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Quadricep tear could force her to miss eight of Sydney Sixers’ 10 league games

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Oct-2024New Zealand allrounder Amelia Kerr has been ruled out of the remaining two ODIs against India after tearing her left quadricep muscle. Kerr picked up the injury during the opening game on Thursday, which India won by 59 runs, and is expected to take approximately three weeks to recover. She will not be replaced in the ODI squad.This also puts her WBBL participation in serious doubt for Sydney Sixers with the tournament set to start on Sunday. Amelia was a big-name pre-signing for Sixers as a platinum-category pick and could miss eight of Sixers’ 10 league games even if she recovers in three weeks.An NZC release stated Amelia was taken for scans on Friday morning, which revealed a grade-one quadricep tear, and that she would return home on Sunday to start her rehabilitation.”We’re really gutted for Melie,” New Zealand head coach Ben Sawyer said. “Injuries are always a challenging time for a player and we know how disappointed she is to not be able to play these games.”Everyone knows how much of an integral part of this team Melie is so we’ll certainly miss her but we’re wishing her a speedy recovery.”Soon after playing a pivotal role in New Zealand’s T20 World Cup-winning campaign as the tournament’s highest wicket-taker with 15 scalps, Amelia was New Zealand’s best bowler in the opening ODI too, taking 4 for 42 before scoring an unbeaten 25 off 23 in the chase. The remaining two ODIs are on October 27 and 29, also in Ahmedabad.Amelia’s absence could hurt New Zealand’s hopes of climbing the Women’s ODI Championship table, where a top-six finish will ensure direct qualification for the ODI World Cup in 2025. New Zealand are currently placed sixth out of 10 teams and will next play Australia in December.

No stranger to the big stage, former South Africa bowler believes defending champions Hampshire have the edge on Royal London Cup rivals Somerset

Paul Edwards23-May-2019The last domestic final played at Lord’s will not take place in September. There will be no sense of summer’s farewell, a last hurrah for careless heat before football recolonises sport. Such occasions belong to distant seasons, when Lancashire or Kent always seemed to be playing and St John’s Wood was packed with supporters making a weekend of it in what was still the big city.But if, as most neutrals hope, Saturday’s Royal London game goes the distance in the manner of those fondly remembered BBC Saturdays, at least one player should know how to cope with the tension that became almost routine in the heyday of Jack Bond and Asif Iqbal.Hampshire’s Kyle Abbott is used to the big occasion and having missed the whole of Hampshire’s triumphant Royal London Cup campaign last year because of an ankle problem he will be delighted to do more in 2019 than offer his support from cricket’s most famous balcony.”Obviously I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “Having missed out last year with a pretty silly injury, I was motivated a bit more towards helping the team to get to Lord’s this season. So yes, I’m pretty excited. I know the boys are up for it and the club certainly have a decent reputation when it comes to Lord’s finals.”But things have changed at the Ageas Bowl since Hampshire beat Kent last June. Former head coach Craig White left in October and has been replaced by Adi Birrell, an appointment Abbott sees as vital in the club’s development.”There’s been a big mindset change and it’s one that’s been driven by the coach,” he said. “The players have begged to be challenged and so Adi’s been telling us at the start of every session: ‘Right you guys have asked to be challenged. Well, we need wickets, we need to do this or do that.'”I don’t think it’s been a question of the lack of talent Hampshire have had over the years, I think there’s sometimes been a lack of direction. People say we’re professionals and we should know what to do but sometimes you get so involved and mentally tired that you need these reminders.”Fair enough, of course, but Hampshire’s players have been challenged in a way they almost certainly did not welcome this week following Liam Dawson’s selection in England’s World Cup squad. Despite representations being made to the ICC on the club’s behalf by the ECB both Dawson and James Vince will now be unavailable for the final.”James and Liam have been huge in getting us to the final but so was Aiden Markram,” said Abbott. “It’s quite strange that some players’ first games in this year’s Royal London will be in the final but that provides an opportunity for those guys and I always feel that it’s a question of who holds their nerves on the day. I’d say it’s a 50-50 contest in finals.”I think where Hampshire have the edge over Somerset is that we have been to a Lord’s final and to T20 Finals Day a lot more regularly than they have. That will help us on Saturday because suddenly for somebody the occasion will become bigger than it should be. Instead of Taunton they will be at Lord’s on a bigger stage and nerves show.”No one could accuse Abbott of being a spear carrier on the big stage – or, indeed, of being timid when it comes to the big decision. Although he has never played anything more than T20 cricket at Lord’s, he has represented South Africa in even bigger matches than that he will play on Saturday.”When you are two-all against India in India and you have to go out to perform, that’s as big as it gets,” he pointed out. “I’ve played in the quarter-final of the World Cup. That sort of occasion doesn’t bother me. It will make Lord’s a little bit more comfortable for me.”Kyle Abbott appeals for lbw•Getty Images

Abbott’s reference to his career with South Africa and his obvious pride in his achievements when doing so only reinforces the magnitude of the choice he made in 2017 when he turned his back on international cricket and signed a Kolpak deal with Hampshire. Making that call was all the more difficult given that after a stuttering start his Test career appeared to be flourishing.But Abbott was convinced his place was secure only because Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel were unfit and he had already been omitted from a World Cup semi-final, some suggested for partly political reasons, in favour of Vernon Philander. Many cricketers might claim that having made such the decision to step away from the international game, they had filed the matter as “case closed”, but Abbott is too honest for such self-deluding escapes.”I do sometimes think what might have been and from the outset I’ve always said I made the decision six months too early,” he said. “But I’d rather have been six months too early than six months too late. Had I waited, I would have played in the Champions Trophy and I would have played in the England Test series in 2017.”But things became very clear straight after that series when South Africa toured Bangladesh. Dale Steyn was straight back in the side and then Morne Morkel was straight back in. That’s what I kept telling people. They said, ‘You’re going to have a run now,’ but I replied, ‘No, you don’t understand how this works.'”The convenor of selectors said Steyn and Morkel would have to prove themselves in first-class cricket but I said: ‘They won’t. They are world-class bowlers and they’ll come straight back in.’ And they did come in. I knew international cricket and I could read their minds from a mile off. I do miss international cricket. Even a Lord’s final is not going to replicate an international match but I’m proud of the cricket I played for South Africa in those four years, the games I played in, the wickets I took.”

St Kitts & Nevis Patriots dismissed Stars for the third-lowest total in the CPL, in a game that barely lasted 20 overs

The Report by Deivarayan Muthu22-Aug-2018
Sheldon Cottrell brings out the dab•CPL T20/ Getty Images

After shellacking 226 – the highest total in the CPL – and snapping their 14-match losing streak on Friday, St Lucia Stars returned to their old ways, folding for 69 in 12.3 overs against St Kitts & Nevis Patriots at the Darren Sammy Stadium. Notably, this was the shortest innings and the third-lowest total in the league.It was seamer Sheldon Cottrell and spinners Mahmudullah and Sandeep Lamichhane who had skittled Stars by collecting seven wickets among them. Wicketkeeper-batsman Devon Thomas, who was promoted to the top in place of captain Chris Gayle, then hastened the victory, with an unbeaten 38 off 21 balls, in a game that barely lasted 20 overs.Stars fade away
In their previous two matches at Gros Islet, Stars had amassed 226 and 212. But Tuesday’s pitch was a bit two-paced and even lent assistance to spin. Andre Fletcher launched the first ball over wide long-on for a big six, but it turned out to be a red herring. Three balls later, he scooped an innocuous low full-toss back to Cottrell, the bowler. Stars’ batsmen lurched from one poor shot to another, while Gayle sat back and kept himself at slip through the innings.Bangladesh’s Mahmudullah, who took the new ball from the other end, had Rakheem Cornwall chipping a catch to mid-off in his first over and then had Lendl Simmons stumped in his second – a wicket-maiden.The onus was on Kieron Pollard and David Warner to rescue the Stars, but they too couldn’t deal with the two-paced surface and Patriots’ relentless accuracy. Pollard laboured to 4 off 10 balls, before being undone by Cottrell’s extra bounce. Later, in the post-match presentation, Cottrell revealed that Patriots’ plan was to hit hard lengths against Pollard and cramp him for room.Warner, who had faced all of eight balls in the Powerplay, himself fell, when he was duped by a wrong’un from Lamichhane in the ninth over. Stars were 49 for 5 at that point.Afghanistan’s Qais Ahmad, who had turned 18 last week, was more confident against Mahmudullah and Lamichhane, taking two sixes and a four off them. All told, he was the only Stars batsman to pass 15. However, he was dismissed in the 12th over, when Lamichhane drew him out of the crease with a loopy legbreak. In the next over, Cottrell had No. 11 Obed McCoy nicking off to provide the coup de grace.Devon Thomas sparkles
After effecting four dismissals behind the stumps – the joint-most in a CPL innings alongside Kumar Sangakkara – Thomas was bumped up to open the batting alongside Evin Lewis, who had managed only four runs in five T20 innings prior to Tuesday’s game. Lewis’ lean patch continued, as he was bounced out by Mitchell McClenaghan for 13, but Thomas reeled off three boundaries off McCoy in the arc between backward point and mid-off. He went onto smear Kesrick Williams for a flat six over extra-cover, and added 30 off 17 balls with Brandon King.King and Tom Cooper were dismissed in successive overs, but Thomas and Anton Devcich eventually sealed Stars’ fate, with seven wickets and 74 balls to spare.

Pakistan coach Mickey Arthur is hopeful that the time of the year will help them overcome the loss of legspinner Yasir Shah for the Tests against Ireland and England

Andrew McGlashan25-Apr-2018Pakistan coach Mickey Arthur is hopeful that the time of the year will help them overcome the loss of legspinner Yasir Shah for the Tests against Ireland and England.Yasir has taken 89 wickets in the last two years – more than double Pakistan’s next most successful bowler in the period – but was ruled out of this tour due to a hip injury. Shadab Khan, the 19-year-old legspinner, who has impressed with the white ball but has played just one Test, has huge shoes to fill although there remains a chance Pakistan will decide to go without a specialist spinner given the early-season conditions which are likely to prevail.There has been a significant decline in Pakistan’s Test fortunes since the shared series against England in 2016 which helped them to the No. 1 ranking. They are now languishing at No. 7 following series defeats against New Zealand, Australia and most recently Sri Lanka – their record with Arthur as coach is 11 defeats and six wins from 17 Tests – and are going through a transitional phase following the retirements of batting stalwarts Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq.There are four uncapped batsmen in the squad and the absence of Yasir has shorn Pakistan of a senior figure with the ball while also leaving them with their least experienced spin attack to face England in at least 40 years.”Any team would miss Yasir,” Arthur said ahead of the team’s first warm-up match against Kent. “He has the ability to hold the attack and control the game. Shadab is incredibly exciting but also I am not sure that spin is going to be a huge factor given it’s early season in England, so we have covered ourselves in the seam department. But Shadab can clean tails up because he has all the tricks. It is going to be exciting to see how he goes.”Yasir is a big loss but we have him at the National Cricket Academy [in Lahore] and he is getting fit, his stress fracture is healing and it’s really important for us to have him fit and firing for the Australia and New Zealand series later in the year.”Pakistan’s bowling attack will rest heavily on Mohammad Amir, who arrived in the UK on Wednesday having been granted his visa after a short delay. Two years ago he made his return to Test cricket at Lord’s, following his spot-fixing ban, and since then has not earned the rewards his bowling has often deserved with 44 wickets at 37.25. How Pakistan catch will be a critical factor, with Amir suffering significantly from missed chances, although there is also a belief in the team management that the amount of white-ball cricket he has played has led him into bowling too short with the red ball.”He’s our No. 1 bowler, we back him in tough situations. He generally gets it done for us,” Arthur said. “We need him to get the ball swinging, we need him to get his length slightly fuller and if he gets that he’s going to ask a lot of questions.”Amir’s workload has also become a topic of debate in recent times, with the indication that he may sit out some Test cricket to preserve him for the 2019 World Cup and beyond. Arthur said that Pakistan have “three weeks off” between now and the World Cup, leaving a balancing act between building a new era for the Test side while keeping an eye on the demands of the limited-overs game.”We have had the workload debate for a long time now and every team has to do the same. We only have three weeks off in our calendar now before the World Cup next year, so we’d be silly not to arrive here with our bowlers fit and we know who they are – we have identified them – so we just have to manage them because ultimately want the best team to play in that 2019 World Cup.”But also for us it is so important to win Test matches – we are a young team and we need to get our Test team right and to do that we have to build a core of players who can play at any given time. We are trying to resurrect our Test side, we feel we’ve got our white-ball cricket where we need it now, so we are really excited about this series, really excited to see these young guys come out and perform. There’s some incredible talent in our dressing room, so let’s hope it all goes well for us.”

Harry Podmore’s previous highest score was 21 but his unbeaten 66 left Sussex needing a miracle to keep their promotion chances alive

ECB Reporters Network14-Sep-2017Derbyshire put themselves in a position to claim only their second win of the season in the Specsavers County Championship after an attritional third day against Sussex at Hove.They closed on 322 for 8, a lead of 389 against a Sussex side who will be obliged to chase any target on the final day for a victory to keep their slim promotion hopes alive.It has been a collective effort by the Derbyshire batsmen with nine players scoring between 38 and 66 in the match. They included Middlesex loanee Harry Podmore, whose previous highest score was 21 but who was unbeaten on 66 at stumps from 117 balls. He hit five fours and a six off George Garton in the final over.Derbyshire’s run rate never got much above four an over throughout the day but, having resumed with a lead of 108 and nine wickets in hand, they did not need to take risks.Sussex kept at it but with their spearhead Jofra Archer showing the effects of a long season and struggling for full pace and a slow pitch blunting the efforts of the rest of their seam attack the hosts had to work hard for their wickets.The big positive for Sussex was Derby-born Stuart Whittingham, who claimed his maiden five-wicket haul in only his third Championship appearance of the season. Whittingham bowled with real venom at times and the yorker which speared into Ben Slater’s stumps after the opener had made 45 would have been too good for most batsmen.After lunch Whittingham, who took eight wickets in two games against Derbyshire last season, persuaded Matt Critchley, who played the most fluent strokes of the day in his 51, to pull into the hands of deep mid-wicket when the bowler dropped short before taking two wickets with the second new ball.Harvey Hosein demonstrated plenty of resolve but shortly after reaching a 111-ball half-century – one of five in the match by Derbyshire batsmen – with four boundaries before he sliced a full-length ball to backward point.Hardus Viljoen was yorked by Whittingham, who had Will Davis caught at mid-wicket for 25 in the penultimate over. But the ease with which Podmore batted suggests that Sussex’s batsmen could be in business on the final day.With the pitch offering little assistance and no spinner in their attack to offer any variety, it was hard work for the home attack, Whittingham apart.
Ollie Robinson was rewarded for a good opening spell when Wayne Madsen shuffled in front for 31 while a toe-crushing yorker from Garton was too good for Alex Hughes in the second over after lunch.

Sri Lanka have had a difficult time in ODIs of late, and go into this tournament as clear underdogs. But, with this liberating sense of freedom, will they surprise the world?

Andrew Fidel Fernando29-May-20170:58

The wristspinning trump card?

Overview

The high-intensity training camp has been attended, a foreign bowling coach hired, blessings have been sought, declarations of confidence made, and the press has been conferenced, but will any of that help Sri Lanka leave an impact on the Champions Trophy?

Squad

Angelo Mathews (capt), Upul Tharanga, Dinesh Chandimal, Niroshan Dickwella (wk), Nuwan Pradeep, Asela Gunaratne, Chamara Kapugedera, Nuwan Kulasekara, Suranga Lakmal, Lasith Malinga, Kusal Mendis, Kusal Perera, Thisara Perera, Seekkuge Prasanna, Lakshan Sandakan

Their reality is stark. Sri Lanka’s first game of the tournament is against South Africa, who whitewashed them 5-0 earlier in the year. Their second match is against India, who have beaten them 12 times in their last 15 meetings. Even Pakistan – Sri Lanka’s third opponent – whose own ODI form has been modest, defeated Sri Lanka at home in the most-recent bilateral series between them. Never in this century, perhaps, has a Sri Lanka side approached a global tournament with expectations so low.Yet, along with the low expectations, comes a sense of freedom, Sri Lanka say. There is the hope someone in their top order will take the tournament by the collar – perhaps Kusal Mendis, who has already made his mark in the Test format, or Niroshan Dickwella, whose heroics so far, have been in T20s. There is the belief someone like Lakshan Sandakan, the left-arm wristspinner, can make his presence felt during the opposition’s middle overs.Most of all, Sri Lanka are desperate for a roaring return to ODIs for their longtime match-winner, Lasith Malinga. Though he hasn’t played an ODI since 2015, largely due to injury, Malinga’s form did appear to improve through the recent IPL. Earlier in the year, Malinga’s return to T20s also showcased just how much his experience can lift the attack – not only is he an expert end-overs operator, even the other bowlers appear to lift their performance when Malinga takes the tough roles off their hands.But even with Malinga, it is as yet unclear whether he will be fit enough to deliver 10 overs at full intensity. Where other teams have form, runs and wickets behind them, Sri Lanka have only hope.

Champions Trophy history

1998 – Semi-finalists
2000 – Knocked out at first stage
2002 – Joint-champions
2004 – Knocked out at group stage
2006 – Knocked out at group stage
2009 – Knocked out at group stage
2013 – Semi-finalists

Form guide

This does not make for pretty reading. Sri Lanka drew a home series 1-1 against Bangladesh this year, but had been pulverized in South Africa, and have been regularly walloped by New Zealand over the past few years. Sri Lanka have not beaten a Champions Trophy side in a bilateral series since late 2014, when they defeated England in a seven-match series at home.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Strengths

The least of Sri Lanka’s weaknesses appears to be their top order. Their likely top six will feature Upul Tharanga, who provides experience, and has prospered in this tournament before. Also on show are Dinesh Chandimal and Angelo Mathews – senior men with a history of consistent output, even if the latter is coming back to the side following a long layoff.But perhaps the most-watched players will be Mendis and Dickwella, both of whom are blinding talents, but for whom the most significant hurdle will be the moving ball. Though Mendis had been the player of the tournament in last year’s ODI tri-series in Zimbabwe, and has more recently hit a maiden ODI ton at home, he had made a string of modest scores during Sri Lanka’s tour of South Africa, where the ball behaved roughly the same way it is expected to in England. Dickwella’s game, meanwhile, remains a little raw, and perhaps he is over-reliant on the areas behind square for his runs. If both these batsmen can find form however, Sri Lanka’s totals are likely to be healthy.

Weaknesses

There is plenty to choose from here, but it is difficult to look past Sri Lanka’s fielding, which in addition to having cost the team plenty of matches, has also been one of the world’s great recent sources of slapstick comedy. Over the past few years Sri Lankan fielders have routinely dived over the ball, kicked it to the boundary, fist-bumped it, chest-bumped it, groin-bumped it and occasionally used it as a blunt object to hurt themselves with. The quality of Sri Lanka’s fielding has also often been inversely proportional to the temperature, so if London or Cardiff sees an especially cold day, spectators could be in for a few laughs.

Key stats

• Over the past three years, Sri Lanka have lost twice as many matches (36) as they have won (18) against Champions Trophy oppositions
• Sri Lanka have also conceded an average of 57.9 runs in the last 10 overs of an opposition innings – the worst for any side participating in this Champions Trophy
• Upul Tharanga has 14 ODI centuries. The remaining batsmen in Sri Lanka’s squad have 10 combined
• Lasith Malinga last played an ODI on November 7, 2015

India went 2-0 up with an eight-wicket win in the second ODI, and won the three-match series after bowling Zimbabwe out for 126 at the Harare Sports Club

The Report by Karthik Krishnaswamy13-Jun-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details1:06

India seal series by dismissing Zimbabwe for 126

Win toss, put opposition in, bowl opposition out cheaply, chase with minimal fuss. India ticked those boxes once again and won the three-ODI series after going 2-0 up, with a generous helping hand from Zimbabwe, whose shot selection contributed to an utterly inadequate total of 126. It took India only 26.5 overs to chase, and while they will no doubt be gladdened by their second-string team’s successes, they will wonder when their batsmen will be genuinely tested on this tour.KL Rahul, fresh off a debut hundred in the first match, and Karun Nair – who profited from an early life when he edged a no-ball from Tendai Chatara to the wicketkeeper – made attractive 30s, and Ambati Rayudu, batting with more freedom than in the first game, struck seven fours in an unbeaten 44-ball 41. But India will have learned nothing new about them – the target simply wasn’t enough of a challenge.Zimbabwe had looked set for a respectable total after Vusi Sibanda and Sikandar Raza added 67 for the fourth wicket, but both fell to suicidal shots, triggering a collapse in which six wickets fell for 20 runs in the space of 9.1 overs.Zimbabwe’s misery was compounded by Sean Williams’ absence from the batting crease. Having replaced Craig Ervine – who was out with a hamstring strain – Williams hurt his finger soon after the toss, and had to undergo scans to ascertain the extent of his injury.Zimbabwe had looked so secure at 106 for 3, but everything changed in little more than half an hour. Sibanda had just reached his 21st ODI fifty, bringing up the landmark with a trademark pulled four off left-arm spinner Axar Patel. Raza was looking far from fluent, but the partnership was flourishing, and more than half the innings still remained. He chose that moment, off the second ball of the 26th over, to try and take on the fielder at long-on and Yuzvendra Chahal was gifted a wicket.

Visualisation key – Rayudu

Ambati Rayudu is yet to be dismissed in this series, following his unbeaten 62 in the first game with 41 not out on Monday. After the win which sealed the series for India, Rayudu said he banked heavily on visualisation.
“Given the guys that we have in the team, somebody has to do the role that I am doing,” he said. “It’s just important for me to stay focused and take my opportunities when they come.
“For me it’s about getting my batting in shape first. And visualisation is the key, I feel. Because [at times] you’re out for a long period of time just travelling with the team.
“I try to keep myself motivated and focused. I prepare myself before the game as though I’m going to play it.”

Chahal’s next ball was a perfectly pitched legbreak, drifting into Elton Chigumbura and causing him to misread the line as he prodded forward to defend. It looked a tight lbw decision, but replays showed the ball had pitched in line with leg stump and had turned enough to hit middle and leg.In Chahal’s next over, Sibanda slogged at a loopy, wide legbreak, and just like Raza had done, picked out the fielder at long-on. Until that point, he had channelled all the qualities that had won him more than 100 ODI caps – the elegance, the range of strokes – and with that one shot, he now demonstrated the recklessness that has made him one of Zimbabwe cricket’s most frustrating figures.The end came swiftly. Jasprit Bumrah, who had bowled a superb opening spell, repeatedly beating the outside edge with balls that straightened after angling into the right-handers, had Richmond Mutumbami caught behind off the inside edge, Dhawal Kulkarni swung one past Tendai Chatara’s flick to take the off stump, and Axar speared in an arm ball to strike Muzarabani’s pad right in front. That was Zimbabwe’s ninth and last wicket: it fell with 15.3 overs still to play.India had bowled Zimbabwe out for 168 in the first ODI, and their seamers made another impressive start on a chilly Monday morning, taking three wickets in the first ten overs. Barinder Sran pitched a few inches shorter than he had on Saturday, and didn’t generate quite as much swing, but picked up two wickets nonetheless. Hamilton Masakadza chased a wide, non-swinging ball and sliced it into third man’s hands, and Peter Moor, for the second time in a row, played around his front pad as the ball bent into him. This time, he was struck above the knee roll, and on the hop, but the umpire Russell Tiffin did not hesitate to give him out.Chamu Chibhabha ensured he minimised the chance of lbw against Sran, batting with a slightly open stance, and looked largely comfortable against the left-armer. But he had no answer to a variation from Kulkarni that was either elaborately plotted or entirely unintended. Having sent down five away-swingers, the bulk of them short and fairly wide of off stump, and dragged Chibhabha across his crease, he trapped him with the fuller, straighter inducker. Zimbabwe rebuilt from that early wobble, but their repair job unravelled quickly.

ESPNcricinfo previews the Group 1 encounter between England and Sri Lanka

The Preview by Andrew Fidel Fernando25-Mar-2016

Match facts

March 26, 2016
Start time 1930 local (1400 GMT)2:37

Chappell: England mild favourites against SL

Big Picture

A drubbing at the hands of West Indies, a sensational run chase against South Africa, and a nerve-jangling finish against Afghanistan – England have perhaps had the most interesting campaign in Group 1, and they haven’t even had their customary big-tournament meltdown yet. There is a chance they will not have a meltdown at all. Eoin Morgan leads a side that has a little steel to it, which perhaps has not been the case in previous England sides. They have withstood onslaughts, and done enough – even if it is just enough – to win.Despite the middling total against Afghanistan, England’s batting still appears their latest asset. Joe Root is the form batsman from either side, and there is a spark to that top order, which has poise, imagination and power in equal measure.They have also handled spin moderately well, so far in the tournament. They played Samuel Badree out safely for 34 runs in their first match, which is much better than the performance Sri Lanka mustered against the same bowler. Imran Tahir didn’t rattle them either. Sri Lanka will have been encouraged that Afghanistan’s talented Rashid Khan did claim figures of 2 for 17 on a slow Delhi surface however, and will hope their own leggie, Jeffrey Vandersay, can inflict similar damage.If it’s Sri Lanka’s spinners England are worried about, Sri Lanka should be worried about Sri Lanka’s batsmen. It would be a waste of time to unpack the top order’s failure against West Indies, because those same flaws had been evident in Sri Lanka’s previous series, and the one before that, and the one before even that. There have been hard words, from fans and ex-players alike, from across the Palk Strait. “Take responsibility,” is an oft-heard refrain. Encouragingly, the team has at least stopped referring to their current state as a “transition period”.Defending champions Sri Lanka have to win to stay alive (barring a no-result), after West Indies overcame South Africa in Nagpur. With just one game remaining, England will book their berth in the semi-finals with a victory, but a loss – by any margin – will see them eliminated since their net run rate is lower than that of South Africa.Thisara Perera could have a key role to play for Sri Lanka•ICC/Getty Images

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)


England: WWLLL
Sri Lanka: LWLLL

In the spotlight

He’s promised much in the competition to date but, with a top score of 30 in three innings, more is expected of Jos Buttler, England’s T20 vice-captain and superstar-in-waiting. With the sharp end of the tournament now upon England, there’s no time to fit in another dress rehearsal. Against Afghanistan, Buttler was guilty of attempting too much too soon on a wicket that demanded a hint of circumspection. Admittedly, it took a scorching catch to remove him but, given how destructive he can be when he gets going, he’ll know this time around that he can afford a few sighters to find his range.In the midst of an otherwise forlorn performance against West Indies, the batting exploits of Thisara Perera were a lone crumb of comfort. From the depths of 47 for 5, his 40 from 29 balls at least offered his side a token target to defend. As it happens, he then conceded the contest in the space of two legal deliveries, but his introduction in the 19th over – with just seven runs to defend – was an unfair reflection of his status as Sri Lanka’s go-to death bowler. In the absence of Lasith Malinga, recovering back home from a knee injury, he has big shoes to fill.

Teams news

Alex Hales was playing football with the rest of the squad before training on Friday, so he seems to be on the mend after his back injury. James Vince will make way at the top of the order if so. Liam Dawson’s international debut is sure to be put on the back-burner following the success of Liam Plunkett against Afghanistan, plus the fact that Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid bowled just five overs between them in that match.England (probable) 1 Jason Roy, 2 Alex Hales, 3 Joe Root, 4 Jos Buttler (wk), 5 Eoin Morgan (capt), 6 Ben Stokes, 7 Moeen Ali, 8 Chris Jordan, 9 David Willey, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Liam PlunkettSri Lanka have three frontline spinners on tour. There is a chance each of them will feature in this match, which means a seamer may miss out. Nuwan Kulasekara appears likeliest to exit the side.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Dinesh Chandimal (wk), 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Lahiru Thirimanne, 4 Chamara Kapugedara, 5 Angelo Mathews (capt.), 6 Milinda Siriwardana, 7 Thisara Perera, 8 Sachithra Senanayake, 9 Rangana Herath, 10 Dushmantha Chameera, 11 Jeffrey Vandersay

Pitch and conditions

Both teams expected the pitch to play slow – as it did for England during their match against Afghanistan. That doesn’t necessarily mean it will take much turn, though. The weather is not expected to impede play.

Stats and trivia

• Joe Root is the highest tournament run-scorer of the batsmen who have only played in the Super 10s, hitting 143 runs at a strike rate of 162.50.
• Thisara Perera’s highest T20I score remains the 49 off 25 he hit against England at the Oval in 2014.
• England’s last meeting with Sri Lanka at the World T20 was also their sole highlight of a disappointing campaign. On a memorable evening in Chittagong, Alex Hales toppled the eventual champions with a brilliant 116 not out from 64 balls. His onslaught secured a six-wicket victory and remains England’s only T20I hundred.
• Sri Lanka’s sole WT20 victory in three previous meeting with England came on home soil in 2012, a 19-run win in Pallekele where the absent Malinga took 5 for 31, his best figures in T20Is.

Quotes

“Being from England and facing completely different conditions for the majority of your career, you’ve got to work pitches out pretty quickly and be quite smart. The guys who have experience of playing in India have really got to try and work that out and communicate to the rest of the guys.”
“In T20 formats it’s always better to chase. When you’re batting first you don’t have a target in your mind, but you do when you’re chasing. You realise first six overs how you need to bat. Chasing is an advantage as far as I’m concerned.”

The Royal London Cup will begin earlier in the 2016 season, a subtle tweak to the county fixtures ahead of the more overarching restructuring of the domestic schedule which has been pushed back to 2017

Andrew McGlashan02-Dec-2015For the full 2016 fixture list click hereAndrew Gale, the Yorkshire captain, will face an early test of his opposition to the ECB’s controversial new rules for the toss in County Championship fixtures when Hampshire, the visitors, are offered the chance to bowl first in the champions’ first outing of the 2016 season, at Headingley on April 17.The 2016 County Championship, which gets underway a week earlier on April 10, is the first in which the toss is not mandatory following the ECB’s decision to allow the visiting side to bowl or opt for a toss of the coin. The first group of visiting teams to have that option will be Gloucestershire, Kent, Somerset, Sussex and Warwickshire, as well as newly promoted Surrey, who mark their awaited return to the top flight with a first-round trip to Trent Bridge.The 2016 schedule contains none of the more overarching restructuring that had originally been proposed but has now been pushed back to 2017. However, there is a subtle tweak to the 50-over competition, the Royal London Cup, which will now be staged in two blocks from the start of June.

Key dates

April 10-13 – County Championship begins

May 20 – NatWest T20 Blast starts

June 5 – Royal London cup starts

August 20 – NatWest T20 Blast finals day, Edgbaston

September 17 – Royal London Cup final, Lord’s

September 20-23 – Final round of County Championship

In 2015 the competition did not begin until the last week of July but next year it will form part of a concentrated period of white-ball cricket. The opening round of matches will take place on June 5, a group of games that includes defending champions Gloucestershire taking on Somerset in a South West derby in Taunton, It will run concurrently with the NatWest T20 Blast, which starts on May 20 and will again predominantly be played on Friday nights.While not a radical change, shifting a portion of the 50-over matches forward by seven weeks should bring a few benefits. Aesthetically it could help the tournament feel less of a late adjunct to the season, but on a more fundamental level it provides a couple of rounds of matches before England play their one-day series against Sri Lanka, so there is an an opportunity for fringe players to stake a claim.It should also ensure matches take place on better pitches as surfaces will be less tired than they are getting in late July and August. June is also when periods of the 2017 Champions Trophy and 2019 World Cup will be held, both of which are a priority for the new England management. Another impact of shifting a block of the Royal London Cup is that it allows more County Championship cricket in August with 32 four-day games starting that month instead of 15 last season which it is hoped will aid the role of spin bowling.The Royal London Cup then takes a break from mid-June, when T20 and County Championship matches continue to intermingle, until a second set of matches in late July which lead towards the quarter finals in mid-August. The final will take place on September 17 at Lord’s.There had been plans for a more comprehensive overhaul of the county programme but those moves have been delayed by a year after counties voiced their concerns that they had not been consulted sufficiently on the process which is likely to include changing the Championship into divisions of eight and 10, rather than the two nine-team split that is currently in place.The ECB has promised that a decision on the structure of the 2017 season will be confirmed before next summer begins so that counties know what they are playing for, especially in terms of any changes to promotion and relegation in the Championship. Any significant changes to the T20 competition are unlikely to take place before the next cycle of TV rights kicks in 2020.With Lancashire and Surrey back in the Championship top flight, following the relegation of Sussex and Worcestershire last season, eight of the nine Division One clubs are now Test match counties. One notable omission from the 2016 fixtures list is Sussex’s Horsham festival, which had been under threat two years ago but has now seemingly paid the price for their second-division status.Internationally, England will again play seven Tests during the season – three against Sri Lanka and four against Pakistan – alongside 10 ODIs and two T20Is. England Lions will play a triangular one-day series against Pakistan A and Sri Lanka A, England Women will play one-day and T20 series against Pakistan while England Under-19s will face Sri Lanka.Yorkshire, as County Champions, will take on the MCC in Abu Dhabi in a four-day match from March 20.

New Zealand allrounder Jimmy Neesham has been ruled out of the remainder of the Test series against Australia with a back injury

Brydon Coverdale at the Gabba08-Nov-2015New Zealand allrounder Jimmy Neesham has been ruled out of the remainder of the Test series against Australia with a back injury. Fast bowler Mitchell McClenaghan has been called in and will join the squad ahead of the second Test, which starts in Perth on Friday.Neesham batted for 45 minutes in the second innings of the Test at the Gabba, where the fifth day’s play began with Australia needing seven wickets for victory and wrapped up a win in an extended first session. But Neesham, who missed the tour of England earlier this year with a stress fracture in his back, will fly home after the Brisbane Test for assessment.”Jimmy has worked hard to get back to fitness following his injury earlier this year, but at this stage still experiences discomfort when bowling extended loads,” coach Mike Hesson said. “Jimmy will return to New Zealand for further medical assessment and we’ll continue to monitor his situation. At this stage our number one priority is getting Jimmy fully healthy and ready for the home summer.”Neesham bowled 20 overs in the first Test against Australia and his injury is a further blow to New Zealand, who are already sweating on the fitness of new-ball bowler Tim Southee ahead of the WACA Test. Southee left the field on the second day at the Gabba with an irritated lower disc in his back, and Neil Wagner was called into the squad as cover for him.New Zealand may field a vastly different attack for the Perth Test, with left-arm spinning allrounder Mitchell Santner a strong change to debut in place of Mark Craig, which would allow four fast bowlers to play. Hesson said the uncapped McClenaghan would offer plenty to the group when he joined the squad in Perth.”Mitch has the ability to run in all day, bowl quick spells and has experience on the International stage,” Hesson said. “He’ll bring a lot to the group and is obviously very excited to come and join the squad.”