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Somerset’s disappointing end to season ends in five-wicket defeat at Taunton

ECB Reporters Network28-Sep-2024Skipper James Vince led from the front as Hampshire clinched runners-up spot in the Vitality County Championship with a five-wicket Division One victory over third-placed Somerset at Taunton.The home side added 120 to their overnight second innings score of 60 for four before being bowled out for 180, skipper Lewis Gregory top-scoring with 59 and Jack Leach making 33 not out. Kyle Abbott finished with five for 37 from 18 overs.Set 121 to win, Hampshire lost wickets to the first two balls of their second innings, bowled by Gregory, who was denied a hat-trick when Kasey Aldridge spilled a low chance at second slip offered by Vince.It proved an expensive miss as Vince went on to hit 54 and Liam Dawson 44 not out, helping the visitors to reach their target on the third afternoon from 27 overs.Hampshire took 19 points from the game to guarantee second place behind Surrey and Somerset only three, having seen their concerted challenge for all three trophies end without winning one is a desperately disappointing end to the campaign.Hopes that their fifth-wicket pair Tom Kohler-Cadmore and James Rew could build them a significant lead in the morning session were soon dispelled when Kohler-Cadmore was bowled by Mohammad Abbas, having added only two to his overnight score of 15.At 62 for five, the hosts led by just two runs. With a further 13 added, Aldridge, on 11, became Abbott’s fourth victim of the innings when edging to third slip. That brought in Gregory, who wasted no time in launching a spirited counter-attack, hitting Liam Dawson for three successive fours and a six in the 32nd over.James Rew, unbeaten on eight overnight, began solidly and the pair had taken the score to 108 when he drove loosely at a wide delivery from Abbas and was caught behind for 19.Gregory went to a defiant 38-ball half-century, with eight fours and a six, while Leach looked more competent with the bat than some of Somerset’s top order in a partnership of 55 that frustrated Hampshire for 12 overs.Inevitably, it was Abbott who ended it, scattering Gregory’s stumps with a ball that nipped back between bat and pad to make the score 163 for eight, a Somerset lead of 103. Off-spinner Felix Organ then chipped in with the last two wickets as Alfie Ogborne was caught behind cutting and Shoaib Bashir bowled pushing forward, while Abbott finished with match figures of nine for 74.Lunch had been delayed for the fall of the final wicket and Hampshire’s second innings began after the interval. It could hardly have started more dramatically as Toby Albert was caught behind off Gregory’s first ball and Nick Gubbins edged to fourth slip off the second.The chance offered by Vince off the third was far from easy, but Aldridge appeared to get two hands to the ball just before it touched the ground. With so few runs to defend, Somerset had to take every opportunity.Still they had hope as Fletcha Middleton edged Gregory to wicketkeeper James Rew to make it 21 for three and Leach gained a leg before verdict against Tom Prest, reverse sweeping, at 46 for four.But that was as good as it got for Somerset. Dawson joined Vince in defying the spin attack of Leach and Bashir, calming any nerves in the visiting dressing room with a solid stand of 57 in 14 overs.Vince went to his fifty off 58 balls with a four through mid-on off Bashir, misfielded by Leach, who looked the more menacing of the two England spinners in both innings, as his match figures of seven for 77 compared to Bashir’s none for 78 illustrated.By the time Vince was stumped dancing down the pitch to Leach, Hampshire needed only 18 more runs and the outcome was all but settled. Dawson had the satisfaction of hitting the winning runs off Bashir at the end of a crucial 56-ball contribution.

“As a bowler, what I think is that it keeps me in play. And if they’re going for it, playing so fast, they won’t tire me out”

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Jan-2024Jasprit Bumrah’s barometer for success will always remain his performances with the red ball because “Test cricket is king.” The 32-Test veteran is the most experienced member of India’s pace pack that will line-up for the first of five Tests against England in Hyderabad starting January 25. If he takes the field, which he should, it’ll be only his fifth home Test.”I am of that generation where Test cricket is king,” Bumrah told . “I will always judge myself on it. Yes, I started with IPL, but I learned to bowl through first-class cricket; that’s where I developed my skill, the art of taking wickets. In Test cricket you have to get the batsman out and that challenges you as a bowler.”The upcoming series will be Bumrah’s second full series since returning from a stress fracture that had him sidelined for over a year. He picked up 12 wickets in the two Tests in South Africa, including a match-winning 6 for 61 in Cape Town that helped India level the series at 1-1.Related

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On surfaces lately expected to favour spin, Bumrah may not have too much assistance from the surface. The last time England toured (in February-March 2021), he played in just two of the four Tests and bowled just 48 overs. Only time will tell how much of a workload he’ll have this time around, but it’s a challenge he’s ready to embrace again.”T20s, ODIs, some days you might send down five slower balls and get five guys out, when in a Test match they wouldn’t have taken one,” he explained. “There is no luck in Test cricket, the better team wins, you cannot take 20 wickets through luck. I was never happy with just white-ball cricket and Test cricket is still the utmost format for me.”Bumrah was at the receiving end of England’s new ultra-aggressive approach to Test match batting the last time he played them, in Birmingham in July 2022, a game where he also captained India. The Test is remembered for several reasons, not least because Bumrah carved a small batting record, when he hit Stuart Broad for 29 in a 35-run over.With the ball, however, India stuttered as they failed to defend 378 with Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root ‘bazballing’ their way to hundreds in an unbroken 269-run stand to seal victory that crushed India’s hopes of a first Test series win in England since 2007.Asked for his thoughts on the approach, Bumrah said ‘Bazball’ is something he “doesn’t really relate to” but it is something he’s excited about because it keeps bowlers like him in the game and in with a chance at all times.”I don’t really relate to the term Bazball,” he said. “But they are playing successful cricket and the aggressive route of taking the opposition on, showing the world there’s another way to play Test cricket.”As a bowler, what I think is that it keeps me in play. And if they’re going for it, playing so fast, they won’t tire me out, I could get heaps [of wickets]. I always think about how I can use things to my advantage. Kudos to them but, as a bowler, you’re in the game.”

The match at Junction Oval in Melbourne is effectively a play-off to decide who will face Tasmania in the final

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Mar-2024Allrounder Aaron Hardie has been passed fit for Western Australia’s vital Sheffield Shield clash against Victoria in Melbourne from Monday where the winner will face Tasmania in the final.Hardie has been sidelined since facing Tasmania in Hobart in mid-February where he suffered a minor calf injury. He had been due to join Australia’s T20I squad in New Zealand.Related

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Ashton Agar has also been included in WA’s squad as they cover all bases for the conditions they could face at Junction Oval. If Agar plays it would be his first first-class match since the SCG Test against South Africa early last year.He has been overtaken in WA’s red-ball pecking order by offspinner Corey Rocchiccioli who has been one of their standout bowlers this season with 37 wickets at 30.21.Agar has also slipped down Australia’s white-ball hierarchy having been ruled out of the ODI World Cup through injury. He has not played an international since the tour of South Africa in early September where he suffered a recurrence of a calf problem. He may yet come back into contention for the T20 World Cup.Victoria have been boosted by the availability of Scott Boland with the fast bowler released from Australia’s Test squad in New Zealand. Boland has made five appearances for Victoria this season between reserve duty with the national side and having his workload managed, taking 26 wickets at 16.50.There remains a slim chance that WA could still host the Shield final in Perth if Tasmania lose to South Australia and don’t gain 0.14 more first-innings bonus points than them.In the Sheffield Shield teams get six points for an outright win, one point for a draw, plus 0.01 of a bonus point for every run over 200 they score during the first 100 overs of their first innings (ie: 350 after 100 overs nets you 1.5 bonus points) and 0.1 of a bonus point for every wicket a team takes during the first 100 overs of their opponent’s first innings (ie: 10 wickets before 100 first-innings overs elapses nets you 1 point).If Victoria-Western Australia finished in a draw there is an outside possibility of New South Wales sneaking into the final although they would need a huge amount of bonus points against Queensland.

Trudy Lindblade on the challenges of steering the Scottish game in face of racism and misogyny crises

Melinda Farrell01-Aug-2024At Forthill cricket ground, near Dundee, as Scotland were securing victory over Namibia in a CWC League 2 ODI, a cheerful and energetic Australian woman could be seen doing the rounds, chatting with locals in between cheering on Richie Berrington’s team. There was no indication, as she smiled and shook hands, that she has taken on perhaps international cricket’s most difficult job.In August 2023, Trudy Lindblade was overseeing the world’s biggest-ever cycling event in Glasgow. As CEO of the inaugural UCI Cycling World Championships, she oversaw world titles being contested in 13 different disciplines.Two months later, Lindblade signed on as CEO of Cricket Scotland, an organisation still suffering the devastating fallout from the 2022 independent investigation that found it to be institutionally racist, making headlines around the world. As a result of the “Changing the Boundaries” report, Cricket Scotland has been operating under “special measures”, effectively overseen by the government sports body, Sport Scotland. Soon after Lindblade stepped in as interim CEO Pete Fitzboyden’s replacement in early 2024, Cricket Scotland released its internal McKinney Report revealing a culture of sexism and misogyny within the game.Related

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A carousel of board members had come and gone in the previous two-and-a-half years. Lindblade herself is the fifth CEO to take charge in that time. Which begs the question: why would a successful senior female administrator align herself with an organisation seemingly mired in ‘isms’ and struggling to restore its damaged reputation off the field?”I knew this role would be tough because I’d been watching and observing some of the media that was coming through while I was doing the Cycling World Championships,” Lindblade told ESPNcricinfo. “But when you’re in it, it’s much more complex and more difficult than you can possibly imagine. That said, I’m determined to find a way through this for everyone. I’ve delivered hard projects before, worked in difficult environments before. This is certainly the most difficult environment I’ve worked within. But I can see the opportunity and it is worth it to get through to the other side. That’s the message that I want to send because I want people to work on that opportunity with me. I really believe it’s there if we get everybody pulling in the same direction.”In the five months since she became CEO, further delicate and complex situations – both legally and on a human level – have emerged. As Scotland impressed on the field at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, former Scotland seamer John Blain – who was named in separate investigations into racism at Cricket Scotland and Yorkshire – released a letter he’d received from Fitzboyden in January, claiming it exonerated him of all charges. Cricket Scotland has since clarified that the letter amounted only to an inability to proceed further on the allegations against him. Blaine subsequently threatened legal action as things became messy, claimING Lindblane had phoned him and confirmed the contents of Fitzboyden’s letter in the early weeks of her tenure.Lindblane acknowledged she did speak to Blain but refused to go into detail about this, or any other cases that were part of the referrals investigative process after the initial report came out. But she stressed that Cricket Scotland is open to and engaged in ongoing dialogue and mediation for both complainants and those accused.Then, ahead of Scotland’s Cricket World Cup League 2 home fixtures against Namibia and Oman, Hamza Tahir announced his retirement from international cricket, publicly detailing numerous racism-related grievances and also threatening legal action.While Blain’s case was part of the “Changing the Boundaries” review, which concluded during the Men’s T20 World Cup, Tahir’s complaints are currently being investigated through Cricket Scotland’s new policies and procedures, also announced in June.”We’d like to have the conversations with Hamza directly,” Lindblade said. “And I understand it’s within his right to do what he wishes to do, but I would have liked it to have been through this investigation and then he could determine whether he wished to make a public statement after it’s concluded, as opposed to whilst we’re in the process.”The cases of Blain and Tahir illustrate the delicacy and complexity of the task at hand. Lindblade’s biggest challenge is charting a path forward for cricket in Scotland while also dealing justly with the problems of the recent and distant past. She acknowledges there will be ongoing hurt and anger as well as dissatisfaction with outcomes. But she is hopeful a process of mediation will go some way to resolving cases from the “Changing the Boundaries” investigation, the majority of which did not result in further disciplinary action (and instead led to a number of learnings Cricket Scotland says it either has or will take on).She is drawing on more than 25 years of administration experience that started at the Carlton Australian Football Club in Melbourne, followed by stints in public affairs and events delivery at Cricket Australia’s predecessor, the ACB.She was in charge of the events department at the 2007 Men’s World Cup in the Caribbean and the first World T20 in South Africa that followed before switching focus to cycling.Scotland worried the established nations at the 2024 T20 World Cup•ICC/Getty Images

That one of Lindblade’s first tasks in her current role was to deal with the McKinney Report’s finding of systemic sexism and misogyny is somewhat ironic. She says she was shocked to discover the report was coming but not its conclusions.”As a female leader working in mainly male sports you observe lots of different things,” she said. “That’s why I probably wasn’t surprised. But I wouldn’t say that specifically about Cricket Scotland. We are just one part of a bigger society that has to consider these issues.”I’m a fairly strong character. I just get on with things and move forward. I’ve been really fortunate to work for terrific leaders and male leaders that have given me incredible opportunities. However, outside of that, yes, there probably have been times where getting my career started was made particularly difficult because I was looking to get into a male dominated sport.”There are a small number of female CEOs among the Associate Members and, through the support of ICC Europe, we have a female leadership group that gets together on a regular basis. I think that’s really terrific that there are more women starting to take on senior leadership roles within cricket federations. We’d like to see that replicated not just across Associate Members, but into Full Members and other areas. We can do it. We might sometimes have maybe a more empathetic way, we might do things a bit differently, but that’s because we’re individuals. Doesn’t matter whether you’re male or female. We all have our own way in which we lead people.”Six months into Lindblade’s tenure, Cricket Scotland is poised to release a four-year strategy. Unsurprisingly, given the events of the past two years, women and girls – as well as equality in general – are front and centre, along with ensuring CS becomes a trusted and effective governing body. The strategy has been a year in the making, stemming from a consultation process begun under Fitzboyden, and refined under Lindblane.Those hoping to see Scotland push for Full Membership and Test status will be disappointed. The strategy calls for sustainable success on the pitch and, while not ruling out a future tilt, Lindblade says the organisation first needs to put its house in order.”We have a new board, we have new leadership, and we have been through two of the most difficult years a sporting organisation can go through. When we’re ready and equipped, that Full Membership should always be on our agenda. But we need to have all our building blocks in place so that if and when we do get to that point, we can do it and do it well. There’s a lot of things that have to happen before that though, both from a governance point of view but also on the field. We want to be playing more cricket, both men and women, against the best countries in the world.”A men’s T20 International series at home to Australia in September is a promising start. And, aside from their performance at the Men’s T20 World Cup, Scotland have appeared in this year’s Men’s Under-19s World Cup and qualified for the upcoming Women’s T20 World Cup, suggesting talent pathways are improving depth. Lindblade is hopeful the steps taken by Cricket Scotland will see the special measures imposed by Sports Scotland lifted, although there is no specific timeframe. But there is still a long way to go before the game can move forward unencumbered by the past.”The strategy is not going to solve everything we’ve been through, and I don’t think anyone would expect that. But it does provide us a path forward and a focus, not just for Cricket Scotland, but for everyone within Scottish cricket. It’s going to take a long time because of the hurt, the unhappiness, for everyone who’s been impacted by what’s happened. But we need to move forward and have that self-awareness of what people are feeling and why and that’s really important.”This is about uniting communities and people through cricket. It’s to make Scottish cricket better every day. It’s a really big moment for Scottish cricket and for Cricket Scotland. And it’s really exciting.”

The 29-year-old batter’s toil in Pakistan’s first-class circuit attained meaning in Multan when he made a century on Test debut

Danyal Rasool15-Oct-2024Kamran Ghulam has never made any attempt to hide his desperation. All he wanted to do was play international cricket, and he would wait as long as it took. On Tuesday, 11 years on from his first-class debut, as he sat in front of the media after becoming the 13th Pakistani to score a hundred on Test debut, it is that burning desire he repeatedly recalled.”I’d been waiting for my chance a long time but I never gave up,” Ghulam, 29, said. “I had been waiting for my chance. That’s all I thought about. I kept being selected and then omitted from squads, and all I used to think about was how to take the chance I’d been given.”That thinking has paid off well. Ghulam came into the side under huge pressure as he replaced Babar Azam. The stakes were further raised by the situation he walke out to – Pakistan were 19 for 2, having lost Shan Masood and Abdullah Shafique cheaply as the England spinners threatened to run riot.”When I came to the wicket we’d lost two wickets. But I wanted to play with a positive mind like I do in first-class cricket. That was at the back of my mind, and I wanted to play my natural game.”And Ghulam’s domestic oeuvre is particularly hefty. Only 12 players have scored more runs in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy since he made his debut in 2013, with his average, a smidge under 50, placing him behind only Fawad Alam, Saud Shakeel and Usman Salahuddin.It was what he drew on as he negotiated a tricky opening session, banking his aggressive shots before lunch, and setting the platform for a 149-run partnership with Saim Ayub that gently eased England’s grip on the game. He hung around when Ayub fell, building up another 65-run stand with Mohammad Rizwan, one in which he brought up his century with a slap over midwicket off Joe Root. By the time he fell, missing a drive off Shoaib Bashir who cleaned him up, he’d scored 118: his 17th first-class hundred.”I’ve scored a lot of first-class runs,” Ghulam said. “I didn’t care about the venue or the team, I just needed to make my debut. I knew I had a lot of hard work behind me, and thankfully that work has paid off for me.”He also acknowledged the circumstances in which he’d made his debut, paying tribute to the man he replaced in the side. “Babar is a very good player and at the back of my mind I was thinking he’s a legend, a very good player. But I thought I’d give 110% and play with a positive mindset. I knew I had to take my opportunity.””And,” he says in his vulnerable, soft spoken tone with characteristic understatement, “when it came, I did well.”

Sarwate’s 66 not out steered Kerala to 131 for 3 at stumps

Ekanth27-Feb-2025Kerala’s pace trio of Nedumankuzhy Basil, MD Nidheesh and Eden Apple Tom ensured that Vidarbha did not run away with the advantage on day two of the Ranji Trophy final in Nagpur. Aditya Sarwate, who is a bowling allrounder otherwise, was promoted to No. 3. The move came off as he finished the day unbeaten on 66 to carry Kerala to 131 for 3.Vidarbha, finalists from the previous edition, did post a challenging total, though. Nachiket Bhute, who came in at No. 11, scored a crucial 32 off 38 balls. The 44-run stand between Bhute and Harsh Dubey for the tenth wicket extended the first session from its scheduled two-and-a-half-hour duration to three hours and took Vidarbha to 379.Darshan Nalkande then took out both Kerala openers in his first two overs. They recovered, thanks to a 93-run stand between Sarwate and Ahammed Imran. The latter fell to a Yash Thakur bouncer close to stumps, but Sarwate and Sachin Baby ensured that Imran’s was the last wicket to fall on the day.The day started with Vidarbha on 254 for 4 and runs flew early on. Thakur flicked the first ball of the day to the midwicket boundary and the fifth ball of the next over to the square-leg boundary. Nidheesh found some swing and adjusted his lengths to keep the batters in check, but Apple Tom’s lines were inconsistent and he was driven when he bowled full.An attempted bumper to Danish Malewar was pulled behind square for the first six of the day. It brought up his 150, and reduced Apple Tom’s opening spell to a two-over stint, in which he went for 18 runs.Danish Malewar puts one away during his 153•PTI

Vidarbha slowed down after the introduction of Basil as he offered Nidheesh support and his team control. The latter induced an outside edge off Thakur in the 95th over but it didn’t carry to gully. In the next one, Basil got one to nip back and smash Malewar’s stumps to end his innings on 153.Bassil removed the other set batter, Thakur. He angled in a full ball from wide of the crease to beat Thakur on the flick and pin him lbw.Apple Tom’s return in the next over was rewarded with the wicket of Yash Rathod, who is Vidarbha’s highest run-getter this season so far. A length ball from around the wicket straightened off the pitch, took the edge, and was caught at first slip as Vidarbha slumped to 297 for 7.The Yashes were gone, but the two Akshays – Wadkar and Karnewar – kept the innings afloat with a 36-run stand for the eighth wicket. Wadkar punched Basil through the covers off the back foot, and Karnewar picked up a streaky boundary each off Apple Tom and Basil. Wadkar carved a six just over deep-backward point off Nidheesh before a streaky boundary came in the form of leg-byes.The stand was broken when Rohan Kunnummal took a sharp, low catch at cover to dismiss Karnewar. In what was supposed to be the final over before lunch, Wadkar went for a powerful cut but the length ball from Apple Tom seamed away, took the edge and led to a caught behind.Bhute smashed two sixes off Jalaj Saxena, the first of which took Vidarbha past 350. Dubey, his partner, was comfortable as he rotated strike and swept Saxena for four. The stand went past the 35-over session, which yielded 119 runs and five wickets, but ended 13 balls later as Bhute was out caught behind off Nidheesh while trying to run a back-of–good-length ball to deep third.Aditya Sarwate brings up his half-century•PTI

Nalkande speared in a yorker on off stump in the first over to catch Kunnummal by surprise. The ball dribbled onto the stumps off the bat and Vidarbha were rolling. From the other end, Thakur missed his line and went for three boundaries. That didn’t stop Nalkande, though, as he swung in a full ball to catch the inside edge of Akshay Chandran’s drive that clattered onto the stumps.Thakur overpitched again and Sarwate cover drove his way from 0 to 8. In his next over, he bowled a short ball that was cut past cover for four more. Kerala were 30 for 2 off six overs, with 28 runs coming off Thakur.A double-change nearly worked for Vidarbha after that as Bhute drew an edge off Imran’s bat but Atharva Taide, the substitute fielder, dropped the chance at second slip. Sarwate picked up two more boundaries through the off side as Kerala breezed through to tea on 57 for 2.The batters looked assured in the final session that began with spin. Parth Rekhade was replaced by Nalkande after being swept for two fours in consecutive overs. Dubey, the highest wicket-taker in the tournament by a distance, found turn and stacked back-to-back maidens with Nalkande. While Nalkande created two near chances in the 24th over, the batters were safe.Sarwate hit Nalkande for two fours in his next over and ended his spell. He brought up fifty and Kerala’s hundred in the 30th over. Thakur tried out the bouncer which cost him a boundary but earned Imran’s wicket soon after as the batter miscued a pull to midwicket. Sarwate picked up a couple more boundaries with Baby holding fort at the other end as Kerala finished the day trailing Vidarbha by 248.

He last played a Test eight years ago, and comes into the squad after Bashir’s injury

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Jul-20251:30

Ehantharajah expects Dawson to shine for England

Spin-bowling allrounder Liam Dawson is in line to make a Test comeback after eight years after he was added to the England squad for the fourth Test against India, starting on July 23 at Old Trafford.Dawson, who last played a Test in July 2017, comes in after offspinner Shoaib Bashir was ruled out of the remainder of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy with a fractured finger on his left hand.Related

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Dawson has played just three Tests but has been a consistent performer for Hampshire in recent years, winning the PCA Player-of-the-Year award in 2024 and men’s domestic MVP in 2023. In the current County Championship, he has played all nine games for Hampshire to collect 21 wickets at an average of 40.04. More recently, he has been in action in the Vitality Blast, picking up 11 wickets in ten games.”Liam Dawson deserves his call-up. He has been in outstanding form in the County Championship and consistently puts in strong performances for Hampshire,” national selector Luke Wright said in an ECB statement.Dawson, 35, has played all three formats for England, most recently in T20Is. It was in 2016 that he made his international debut, and he was a member of England’s 2019 ODI World Cup-winning squad before falling out of favour. In an interview with ESPNcricinfo last year, Dawson had even said Test cricket was “completely off the radar” for him. He recently earned a T20I recall after nearly three years, playing in three games against West Indies last month, where he claimed his best international bowling figures of 4 for 20.England currently lead the five-match series 2-1 after a dramatic end to the third Test at Lord’s where Bashir took the last wicket of Mohammed Siraj to seal England’s slim 22-run win.

England squad for fourth Test against India

Ben Stokes (capt), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Liam Dawson, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes

IPL franchises, private equity firms and sovereign wealth funds among bodies consulted for tournament’s future

Matt Roller05-Dec-2023The ECB have consulted with owners of IPL franchises, private equity firms and sovereign wealth funds on the prospect of investment in the Hundred, and want counties to reach a decision on its future in the early months of the 2024 season.The Hundred’s existing model features eight clubs which field both men’s and women’s teams and are owned entirely by the ECB. These clubs have been run by boards comprising county representatives and independent directors in the tournament’s first three seasons.But the ECB and counties have discussed the model extensively since the end of the 2023 season and are in the second phase of a three-part consultation period, in the hope of reaching a decision in April 2024. This would allow them time to implement changes for the 2025 edition of the tournament.As things stand, the ECB’s preferred option is to open the tournament up to private investors, seeing the Hundred as an opportunity to bring money into the English game. The specifics of the model remain up for discussion, with one possibility involving the addition of two new teams – most likely based in the south-west and north-east.The most likely outcomes both involve the ECB handing 50% equity stakes in Hundred teams – which would become franchises – to their primary host counties. Surrey, for example, would be given a 50% stake in Oval Invincibles, while MCC, who own Lord’s, would be provided a 50% stake in London Spirit.Guy Lavender and Bruce Carnegie-Brown, MCC’s chief executive and chair, told members in a meeting on Monday evening that the ECB has been speaking to a wide range of potential sources of capital including IPL franchise owners, private equity firms and sovereign wealth funds.That raises the prospect of investment in the Hundred from the Middle East, potentially from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) or the various state-owned funds in the United Arab Emirates. MCC also encouraged members to consider which potential investors they would feel comfortable with the club being in partnership with.Lavender told ESPNcricinfo in a statement: “The purpose of the Members’ informal meeting was to socialise some of the issues with the membership regarding the future direction of The Hundred, including developing thinking and engaging them with the information available at this time.Related

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“At present, nothing has been proposed or decided and it is premature to land on any particular conclusions until the ECB consultation and decision-making process involving the whole game has been completed, as well as our own consultation with Members.”Discussions at ECB level have also raised the prospect of an 18-team ‘open pyramid’ structure which would see the addition of a second division of the Hundred with promotion and relegation. This model would also involve clubs being opened up to private investment, though appears to have lost some of its initial support.Another option discussed by the ECB and counties was to open the Hundred itself up to private investment, rather than the teams, following reports a year ago of a £400 million bid for a 75% stake from a British private investment firm. However, this is not among the preferred options as things stand.Despite extensive speculation over its future since Richard Gould and Richard Thompson took over as chief executive and chair at the ECB, the Hundred will continue in some form for at least five more years and is underpinned by Sky Sports’ broadcast deal with the governing body.There is also widespread agreement across the English game that salaries in the Hundred will need to increase if it is to attract the world’s best players. The Hundred’s top male earners in 2023 were paid around 15% less than their equivalents in the Indian-backed Major League Cricket, despite the Hundred lasting nine days longer.Andy Anson, Lancashire’s chair, proposed a change from the 100-ball format to T20 last week, but such a shift appears unlikely at this stage. Gould said earlier this year: “The format is not something that is on my agenda… it’s given us that point of difference. Everyone around the world, in the cricketing world, has heard of the Hundred.”The Hundred’s model is relatively unusual on a global scale and is most similar to Australia’s Big Bash League, where teams are run by state boards. That stands in contrast to most other major T20 leagues, such as the IPL, where teams were set up as franchises owned by private investors or their companies.It is understood that any change to the Hundred’s model would require a three-quarters majority amongst the 18 first-class counties and MCC, and proposals remain at a relatively early stage.

Sultans franchise owner Ali Tareen says the franchise aims to hire three female coaches before the start of the following PSL

Danyal Rasool28-Aug-2023Multan Sultans will become the first T20 franchise in Pakistan with a female general manager, replacing the departing Haider Azhar with journalist Hijab Zahid. It will make Zahid, who presently works at Grassroots Cricket, one of the only female general managers of a T20 franchise anywhere in the world.Sultans, who have reached the final of the last three PSL editions and won the league in 2021, will undergo a change in ownership this year. Alamgir Tareen, who was the sole owner of the franchise, died last month. His nephew, Ali Tareen, who co-owned the franchise with Alamgir until 2021, will now take full control.Zahid, 28, will also become the youngest general manager at the PSL. She is currently the director of Grassroots Cricket, a position she has held since the start of the year. Zahid has a master’s degree in Project Management from the University of Hertfordshire, and has previously served as media manager for Islamabad United.Tareen told ESPNcricinfo that Zahid was “the most qualified general manager among all PSL sides”. He is also committing to hiring three female coaches before the start of the PSL, and plans to institute gender parity at the franchise.”Hijab was the first person that came to my mind,” Tareen says. “I knew she was much more capable than her current job demands of her, and I knew she was the first person I wanted to talk to.Zahid said she “only needed to think about it for a minute”, but has no illusions about the challenges the role brings.”It’s a lot harder to assert authority as a woman,” she said. “It’s culturally harder for men to take directions from a woman. We have people in this industry who haven’t interacted with women in their lives through no fault of their own, especially in this power dynamic.”So I expect we’ll have a lot of conversations and workshops about having a woman in a management role here. While people are used to having women in such positions in the corporate world in Pakistan, that is less true of the sporting world. In the future, we want to train people as analysts, presenters, media managers. It will open doors for a lot of women.”While there are a few instances of women who have worked as general manager at men’s T20 franchises, it remains rare, especially outside of the Big Bash League. At the BBL, former English cricketer Salliann Briggs holds a similar role for Hobart Hurricanes, while Sydney Sixers and Adelaide Strikers had Jodie Hawkins and Kate Harkness. In Pakistan, where this provides particular cultural challenges, Tareen says he is aware of the work still ahead of him and the franchise he has recently reacquired.”I will hire a firm for sensitivity training and media training for the management and the players,” he said. “Beyond just Hijab, we want to have more females in the management team as well. This is not some box-ticking exercise or quota system. It’s about equal opportunity. Normally for these roles, sides only interview men. We want more female candidates to apply for these roles too.”We have three male coaches, and we endeavour to hire three female coaches. We want to have them in place before the start of the PSL. I expect the female coaches to be foreign coaches for now, and when we have a women’s team, these are the coaches we expect to move on and help us out with the women’s team as well. This season onwards, I hope to achieve gender parity for all seasons as long as I’m owner.”Zahid praised her predecessor Haider Azhar, calling him a “one-man army” but says she’ll approach the job in a different way, and is unlikely to be seen in the dugout during PSL games. While she said others would have to get used to her, she had some on-the-job learning of her own to do.”Take our captain Mohammad Rizwan, who I’ve found incredibly respectful whenever I’ve interacted with him. So if he has strong beliefs around any point, I’ll always be respectful of that, and I’m hoping I’ll get that back in return. You don’t always get that back from everyone though, so that’s difficult. But I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time in the industry. I’m comfortable with dealing with players, the challenge is to make them feel comfortable.”Ultimately, though, according to Zahid, it’s about the job. “Just because I’m a female GM doesn’t mean I’ll only hire women for certain roles. It’s about bringing our work culture into the 21st century. The vision is not about being a woman, it’s about being a good administrator.”

Floyd Reifer and James Franklin will also join the coaching staff ahead of the ODIs against UAE and the World Cup Qualifier

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Jun-2023Former West Indies captains Carl Hooper and Floyd Reifer have been appointed as assistants to new white-ball head coach Daren Sammy ahead of West Indies’ three-match ODI series against UAE and the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe. Former New Zealand allrounder James Franklin has also joined the staff as an assistant coach.Hooper, who played 102 Tests and 227 ODIs, has worked at various levels of coaching in the Caribbean and Australia, where he is now settled. He was assistant coach of Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash League (BBL) during the 2022-23 Australian summer, and has previously worked with Antigua Hawksbills and Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL). He has also served as a mentor at the West Indies High-Performance Centre in Barbados.Related

• Sammy appointed white-ball coach; Coley takes charge of Test team

“When I was initially approached by Daren about the potential opportunity, I immediately confirmed my interest, as I really want to help with the challenge and make a meaningful impact,” Hooper said. “I firmly believe that it is time for West Indies Cricket to ascend, and I am confident in my ability, knowledge, and experience to aid in this endeavour.”Reifer, who played six Tests, eight ODIs and one T20I, has also served as West Indies’ interim head coach during the 2019 World Cup. He has held coaching roles with the West Indies A team and the senior men’s side, and was head coach of the men’s Under-19 team in 2021 and Jamaica Tallawahs in the CPL.Franklin, an allrounder who played 31 Tests, 110 ODIs and 38 T20Is for New Zealand, has served stints as head coach of the English county side Durham, assistant coach at Birmingham Phoenix in the Men’s Hundred, and fielding coach at MI Emirates in the ILT20.Meanwhile, former West Indies players Kenny Benjamin and Stuart Williams and the former Guyana fast bowler Rayon Griffith will be assistant coaches working alongside Test-match head coach Andre Coley. Benjamin and Griffith were part of the coaching staff for the tours of Zimbabwe and South Africa earlier this year, while Williams had previously worked as an assistant coach on various tours.CWI have said all new assistant coaches have been appointed on a short-term basis and will be “reviewed after the India series in August 2023”.West Indies are currently in Sharjah for the three-match ODI series against UAE, which is scheduled to begin on June 4, as they build up towards the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe.For the ten-team Qualifier, West Indies have been drawn in Group A, which also includes Netherlands, Nepal, Zimbabwe and USA, against whom they kick off their campaign on June 18.