, and the PCB would have no mechanism for removing him.Well, it would still have one avenue: simply not selecting him. But for obvious cricketing reasons, that always seemed untenable.

So who replaces him? Is it one person across formats?

We know the answer to that is no. The PCB seemed extremely prepared for his resignation, some would say suspiciously so. Within an hour, it appointed Shan Masood, summoned to PCB headquarters in Lahore – even though the committee had ostensibly offered Babar the option to continue as Test captain – as the new Test captain. Shaheen Afridi is the T20I captain. In a moment that perfectly encapsulates the workings of this PCB administration, it also announced Shaheen as ODI captain on social media, before that graphic was swiftly deleted. It later said the ODI captain would be announced “in due course”.

You mentioned Mickey Arthur was sacked after the 2019 World Cup. What’s his deal now? Is he still with Pakistan cricket?

Well, yes and no. The PCB announced team director Mickey Arthur, as well as head coach Grant Bradburn, have had their roles “reassigned”. There is no information on what they have been reassigned to do, but ESPNcricinfo understands this means neither will travel to Australia next month for Pakistan’s next assignment, a three-match Test series.Mickey Arthur: to stay or not to stay?•Getty Images

So if coaches won’t travel with the team, why not remove them?

Because at this point the board probably can’t. It also likely falls outside the scope of what this PCB management committee can do. In the absence of Arthur or Bradburn offering their resignations, as Babar did, the PCB has to keep them on. It is understood that resignations from either are not expected anytime soon.

So who’s going to coach in their steads in Australia, then?

Zaka Ashraf met, among others, Mohammad Hafeez on Tuesday, and it seems that meeting went rather well, because he offered him Arthur’s job. Hafeez will take over as team director, and it is understood he will go to Australia and New Zealand with the side. Hafeez will also take over as head coach, effectively ending the practice of appointing two separate people as team director and head coach. The practice only started with Mickey Arthur’s ascension to team director while grant Bradburn was already in situ.

Well, all this seems quite chaotic. When will we get a PCB administration that is allowed to make actual decisions?

We thought we’d have one by now when Ashraf came into the role, but with Pakistan’s caretaker government having stretched its role beyond the constitutionally allotted three months, the caretaker prime minister also handed Ashraf and the management committee a further three months.That should take us through to February, when Pakistan is due to hold general elections. Any prime minister that emerges out of those will have the authority to nominate a PCB chairman, and once PCB elections are held, a full PCB administration will have all the powers they have traditionally possessed.Shan Masood takes charge of Pakistan in red-ball cricket – for now at least•Getty Images

What does this mean for Babar, Arthur, Bradburn, Masood and Shaheen?

Simply that any developments that have occurred in the past 24 hours are liable to be reversed. If Najam Sethi returns as chairman in February, a definite possibility, it could mean good news for Arthur and Bradburn. He had made clear his desire that Pakistan hire foreign coaches, and publicly pursued Arthur for months before landing a deal for him to return. He would also have the authority to appoint or remove any captain or coach.

So these changes are only going to be in effect for the tour of Australia?

That, and the following five T20Is in New Zealand, yes. After that, as ever in Pakistan cricket, all bets are off.

Heavy hitter managing expectations after learning of ECB central contract omission via social media

Cameron Ponsonby02-Dec-2023Will Jacks was not told by the ECB that he had missed out on a central contract, saying “I just ended up seeing it on Twitter like everyone else.”Jacks, 25, has played in all three formats for England over the past 12 months and was a surprise omission from the ECB’s list of 29 players to receive a contract offer.”It was a bit of a difficult one,” Jacks said on the eve of England’s ODI opener against West Indies. “I didn’t really find out at all. I knew everyone was hearing and I was waiting to hope that I would find out and then I didn’t. I just ended up seeing it on Twitter like everyone else did and that was obviously disappointing. I was hoping to get one.”Jacks is in high demand on the T20 franchise circuit, with contracts to play in the SA20 in January and the IPL in March. As a result, the omission has been a double edged sword, with Jacks now able to pick and choose his winter commitments as he builds to his number one priority: making the squad for the 2024 World Cup.”The last two World Cup years I’ve just narrowly missed out on selection, so making the World Cup squad is a massive goal of mine and playing T20 cricket in South Africa against some of the best players will be perfect for that.”Related

• Will Jacks embraces 'clarity' at No.7 as second England coming begins

• Will Jacks shows his worth after sparse England opportunities

• Chris Woakes 'at ease' with India Test omission despite Ashes heroics

• England place attributes over averages to fill spinners' void for India tour

• Ben Duckett itching for opportunity as England begin new white-ball era

The difficulty for England and Jacks, is that the SA20 clashes with England’s Test series against India where, given the explosive batters’ ability with the ball and his strong performances in Pakistan last year, he would be a likely candidate for selection in the squad, if not the playing XI.”I wouldn’t say it’s changed my motivation to play for England,” Jacks said in regards to whether the snub has led to him re-jigging his priorities. “Obviously England is the pinnacle and I want to play as much as I can, but what it has done is managed my expectations.”The India Test matches have obviously been in the back of everyone’s mind for the recent period – it’s such a massive series and there’s all the talk about spin and the need for allrounders and having a deep squad. So it’s probably just that instead of me thinking that I was going to be picked I’m now thinking okay, if they wanted to pick me then realistically, I would have been given a contract. So the fact that they haven’t given me one, probably says something.”Where Jacks is definitely wanted, however, is here and now. Jos Buttler and Matthew Mott have confirmed to him that he will open in all three ODIs alongside Phil Salt, as they look to give their high-risk, high-reward openers as much opportunity for success as possible.”That [backing] is huge for everyone,” Jacks said. “If you bring in a fear of failure or worry about if you are going to play or not, obviously that hinders your performance and you won’t be able to go out there and play with 100 percent confidence. That is really important in any team you play for and especially for England. Everyone knows how high the competition is for places.”England are not expecting the three-match ODI series to be a high-scoring encounter, with the training wickets at the Sir Vivian Richards stadium taking a lot of spin and scores in and around the 250-300 mark assumed to be closer to par.”It’s going to be a bit more – not a grind – but you’re really going to have to think your way through an innings and treat it like it is a longer format…there’s no worries of it becoming an extended T20.”Sunday’s match kicks off at 9:30am, a non-issue for a group still just about on UK time and waking up at 6am naturally. But, on Saturday, the squad had an earlier wake up call than normal when an earthquake registering 5.2 on the Richter scale struck Antigua. No major damage on the island was experienced, but for a group of lads from Shires, Manchester and Surrey, it was a new experience.”We’re all claiming that we’re earthquake survivors now,” joked Jacks, who slept through the whole thing. “I woke up at about six, saw the messages on the group and couldn’t really believe it. Some of the guys said their whole room was shaking and everything.”With England staying at a resort on the south-east corner of the island that looks straight out across the ocean, some players were more concerned than others.”Brooky [Harry Brook] messaged me saying: ‘Is there going to be a tsunami?’ Jacks quipped at his mate’s expense. “That was the first thing we thought but it’s all good now.”

Captain Wolvaardt’s unbeaten 49 drove the chase after Bangladesh were kept to 94 for 6

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Dec-2023A sensational opening burst from debutant Ayanda Hlubi coupled with Masabata Klaas’ discipline set South Africa up for a series-levelling win in the last women’s T20I against Bangladesh in Kimberley. South Africa restricted Bangladesh to 94 for 6 and then romped home by eight wickets, thanks to captain Laura Wolvaardt’s unbeaten 49.Opting to bowl first, Hlubi struck on her fourth ball in international cricket, getting Murshida Khatun caught behind in an attempted drive. On the very next ball, she had Sobhana Mostary caught at slip, courtesy late outswing off a full ball outside off.After Shamima Sultana also fell inside the powerplay – leaving Bangladesh reeling at 17 for 3 – Bangladesh almost shut shop. They added only 12 runs in the next 29 balls to be 29 for 3 at the ten-over mark. Lata Mondal and Nigar Sultana added 29 runs off 55 balls before the latter fell.Shorna Akter then injected momentum into the Bangladesh innings as they scored 26 in the 16 balls after Nigar’s dismissal. Shorna, who picked up a five-for in Bangladesh’s win in the opening T20I, scored 23 off 16 in the 31-ball 46-run stand for the fifth wicket with Mondal. She was run-out in the last over before Mondal, who top-scored with 42, was bowled on the final ball of the innings.In the 95-run chase, Tazmin Brits attacked spinner Nahida Akter by using her feet even as Wolvaardt began steadily. The pair added 35 inside five overs before Brits was adjudged lbw off Marufa Akter, even though the ball appeared to be heading down leg.Offspinner Shorifa Khatun then got one to spin back in sharply to trap Anneke Bosch, who hit a half-century in the first T20I, lbw for nine. But Wolvaardt and Sune Luus ensured South Africa faced no further hiccups in their bid to square the series. Wolvaardt was only helped by Shorna bowling three loose balls, including a no-ball, all of which she despatched to the ropes to hasten the end.The hosts had lost the opening T20I and the second one was washed out.

Marizanne Kapp made a half-century but was forced to retire hurt and the visitors collapsed either side of her

AAP and ESPNcricinfo staff03-Feb-2024Australian quick Megan Schutt celebrated her milestone match with a miserly spell in an eight-wicket thumping of South Africa in the series-opening ODI.Schutt took 1-1 from five consecutive overs as the tourists were restricted to 105 at Adelaide Oval. Australia, with Beth Mooney top-scoring with an unbeaten 52, chased the runs in 19 overs to emphatically win game one of the three-match ODI series and move 6-2 up in the multi-format contest.Schutt, the sixth Australian to play 200 internationals, took the new ball, claimed a wicket on her ninth delivery, and her sole run conceded came from an inside edge.”It’s a pretty unbelievable spell,” Mooney said. “To bowl five overs and only get hit for one run in international cricket against a real quality opposition … that probably just shows the quality of bowl that Shooter has been, across an extended period of time. It’s probably, I’d say, the best bowling she’s done for a long time and across her career.”Marizanne Kapp top-scored with 50, but she was forced to retire hurt. While completing a second run to reach her half-century, Kapp was struck on her left elbow by the throw although subsequent scans cleared her of any fracture.”Scans have revealed it is a soft tissue injury on the upper left arm,” a South Africa spokesperson said.Schutt 261st international wicket was the prized scalp of South African captain Laura Wolvaardt. She is a team-mate of Schutt in the WBBL with the title-holding Adelaide Strikers. When she was on 4, Wolvaardt gifted her friend her wicket, slicing a short and wide delivery to point, where Georgia Wareham completed a simple catch.Marizanne Kapp was forced to retire hurt after a throw hit her elbow•Getty Images

South Africa soon slumped to 9 for 3 after eight overs and never recovered. Kapp kept cool amid the carnage with a stellar knock, collecting eight fours from her 58 balls before misfortune literally hit.As the allrounder safely completed her 50th run, she was struck on the elbow. Kapp was ruled out for the remainder of the game and in her absence the tourists lost their last four wickets for 11 runs.In Australia’s run chase, openers Phoebe Litchfield and Alyssa Healy were dismissed inside nine overs. But stalwarts Mooney, who struck nine fours in her 34-ball innings, and Perry then cruised to victory.”We always talk about finishing games well and I find those smaller run chases a little bit tricky,” Mooney said. “If you lose a few wickets early it can send a bit of a ripple effect through the batting order.”It’s all about making sure we win those games well and don’t leave too much for the middle to lower order to do.”The three-game ODI series continues at North Sydney Oval on Wednesday and Saturday.

The Mumbai Indians fast bowler recorded 132.1 kph in the game against Delhi Capitals

Vishal Dikshit05-Mar-2024South African quick Shabnim Ismail has breached the 130kph barrier for the first time in women’s cricket since speeds have been recorded. Ismail bowled a delivery that the speed-gun on broadcast recorded at 132.1kph in the WPL game between her side Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals on Tuesday in Delhi.It was the second delivery of the third over in the game which Ismail bowled full to Capitals captain Meg Lanning, who missed the delivery and was hit on the front pad. Mumbai appealed for lbw but it was turned down. When asked at the end of the innings if she was aware of the fastest delivery she had bowled, Ismail said she doesn’t “look at the big screen when I am bowling.”Ismail had also recorded a delivery at 128.3kph in the opening game of the tournament, also against Capitals. She, however, missed a couple of games for Mumbai with an injury and returned to action on Tuesday.In international cricket too, the fastest delivery recorded is by Ismail, when she bowled one at 128kph against West Indies in 2016 and had breached the 127kph mark twice in the 2022 ODI World Cup.Ismail was far from her best on Tuesday though. She opened the bowling once Mumbai chose to field and was erratic with her full deliveries and bowled on the pads. After her first two overs went for 14 runs, Shafali Verma smacked her for consecutive sixes at the start of her third before Ismail had her caught behind for 28 and gave her an aggressive send-off. She finished with 1 for 46 from her four overs in the top-of-the-table clash.Ismail, 35, retired from international cricket in May 2023, months after the home T20 World Cup to end a 16-year career. She played 241 international games for 317 wickets across formats, which included 127 ODIs, 113 T20Is and a Test. She is now a regular in T20 leagues around the world.

Agar, Behrendorff and Tye will likely still play for WA when available but have flexibility to take franchise deals while Stoinis is still exploring his franchise contract options

Alex Malcolm20-Apr-2024The landscape of how Australian cricketers are contracted is significantly shifting with Ashton Agar, Marcus Stoinis, Jason Behrendorff and Andrew Tye all being left off Western Australia’s contract list, giving them flexibility to take freelance franchise opportunities.All four would be walk-up starts in WA’s first-choice Marsh Cup 50-over team and have not retired from international cricket but none are on WA’s contract list for 2024-25. It comes after Agar and Stoinis were left off Cricket Australia’s 2024-25 contract list while Behrendorff is Australia’s reigning T20I player of the year.Agar’s absence is the most significant of the four as the 30-year-old elected not to take a state contract to pursue freelance opportunities globally, in part driven by the lack of cricket he played late last season having fallen by Corey Rocchiccioli as WA’s No. 1 Sheffield Shield spinner.Related

• Stoinis 'absolutely fine' with not getting a CA contract, still keen to play for Australia

• Kuhnemann joins Tasmania to push for a Test return

• 'It gives me flexibility' – Agar opts for freelance life while still committing to Australia

• Stoinis and Agar lose CA deals while Bartlett earns full contract

• Stoinis to play SA20 after BBL, says ODI omission makes 'complete sense'

Agar has made the decision in consultation with WA’s general manager of high performance Kade Harvey, WA coach Adam Voges, Australia coach Andrew McDonald and Australia’s chairman of selectors George Bailey.Not taking a contract frees Agar up to play franchise cricket during the Australian summer, with the SA20, ILT20, BPL and PSL all played during Australia’s domestic season.Tye signed a one-year deal last season with WA which did prevent him from playing in the ILT20 earlier this year due to the Marsh Cup final. He has opted to go freelance again as he did for the two seasons prior. Behrendorff will go freelance for the first time in his career having earned a CA upgrade last year. He had a year to run on his previous WA deal but opted to terminate it early to give him more flexibility.However, Agar, Behrendorff and Tye will all remain involved in WA’s program when they are not playing franchise cricket overseas even though they aren’t contracted and will be selected for Marsh Cup games when available. Agar is still keen to play Shield cricket whenever an opportunity may arise. All four would only need to play four Marsh Cup matches to qualify for a contract upgrade if they opted to take it.”Ashton, Jason and AJ will continue to be supported by our High Performance program as valued members of the WA Cricket setup,” Harvey said.Marcus Stoinis has not played for WA in any format since March 2023•Getty Images

Stoinis, 34, is in a slightly different situation, having not played for WA at all last season and only played four Shield matches and two Marsh Cup games since March 2020.He had long been planning to go freelance after missing out on a CA deal for 2024-25 but he is still keen to play for Australia beyond the T20 World Cup in June in both T20I and ODI cricket. It is understood that he is exploring the possibility of signing something akin to a year-round deal with his IPL franchise Lucknow Super Giants which would see him commit to playing for the franchise’s various teams across a few different tournaments around the world across the calendar year. He has already played for Durban’s Super Giants in the SA20 and LSG in the IPL this year.Stoinis has signed a three-year deal with the Melbourne Stars until the end of the 2026-27 BBL season. He also played for San Francisco Unicorns in Major League Cricket last year and is expected to play in season two after the T20 World Cup despite not being retained by Unicorns. He has previously played in the Hundred but missed last year’s tournament to rest ahead of the ODI World Cup.Stoinis said earlier this year he was still open to playing for WA when available, including Shield cricket. Stoinis has long-standing relationships with many people at WA cricket and it is understood further discussions may be had around his playing schedule later in the year.Meanwhile, WA have added former New South Wales wicketkeeper Baxter Holt and Victoria quick Brody Couch to their squad. Holt is a replacement for Josh Philippe who departed for NSW and looks likely to get plenty of opportunities in Shield cricket while Josh Inglis is away on international duty. Couch is looking for a fresh start having played his only Shield match for Victoria in 2021 and the last of his six Marsh Cup appearances in 2022.”Securing another wicketkeeper was a priority with Josh Philippe leaving for New South Wales,” Harvey said. “We think Baxter has lots of potential with the bat and gloves, so we’re excited to see how he goes when an opportunity presents.”Brody generates good pace and bounce and loves the contest. We really like his raw attributes, which should be well-suited to the conditions in WA.”WA have also elevated Jayden Goodwin to their senior list after his excellent Shield season last year.Western Australia contract list 2024-25: Cameron Bancroft, Mahli Beardman (rookie), Hilton Cartwright, Cooper Connolly, Brody Couch, Keaton Critchell, Sam Fanning, Cameron Gannon, Cameron Green (CA contract), Sam Greer (rookie) Jayden Goodwin, Aaron Hardie (CA), Liam Haskett, Baxter Holt, Josh Inglis (CA), Bryce Jackson, Matthew Kelly, Mitchell Marsh (CA), Lance Morris (CA), Hamish McKenzie, Joel Paris, Corey Rocchiccioli, D’Arcy Short, Charlie Stobo, Ashton Turner, Josh Vernon (rookie), Corey Wasley (rookie), Sam Whiteman, Teague Wyllie

England A captain shows class in run chase after Sparks recover from slow start

ECB Reporters Network01-May-2024A high-class century from Grace Scrivens ensured that Sunrisers continued their strong start to the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy season with a five-wicket victory over Central Sparks at Kidderminster.Put in, Sparks lost both openers for ducks and recovered only partially to post a moderate 213 all out thanks principally to Abi Freeborn’s accomplished 93. Only Freeborn stayed long enough against a disciplined attack led by openers Kate Coppack (3 for 26) and Nicola Hancock (3 for 34).It looked a under-par total on a decent batting pitch and Scrivens navigated Sunrisers’ pursuit of it to perfection, with a stroke-laden unbeaten 118 off 123 balls to take her side to 214 for 5 with 10.2 overs to spare.A third win from four games strengthened Sunrisers’ place among the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy front-runners but Central Sparks need to reboot after following their opening-round win with three successive defeats.Abi Freeborn scored 93•Getty Images

“It was great to get another bonus-point win,” Scrivens said. “I’m feeling nice at the moment and when you are feeling nice you have to cash in. I was just happy I did that today and helped get us over the line.”I thought we kept them to a total which was a little bit below par. We bowled well up top to take some wickets and then bowled well through the middle too. Sometimes you can let things drift when you don’t take wickets but we stuck at it really well and it was nice to restrict Freeborn to the mid-nineties when she was in and set.”Sparks captain Eve Jones endured a bracing start to the day: at 10am, she lost the toss. At 10.30am, she edged the first ball of the match, an absolute beauty from Coppack, to wicketkeeper Amara Carr.When Chloe Brewer edged Coppack behind, both Sparks openers had departed without scoring and debutant Courtney Webb walked in to bat with the score at 1 for 2. The pressure on the batters remained high – Coppack opened with 5-2-8-2 and Hancock 5-1-6-0 – but Freeborn and Webb withstood it to add 67 in 20 overs before the latter miscued a straight hit and was caught by Scrivens in front of the sightscreen.Freeborn completed her second half-century of the season from 99 balls but partners continued to come and go as Davina Perrin and Katie George sent up catches in successive overs from Jo Gardner.Freeborn had her good fortune – on 69 she should have been out twice to the same ball from Gardner, stumped at one end then run out at the other as she tried to scramble a bye – but batted with selective assertion. The 27-year-old struck 12 fours and was seven short of emulating her century against Sunrisers last season when she top-edged a pull and fell to a fantastic diving catch by Mady Villiers.Related

• Vipers batters survive Thunder scare

• MacDonald-Gay stars again as Sparks falter

• Luff caps excellent fightback to lead Storm victory

• Villiers spins Sunrisers to resounding win over Blaze

Bethan Ellis offered some impetus with a 35-ball 31 which included the only six of the innings, but Coppack and Hancock returned to lop off the tail, supported by more excellent catching.When Sunrisers replied, the catching bar was raised still further by George’s brilliant, one-handed grab at second slip off Grace Potts as Ariana Dowse became the third opening batter in the day to bag a duck.The fourth opener filled her boots though. Reprieved on 22 when wicketkeeper Freeborn grassed a tough chance from an edge off Grace Potts, Scrivens played with the freedom and confidence of a batter in top form. She reached 50 from 53 balls and celebrated by lifting Ria Fackrell over long-on for six.Scrivens and Cordelia Griffith (37) added 110 in 19 overs before Fackrell struck twice to retain a Sparks toe-hold in the game. Griffith belted a full toss straight to a fielder and Jodi Grewcock fell lbw, sweeping. When George took another fine catch, at midwicket off Ellis, to end Villiers’ counter-attack, it was 149 for 4 and Sparks had a glimmer of opportunity.That glimmer was emphatically extinguished by Scrivens and Carr (26), the former reaching her century from 108 balls in a victory-clinching fifth-wicket partnership of 59 in nine overs.