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Fast bowler named in 15-player squad with England needing 3-0 win to take series

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Jul-2023Fast bowler Lauren Filer is in line for her England white-ball debut, in the wake of her fiery performance in the Women’s Ashes Test at Trent Bridge last month, after being named in a 15-person squad for the three ODIs against Australia next week.Filer, who touched speeds in excess of 75mph at Trent Bridge to live up to her reputation as the fastest female bowler in the country, comes into the reckoning with England needing a 3-0 clean sweep of the ODI series if they are to reclaim the Ashes for the first time since 2015.With the onus on victory, Filer could conceivably be unleashed alongside her fellow quick, 21-year-old Issy Wong, who was overlooked for the Test and hasn’t featured for England since the T20I leg of their tour of West Indies in December.Also included is the opening batter, Tammy Beaumont, whose England-record 208 underpinned her side’s strong first-innings batting display in the Test match, which Australia eventually won by 89 runs to claim four points towards their Ashes defence.Beaumont underlined her strong white-ball form with a match-winning 83 not out from 62 balls for The Blaze against Northern Diamonds in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy last week, and having missed the T20I leg of the Ashes, is set to resume her place at the top of the 50-over batting order.England head into the ODIs with confidence after coming from behind to seal a thrilling 2-1 victory in the T20Is, Australia’s first loss in any series since the corresponding leg of the 2017-18 Ashes.That leg was played out in front of a series of crowds in the region of 20,000 at Edgbaston, The Oval and Lord’s, and Heather Knight’s team are hopeful of similar support at Bristol (July 12), Southampton (July 16) and Taunton (July 18), all of which are sell-outs.Head coach Jon Lewis said: “We were delighted with our T20 series win and look forward to the next stage of the Ashes with everything to play for.”We’re pleased to welcome Tammy (Beaumont) and Lauren (Filer) back into the group. Tammy showed her quality during the Test match with her double-hundred while Lauren offers us real pace in our bowling alongside Issy (Wong).”The support the team have received throughout the series so far has been incredible and it is fitting to finish with this deciding ODI campaign as the first sell-out series in England Women’s history.”We respect Australia and know that this part of the Ashes series will again be a big challenge. However, we take a great deal of confidence and belief from our recent T20 victories and will, as always, be trying to put on a great showing for our fans.”England squad: Heather Knight (capt), Tammy Beaumont, Lauren Bell, Alice Capsey, Kate Cross, Charlie Dean, Sophia Dunkley, Sophie Ecclestone, Lauren Filer, Danielle Gibson, Sarah Glenn, Amy Jones (wk), Nat Sciver-Brunt, Issy Wong, Danielle Wyatt

The Knight Riders captain also added that it was “unfair” to say his team was over-dependent on the West Indian allrounder

Varun Shetty in Hyderabad21-Apr-20191:14

There have been no complaints from Russell about his batting position – Karthik

A stoic Dinesh Karthik said it was unfair to say Kolkata Knight Riders are over-dependent on Andre Russell after his side lost their fifth straight game, effectively making all of their last four games must-wins if they want to qualify for the playoffs.Knight Riders were 124 for 5 against Sunrisers Hyderabad when Russell joined Chris Lynn with 4.3 overs left in the innings. But, Lynn fell next over, leaving Russell in the company of the lower order. Although he’s done that task many times for Knight Riders, including specifically lifting them from being five down for much lower scores, Russell couldn’t keep his golden form running into Sunday and fell for a nine-ball 15.”I think that’s unfair to say,” Karthik said after the match. “Today I think 160 was par if we’d bowled well. Even though Andre only got 15 runs today, the rest of them batted really well and brought us to a score that was defendable. But the fact that we didn’t bowl as well, and the wicket got better under lights, and two good players came out all guns blazing made things look very easy.”On Friday, Russell had brought Knight Riders miraculously close to a win against Royal Challengers Bangalore after coming in with the asking rate at 16.53 and just over eight overs to go. His 65 off 25 had brought Knight Riders “two hits away” from victory – Russell’s words and they came ahead of a cheeky little suggestion.”I believe that [I should bat higher up the order],” Russell had said as he put a finger to his lips. “Honestly, you have to sometimes be flexible as a team. When you look at the make-up of our team, I don’t mind going to bat at No. 4.”ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Arguably this season’s most impactful player, Russell has come in with an average of 42 balls remaining every innings. Comparable to this are Hardik Pandya and Kieron Pollard’s entry points – an average of 33 and 38 balls remaining respectively. But the fact that Pandya and Pollard play for the same team means Mumbai Indians can hedge their bets on their batting positions. Knight Riders, on the other hand, have often relied on brisk innings around Russell as he singlehandedly pulverises bowling attacks.Karthik alluded to Russell’s comments while saying the West Indian has made no complaints about his batting position. “He had about five overs to face. When he came in, there were 27 balls and we’re looking to play him at a kind of slot where…I think he’s the kind of player even if he had played 10 balls, he’d have made an impact. The key is that we play that well at the top of the order that we set it up for him. There’s been no complaints from his side about the batting part of it. I think he’s been happy with the place where he’s going and he has a clear role in the team which he’s trying to achieve every time he goes out to bat. “Knight Riders are currently placed sixth and in the middle of a losing streak that forced them to drop franchise stalwarts such as Kuldeep Yadav and Robin Uthappa. Those big calls were made, Karthik said, because neither player had performed to the standards they had set themselves. But with four matches to go, and three of them against teams currently placed higher than them, they might just return to the XI in the next game.”It’s always part of the IPL,” Karthik said. “Once you get on a run where you’ve lost a match it puts pressure on the next match. When you win, you can always find ways to win and when you lose, you sometimes find ways to lose. I think these are all the challenges a team always faces in a tournament like this.”We’ve sat together and regrouped and things haven’t gone exactly to plan. Having said that, I have faith in the players I have. I believe there are genuine match winners out there and we need to find ways to find a spark for ourselves and do something special for us. “

Bryony Smith seals victory with three wickets as visitors are bowled out in a thriller

ECB Reporters Network07-Jun-2023South East Stars have beaten Central Sparks by six runs in a Charlotte Edwards Cup thriller at Canterbury.Katie George made 53, but needing to hit seven from the last four balls she was caught on the boundary by Claudie Cooper off Bryony Smith, leaving the Sparks all out for 170, with Abigail Freeborn unable to bat due to injury.The Stars had made their highest score of the season, 176 for 6, despite an impressive display by stand-in Sparks captain Georgia Davis, who took 3 for 13. Phoebe Franklin, who’d been awarded the PCA player-of-the-month trophy before the game, blasted 52 from 27 balls and captain Smith made 47.Neither side able was to qualify for Finals Day and both were missing key players through injury and England commitments, but it was a compelling contest that fluctuated almost constantly.After choosing to bowl, the Sparks produced a fielding performance that was a mixture of the brilliant and the ordinary.Chloe Hill could have been out first ball, but after skying Ellie Anderson she was dropped by Freeborn who, given the cloud cover, was trying to catch a white ball against a white background.Smith was on 20 when she offered a regulation chance to Erin Burns. The fielder put her down but subsequently atoned with a brilliant diving effort to get rid of Smith as she was poised for her half-century.Hill was the next to go, caught-and-bowled by Davis for 25 and Charis Pavely then took a brave catch to remove Aylish Cranstone after she’d holed out to Anderson, nearly colliding with Burns in the process.Kira Chathli went for 11 when she hit Bethan Ellis to Chloe Brewer and Davis concluded a superb spell when she bowled Franklin.Ryana MacDonald-Gay drove Ellis to Burns for five in the final over, but although the rate dipped it was still the Star’s highest score of the competition so far.The Sparks’ chase misfired in the second over when Ami Campbell was sent back by fellow opener Ellis chasing a second run that wasn’t really there and she was run out after a smart throw by Hill, but Ellis responded with an enterprising innings, partnered by Davina Perrin.Perrin struck an elegant 25, only to fall to an inelegant swipe off MacDonald-Gay which was caught at point by Aylish Cranstone.Danni Gregory swung the momentum back in the Stars’ favour, removing Ellis for 29 when she pulled her to Tash Farrant at square leg off the final ball of the ninth. Although Burns hit 16 off the tenth over, Gregory then bowled Brewer for a golden duck.
George blocked the hat-trick ball and began scoring so freely that the Sparks seemed to be coasting until Smith brought herself back on at the Pavilion End and immediately claimed the key wicket of Burns for 39.Smith then bowled Pavely but as long as George was at the crease the Sparks looked slight favourites. They needed 26 from the final three and 17 from the last two, but home hopes soared when Cooper had Anderson lbw for 5.George declined a single off the last ball of the over, backing herself to get 10 off the final six balls. The first went for two after a misfield. The tension was ramped up when Cooper then dropped George but ran out Baker who was chasing a second.George drove the third ball to Cooper in almost exactly the same place, but this time the fielder held on to seal an exhilarating win.

Olly Stone finished with seven wickets but Warwickshire face an immense task on the final day

ECB Reporters Network06-Sep-2018Warwickshire 310 and 28 for 1 lead Durham 292 (Stone 7-59) by 46 runs
ScorecardWarwickshire’s attempt to press for victory were thwarted by the weather on day three of their Specsavers County Championship match against Durham at Edgbaston.After heading into lunch on 28 for one, a lead of 46, rain started towards the end of the interval and continued throughout the day.The umpires did see an improvement as a 3.20pm inspection was called, but the weather deteriorated and no further play was possible meaning 70 overs in total had been lost.That will surely cause frustration for Warwickshire as promotion rivals Sussex have already won and Kent sit in a strong position again Northants.Jeetan Patel’s side must now bat aggressively in the morning to set-up a Durham run chase and unlikely victory with only 96 overs available on the final day.The day started under blue skies with the visitors resuming on 224 for 7, 86 behind.Olly Stone immediately exposed the tail by bowling Paul Collingwood first ball of the morning for 38, but any Warwickshire expectation of a sizeable first innings lead diminished as Barry McCarthy and Salisbury put on a resolute 42 between them.McCarthy was eventually dismissed, trapped lbw to Chris Wright for 43, but Durham were buoyed as they made inroads to the first innings total set.Chris Rushworth, the last man in, supported Salisbury in another valuable 26-run partnership before Stone struck with his seventh wicket to remove the stubborn number ten, who’d made a career-best 38, and bowl Durham out for 292.With conditions darkening, the Bears faced eleven overs before the interval and they saw opener Will Rhodes trapped lbw by Rushworth for 16.

With his return, Australia for the first time in the series can at least look to balance the side however they wish

Andrew McGlashan28-Feb-20232:26

What improvements can we expect from Australia?

The last time Cameron Green picked up a bat in India it helped him become the second-most expensive player in IPL history.His value to Australia’s Test side has been made abundantly clear during the first two Tests of this series where the selectors have had to make concessions each way in his absence. Now the allrounder is back and Australia can for the first time, even in the absence of some senior players, at least look to balance the side however they wish in Indore.Related

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• Smith wants Australia to 'slow things down' under pressure

Whether or not Steven Smith keeping every option open on the eve of the match was a bit of pre-game bluster, it highlighted the flexibility that a cricketer such as Green brings. That ranged from playing an extra batter – so Green being part of a four-strong attack – to three quicks or retaining the three spinners used in Delhi, but this time having two pace bowlers alongside them.There remains a small question mark over Todd Murphy after the side soreness he reported during the second Test, although he had an extensive bowl on Tuesday.”In terms of playing an extra batter, that’s on the cards as well,” Smith said. “Three spinners is on the cards, someone with a bit more airspeed is on the cards. We’ve got some options there, we’ll wait and see.”The extra batter route would mean a reprieve for Matt Renshaw who has made just four runs in three innings so far after being parachuted in as David Warner’s concussion sub in Delhi. The reference to airspeed could put Lance Morris in with a chance of a Test debut, although Scott Boland’s wicket-to-wicket skills may also bring value. Australia’s quicks have had precious little impact so far.Cameron Green has not played competitive cricket in two months•Getty Images

They also need to work out how to get through India’s deep batting order and Smith hinted at some new plans. “Particularly with Green and [Mitchell] Starc, two fast bowlers now, and five out-and-out bowlers potentially, it gives us a few different ways to go about things,” he said. “Whether we want to bowl some quick stuff at the tail to try and unsettle them or whether it’s spinning, [we] just have to play what’s in front of us.”The Indore pitch was only getting drier by the hour. The ends were already bare and now much of the grass has been shaved off. It was kept under covers for most of the day, occasionally being revealed by the groundstaff when players and staff from either side wandered over for a look.At one point, there was a brief summit between Australia coach Andrew McDonald and tour selector Tony Dodemaide. A while later Green, along with a few team-mates, asked to have a look themselves with Green kneeling down to have a feel of the wicket’s firmness.Whatever way the selection cards fall, Green will likely need to recall his performance against Sri Lanka in Galle last year when he made 77 on the most spin-friendly pitch he had yet to encounter.”He’s a quality young player and just his all-round ability helps us in terms of the way we want to go about things with our XI,” Smith said. “We saw him play exceptionally well in Galle. He did things a bit differently to how he’s done things in the past. He brought the sweep out, he used his feet, he got deep in the crease. He did all the things that you need to do really well when the conditions were extreme.”Green’s numbers are certainly the right way round for an emerging allrounder: the batting average sits at 35.04 and the bowling dipped to 29.78 when he claimed his maiden five-wicket in Melbourne, the day before the broken finger he is now returning from.But expectations also need to be tempered. It is two months since his last competitive outing and there’s only so much nets can do to bring a player up to speed for the type of Test cricket taking place in this series. Still, it’s one part of the jigsaw puzzle Australia have been missing. And for Green, his India adventure really starts now.

Head coach pays price for run of losses

Matt Roller22-Nov-2022Gary Kirsten has left his role as Welsh Fire’s head coach in the men’s Hundred after overseeing a winless 2022 season.Kirsten, 54, spent both of the Hundred’s first two seasons with the Cardiff-based team but, after winning their first two games, their results nosedived: they won one of their final six fixtures in 2021 and despite a squad overhaul at the draft, lost all eight matches in 2022.Kirsten had initially planned to build his side around Jonny Bairstow as captain, but he has only played for them twice since his Test recall last year. Unlike most of their rivals, Fire have struggled to foster a team culture or a sense of identity.His exit was long expected but only ratified recently. The decision was made by Fire’s board, which is run by the chief executives of Glamorgan, Gloucestershire and Somerset, the Welsh businesswoman Aileen Richards (who acts as an independent director) and Glamorgan head of operations Dan Cherry, with Mark Wallace serving as general manager.Kirsten confirmed his departure to ESPNcricinfo on Tuesday following a report in the .Candidates to replace Kirsten could include Paul Farbrace, the former England assistant coach, who revealed earlier this month that he is open to working in the Hundred after leaving his job as Warwickshire’s director of cricket.

Ashton Agar and Steven Finn took three wickets apiece as Middlesex staged an astonishing comeback to beat Hampshire by 22 runs at Lord’s in the Vitality Blast

ECB Reporters Network26-Jul-2018Middlesex 165 for 8 (Stirling 60) beat Hampshire 143 (Munro 58, Agar 3-17, Finn 3-21) by 22 runs

ScorecardAshton Agar and Steven Finn took three wickets apiece as Middlesex staged an astonishing comeback to beat Hampshire by 22 runs at Lord’s in the Vitality Blast.Hampshire appeared to be coasting at 89 for 1, chasing a modest target of 166 for victory, but they somehow contrived to throw away their last nine wickets for just 54. That turnaround secured Middlesex’s first victory in the tournament for five games and lifted them off the bottom of the South Group table.Fidel Edwards and spin duo Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Liam Dawson ensured that Hampshire restricted their hosts to 165 for 8 after winning the toss, despite Paul Stirling’s accomplished half-century.Max Holden kept Stirling company throughout the Powerplay, but their stand of 58 was broken when the left-hander called a single that never looked on and was comfortably run out by Edwards’ throw.Stand-in captain Eoin Morgan’s promotion to three in the order failed to pay off as he made just 2 before holing out to deep midwicket – and Middlesex’s innings never gained any kind of traction. That was no reflection on Stirling, whose knock of 60 from 44 balls included five fours and three sixes before he eventually perished driving Colin Munro to long-on.Dwayne Bravo hammered a rapid 20 but, once he was run out attempting a risky single, Middlesex’s hopes of a par score evaporated and only some spirited late blows from Tom Helm hauled them up to 165.That target looked unlikely to cause Hampshire problems, although James Vince surrendered his wicket in the first over by spearing an attempted pull back to Finn. But Munro was soon into his stride with some clean hitting, dispatching all the Middlesex seamers to the boundary with regularity as he rattled up 58 from 29 deliveries.The New Zealander shared a second-wicket partnership of 85 with Sam Northeast before the latter charged Agar and missed, allowing John Simpson to whip off the bails.Agar then gave his side a glimmer of hope with two wickets in as many balls as Munro heaved one to long-on and Rilee Rossouw scooped the next into the hands of Stirling.Hampshire’s wobble soon turned into a full-scale collapse as Finn followed Agar by removing Chris Wood and Tom Alsop with successive deliveries. And it was Agar who applied the finishing touch in the penultimate over, calmly taking a catch at long-on to dismiss last man Edwards off the bowling of Bravo.

Dinesh Karthik has been picked as replacement, ahead of Parthiv Patel

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Jun-20180:44

Quickinfo – Dinesh Karthik returns

A thumb injury sustained in the IPL has ruled India wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha out of playing their Test match against Afghanistan in Bengaluru on June 14. Dinesh Karthik has been picked as replacement, ahead of Parthiv Patel.Having been struck on his right thumb by a Shivam Mavi bouncer on May 25, Saha faces an estimated recovery period of five to six weeks. He also missed six games for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL because of a shoulder niggle. The first Test in England starts on August 1 at Edgbaston.During India’s previous Test assignment in South Africa, both Parthiv and Karthik were added to the squad after Saha was sidelined with a hamstring niggle. It was Parthiv who was brought into the XI for the second and third Tests, but he managed only 56 runs in four innings. He had a particularly poor game in Centurion: dropped two catches and failed to attempt a third regulation chance.Karthik is set to play his first Test since 2010 and 24th overall since his debut in 2004. More recently, he captained Kolkata Knight Riders to the IPL playoffs and was the top-scorer for the side with 498 runs in 16 innings at an average of nearly 50 and strike rate of nearly 150.Updated India squad: Ajinkya Rahane (capt), Shikhar Dhawan, M Vijay, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Karun Nair, Dinesh Karthik (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Hardik Pandya, Ishant Sharma, Shardul Thakur

Back-to-back no-results keep Afghanistan at the bottom of the Group 1 table, while Ireland rise to No. 2

Himanshu Agrawal28-Oct-2022Afghanistan and Ireland shared the points on offer after persistent rain prevented any action – or even the toss – from taking place in their men’s T20 World Cup match at the MCG on Friday.For Afghanistan, the result came just two days after their game against New Zealand, at the same venue, had also been abandoned.With the point they earned today, Ireland, who had beaten England earlier, climbed up two steps to No. 2 in the group, behind New Zealand, who are on three points from two games.Afghanistan have two points, the same as Sri Lanka, England and Australia. But all those teams have played one game fewer and also have a “W” against their names, unlike Afghanistan, who had lost to England in their first match of the tournament before the successive washouts.It was a frustrating afternoon for all concerned. Although it wasn’t raining an hour before the scheduled start of the match, it started pouring just minutes before the scheduled toss, at 2.30pm local time. The toss was delayed as a result, and at 3pm – the scheduled start of play – the umpires announced an inspection for an hour later, by when losing overs was inevitable.Rain remained on the radar, and while it abated for periods, raising hopes of , another downpour around 3.30pm brought the covers back on. Then, at around 4.15pm, it was decided that an inspection would be conducted only after the rain stopped, but the abandonment was announced just 18 minutes later.A point against Afghanistan might have boosted Ireland’s hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals, but they do have games against Australia and New Zealand lined up. They will back themselves, though, after having pulled off a tight five-run win [DLS method] against England.Australia play England in the evening match at the MCG, with rain set to play a part there too.

The players’ body also asked CA to take the contrition shown by the players on their return to Australia into account, and allow them back into domestic cricket sooner

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Apr-2018The Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) has asked Cricket Australia to consider reducing the “disproportionate” sanctions on Steven Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft, the three players involved in the plan to tamper with the ball during the Cape Town Test.

‘I’d pick them for sure’ – Mark Waugh

Australia selector Mark Waugh has backed Steven Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft to make returns to the national side after they complete their bans for ball-tampering in Cape Town.
“I would (pick them), for sure,” Waugh told Sky Sports Radio. “My personal contact with these three guys is they’re all good people. Everyone makes mistakes. This is a major one.
“We all hope they bounce back to their best form when the penalties are finished. We should all look at the facts and you’ve got to let them back into the fold again. You’ve got to forgive them.”
Waugh also defended the Australian team against criticism of its culture.
“I don’t see this team as any different as any other team from previous eras,” he said. “Of course there’s the odd individual player who’ll push the boundaries. But to then say because of that there’s a whole toxic culture of Australian cricket, I’m just not seeing that. Most of this team, they’re so quiet on the field.”

Smith and Warner were banned from international and domestic cricket for 12 months, while Bancroft was banned for nine. Warner was also banned from holding leadership positions in Australian cricket for life, while Smith and Bancroft were banned from leadership positions for another 12 months after the end of their bans.”The proposed penalties are disproportionate relative to precedent,” ACA president Greg Dyer said in Sydney on Tuesday. “We ask that consideration be given to recalibrating the proposed sanctions, to consider options such as suspending or reducing part of the sanction. To consider allowing the players to return to domestic cricket earlier, for example, as part of their rehabilitation.”We believe [the bans] are disproportionate. We’ve pointed out the fact that incidents of this similar type have occurred previously, the sanctions are vastly less than what’s been suggested here. There’s a need to reconcile between the two, there’s a need to understand that disproportionality and to move forward. We’re in ongoing conversations with Cricket Australia through this process.”The players have until Thursday to decide whether to appeal the penalties imposed by CA or not.”The ACA is working strongly with the players,” Dyer said. “Their decisions are imminent but I’m not able to share them with you this morning. [It is] a deeply personal decision for the players. We’re supporting them through that process but ultimately [whether to appeal is] for the three players to decide.”Dyer was of the opinion that the administration needed to support the banned players during this time, and allowing them to stay involved with cricket would be beneficial. “The players need to be brought back into the confines of the game to be supported by the game – to be assisted by the game, in the rehabilitation,” Dyer said. “If the sanctions were to prevent that then I think that would be a bad outcome.”The loss of leadership is significant as a sanction … these are very substantial things that have occurred to these men. That needs to be brought into mind. Those [consequences] are over and above the length of the sentence.”Smith, Bancroft and Warner held press conferences after returning to Australia, where they expressed remorse for ball-tampering on the third day of the Newlands Test. All of them were extremely emotional during their press conferences and Dyer said their “extraordinary contrition” should be taken into account by CA.”The contrition shown by these men is extraordinary. We ask for this extraordinary contrition to be taken into account by Cricket Australia just as it would be in any fair or proper process. Their distressed faces have sent a message across the globe as effective as any sanctions could be. Australia cried with Steve Smith last Thursday. I certainly did. We expect this contrition to be taken into account.”