Ben Sawyer has joined the national set-up as full-time pace-bowling coach

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Jul-2021Matthew Mott, head coach of the Australia women’s team, has signed a two-year contract extension which means he will remain in charge until after the defence of the T20 World Cup title in 2023.The next two years includes a host of major series and global events for Australia beginning with the visit of India in September before the Ashes early next year. That is followed by the ODI World Cup in New Zealand during February and March then the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham from late July 2022. Currently the next T20 World Cup is scheduled to take place in South Africa in February 2023 with another Ashes series to follow in mid-2023.Australia are also currently on a world-record unbeaten run of 24 ODI victories following their 3-0 win over New Zealand in April.”As a team there’s a lot of stuff in front of us to be excited about and I’m looking forward to being a part of it,” Mott said. “Obviously we play India to start off the summer and the Ashes is a massive series for us, but the one-day World Cup in March has been a key driver of the team over the past few years after a disappointing result at the 2017 event in England.”There’s a lot to look forward to over the next few years, including our first Commonwealth Games appearance, so it’s a really exciting time to be involved.”Ben Oliver, Cricket Australia’s head of national teams and high performance, said: “On field his record speaks for itself, with the team claiming two T20 World Cup titles since his appointment in 2015. The team also regained the Ashes just months after his appointment in 2015 and has held into them ever since, as well as setting a new world record for most consecutive ODI wins.”Matthew is a highly respected international coach, with terrific people skills, a track record of getting the best out of his players and a real passion for the game and his role. We believe he’s the best person to take this incredibly successful team to yet another level.”There has also been a new full-time appointment to Mott’s support staff with Ben Sawyer joining as fast-bowling. It is a role he has previously held in a part-time capacity but now Sawyer will leave Cricket New South Wales and Sydney Sixers for a permanent position with the national side. Ryan Harris had been brought on as bowling coach for the tour of New Zealand earlier this year.”We had some incredibly strong candidates apply for the role and it was a tough decision, but Ben thoroughly deserves the opportunity having already had such a positive impact in his previous stint with the side,” Oliver said.”He’s played a key role in developing what is a world-class bowling group and with over a decade of high-level coaching experience, Ben is a great addition who will complement Matthew, Shelley [Nitschke] and the support staff.”Australia are due to return to international action on September 19 with the first of three ODIs against India before a day-night Test at the WACA starting on September 30.

He was initially appointed only for the Zimbabwe tour, and is due to return to coaching the Cape Cobras

Mohammad Isam26-Jul-2021The BCB wants to extend former South Africa batter Ashwell Prince’s contract as batting consultant up to this year’s T20 World Cup. ESPNcricinfo understands, however, that Prince is yet to agree to the BCB’s new offer.Prince was initially roped in only for Bangladesh’s tour of Zimbabwe, which concluded on Sunday, with the understanding that he would return to coaching the South African domestic side Cape Cobras.According to Akram Khan, the BCB’s cricket operations chairman, the BCB remains satisfied with Prince’s work in Zimbabwe after having received positive feedback from some of the players during the tour.”We had appointed him for the Zimbabwe series initially,” Khan said. “Since it will be hard to get a coach before the T20 World Cup, we took a bit of feedback and it has been generally positive. I think some of our batsmen did really well in Zimbabwe. Some of the players told us that they have confidence in him. They are satisfied with his work.”So we plan to go ahead with him. We can confirm that he is with us till the T20 World Cup. We will take on a decision on his further involvement (after the World Cup) over the course of the next week.”ESPNcricinfo has learned, however, that negotiations between the BCB and Prince are still ongoing, contrary to Khan’s statement.Related

• Ashwell Prince takes over as full-time Bangladesh batting coach

• England's 2021 tour of Bangladesh pushed to March 2023

• 'We want to play on good wickets since that's what we'll face at T20 World Cup' – Russell Domingo

• BCB prepared for delayed start to home T20Is against Australia

• Liton Das ruled out of Australia series

After the first day’s play during Bangladesh’s one-off Test in Zimbabwe, at the end of which wicketkeeper-batter Liton Das had scored 95, Prince hailed Das for breaking through the concentration barrier, following which Das too acknowledged Prince’s contribution just before play began the next day.Shortly after taking the role, Prince had said that since his job was only restricted to one tour, he would look to stay out of the way of the batters and instead only look to help out Russell Domingo, the head coach.Prince had joined the Bangladesh coaching staff alongside former Sri Lanka spinner Rangana Herath, who was appointed spin-bowling coach until the T20 World Cup. Prince’s potential extension gives Bangladesh’s coaches some stability going into a busy season, which includes T20Is against Australia, England and New Zealand, and culminates with the T20 World Cup that begins in mid-October.GMT 1645 The story was amended when ESPNcricinfo learned that Prince was yet to accept the BCB’s offer.

R Ashwin closes in on top-ranked Pat Cummins among Test bowlers after picking up eight wickets in Mumbai

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Dec-2021Ajaz Patel, who became only the third bowler in the history of Test cricket to pick up all ten wickets in an innings, against India in Mumbai, has risen to No. 38 following a match haul of 14 for 225. New Zealand still lost the Test by a record 372 runs, and India opener Mayank Agarwal, the Player of the Match for innings of 150 and 62, has jumped 30 positions to No. 11, just one off a career-high tenth spot.For Ajaz, who emulated Jim Laker and Anil Kumble at the Wankhede, it meant a gain of 23 spots; his previous highest was No. 53, and he had started the two-Test series against India, which New Zealand lost 1-0, at 62nd place. He picked up a total of 17 wickets in the series.As for Agarwal, his previous best rankings of No. 10 came back in November 2019, after he had scored 243 against Bangladesh in Indore in what was his eighth Test.

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R Ashwin was named Player of the Series for his tally of 14 wickets in two Tests, to go with 70 runs across three innings. Ashwin, No. 2 on the bowlers’ chart behind Pat Cummins, has now moved within 25 points of the Australian quick, his 883 rating points well clear of third-placed Josh Hazlewood, who has 816 points.Cummins, however, has started the Ashes series with a bang, returning 5 for 38 on the opening day of the first Test in Brisbane as England rolled over for 147. Hazlewood hasn’t done badly either, picking up 2 for 42.4:11

Daniel Vettori: Ajaz Patel haul is greatest individual feat in NZ Test cricket

Ashwin has also moved up one place to No. 2 among allrounders. Jason Holder is top of the tally there, while Ravindra Jadeja has dropped from second to fourth, with Ben Stokes between him and Ashwin. Holder, meanwhile, has also moved up one spot to the 14th place among bowlers at the end of the second Galle Test against Sri Lanka, which the home side won by 164 runs to complete a 2-0 series win.Among the others to gain at the end of the India vs New Zealand series were Shubman Gill, up 21 places to 45th, and Daryl Mitchell, up 26 places to No. 78, on the batters’ table, and Mohammed Siraj, who moved up four spots to 41st in the bowlers’ list.Following the Sri Lanka vs West Indies series, three batters made significant gains: Dhananjaya de Silva, whose 155* was the highlight of Sri Lanka’s win in the first Test, moved up 12 places to No. 21, Kraigg Brathwaite went up ten places to 39th, and Nkrumah Bonner was up 17 places to 42nd.Of the bowlers in action, Sri Lanka spinners Lasith Embuldeniya (up five slots to No. 32) and Ramesh Mendis (up 18 places to 39th) made big gains.

Mominul Haque and Liton Das made New Zealand bowlers toil on the day as the visitors went 73 runs ahead

Mohammad Isam03-Jan-2022Stumps Bangladesh batted with firmness and purpose to dominate New Zealand on the third day of the Mount Maunganui Test. The visitors went to stumps on 401 for 6, leading by 73 runs, the first time they have done so batting second outside Asia.Captain Mominul Haque was the top scorer with 88, having struck 12 fours in his 244-ball knock as stayed at the crease for over six hours. Mominul added 158 runs for the fifth wicket with Liton Das, who made 86 off 177 deliveries.Their fifties came after Mahmudul Hasan Joy, playing just his second Test, made a diligent 78, adding 104 for the second wicket with Najmul Hossain Shanto, who made 64. Also, Monday was the first time each of Bangladesh top six batters faced more than 50 balls in an away Test innings.Bangladesh’s 156 overs batted is their most in a Test innings outside Asia, as the home side’s bowling attack felt the full toll of the visitors’ heightened discipline. Neil Wagner and Trent Boult took three wickets each but Kyle Jamieson, Tim Southee and Rachin Ravindra went wicketless in their 88 overs combined.The foundation for Bangladesh’s fine day of batting was laid in the first two sessions. After adding only 45 runs till the lunch break, they scored more freely in the second session. They added a further 87 runs in 26 overs, going wicketless. Both Mominul and Litton reached their fifties post lunch.Liton Das and Mominul Haque put up a century stand•Getty Images

They went chanceless too, but there were uncomfortable moments when Mominul was struck on the elbow and when he edged in front of Ross Taylor at third slip. It was harder for the left-hander during the first session when he was dropped on 8 by Jamieson off his bowling, and then caught behind on 9 off a no-ball by Wagner.Mominul and Mushfiqur Rahim batted 18.2 overs to add just 19 runs, the slowest partnership when the two Bangladesh batters have combined to face 100-plus balls. Earlier, Joy fell for 78 when Wagner had him caught at gully, while Boult clean bowled Mushfiqur shortly before the lunch break.Liton freed up the situation when he struck two fours shortly after coming to the crease, and then attacked the New Zealand bowlers whenever necessary for most of the next two sessions. He used the pace well, guiding the ball with late cuts and square-cuts as well as driven fours.Mominul too drove the ball well, hitting four cover drives for boundaries, as well as a few flicks and clips through midwicket. He also used the pace well to hit fours behind the stumps.Boult removed both Mominul and Litton in the space of three overs. He finally broke the fifth-wicket stand when he trapped Mominul lbw for 88. A few overs later, Litton followed him to the dressing room after he chased a wide one from Boult.There was still no respite following that for New Zealand as Yasir Ali and Mehidy Hasan Miraz batted out the remaining 11.1 overs without much fuss.

India slide after Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli fifties to end up 32 short of 297 target

Saurabh Somani19-Jan-20223:18

Cullinan: South Africa had better ‘all-round’ ODI approach; India lacked fight

A sparkling century from Rassie van der Dussen was complemented by a well-paced one from Temba Bavuma, as South Africa cantered to a 31-run win over India in the first ODI of a three-match series.van der Dussen joined Bavuma when South Africa were 68 for 3 in the 18th over, but they shrugged off that rickety start to eventually drive the team 296 for 4 on a slow Boland Park pitch. India were on track in the first half of their chase, particularly when Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan were batting together in a 92-run stand for the second wicket, but the innings withered after they both fell.Bavuma and van der Dussen had put on 204 runs in just 183 balls, conquering bowlers and conditions. In particular, van der Dussen’s knock took the first innings, and it turned out the match, away from India. In the end, he remained unconquered on an ODI best 129 off just 96 balls. His innings included four hits over the fence and nine to it, with more than half his runs coming via running between the wickets – this on a day when the heat was sapping. In the final over of South Africa’s innings, van der Dussen was often down on his haunches to gather his breath. It was his batting that left those watching breathless though.Related

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He got off the blocks quickly, injecting much-needed momentum into the innings, using sweeps and reverse sweeps to devastating effect against the spin duo of Yuzvendra Chahal and R Ashwin. The feature of van der Dussen’s innings was how he took the pitch out of the equation. Till his arrival, scoring had been laborious. But his use of the square boundaries, and ability to capitalise on the slightest errors in length, meant the innings found a new gear.Bavuma had a head start on his innings and got to his century first, with a single off Shardul Thakur in the 45th over. At the start of the 48th over, van der Dussen got to his own hundred with a flick to fine leg.The heat in Paarl saw the Indian bowling also wilt after a good start, as van der Dussen continued to go full throttle. Bavuma, who was on 23 off 45 when van der Dussen joined him and later on 28 off 53, gradually picked up his pace too. He made 82 from the last 90 balls he faced, playing an able foil to van der Dussen. By the time he had holed out to become Jasprit Bumrah’s second wicket, he had made 110 off 143.India’s bowling had begun well. Bumrah got Janneman Malan nicking behind, and the returning Ashwin – playing his first ODI since 2017 – castled Quinton de Kock with a quicker one. When Aiden Markram ran himself out via a direct hit from debutant Venkatesh Iyer at mid-off, India seemed well in control.Aiden Markram sent back KL Rahul•Gallo Images

However, the van der Dussen and Bavuma rebuilding plus counterattack left India looking a bit ragged. There were several mis-fields and overthrows too, which eased any pressure that was built up.KL Rahul, captaining India for the first time, didn’t have an outing to remember. He never went to his sixth bowling option Venkatesh, and had used up eight overs each of Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar by the time the innings was 40 overs old. Eventually, 86 runs came off the final ten overs, including a 17-run final over by Shardul Thakur.When Rahul came out to open the innings, he treated Markram’s part-time offspin with exaggerated caution. Markram bowled six overs on the trot after taking the new ball. Rahul had opted to play him out safely rather than attack, but that approach didn’t pay dividends either when he poked Markram behind to de Kock.That led to India’s best phase in the chase, with Dhawan scoring freely and Kohli building busily. During that period, the target looked within reach, with both men looking in control. However, a sharply turning ball from Keshav Maharaj spun into the Dhawan, past the inside half of his bat and onto his stumps as he was shaping to cut, and Kohli top-edged Tabraiz Shamsi to midwicket three overs later. From 138 for 1 in the 26th over, India’s slide was steady. Thakur, coming in at No. 8, belted a maiden ODI fifty and was unbeaten on 50 off 43 balls, but his hits only served to lessen the margin of defeat.

Cricket Australia confirms it will now enter into confidential discussions with Langer over his future

Alex Malcolm04-Feb-2022Justin Langer’s future as Australia’s men’s coach remains in the balance after an eight-hour Cricket Australia board meeting on Friday yielded no formal conclusion on his contract status.At the end of the lengthy meeting which covered a number of agenda items, CA CEO Nick Hockley emerged to read a written statement to reporters telling them that CA will now enter confidential discussions with Langer.”Cricket Australia can confirm that the CA board met today and part of that meeting involved significant discussions about men’s head coach Justin Langer’s contract,” Hockley said.”We will now enter into confidential discussions with Justin and the outcome will be announced as soon as possible.”Hockley declined to take any questions on the matter. Langer is currently in Melbourne but is due to fly home to Perth on Saturday and undertake 14 days of home quarantine. He will not coach Australia’s T20I side for the upcoming five-match series against Sri Lanka starting in Sydney on February 11 with the reins being handed to senior assistant Andrew McDonald.Langer has been left to stew on his unresolved contract situation having not been able to fly home since the end of the men’s Ashes. He has had several meetings with Hockley and Australia’s head of national teams Ben Oliver since the Hobart Test.But this was the first board meeting since that date. Speculation has been building after Australia’s two men’s captains, Test skipper Pat Cummins, and limited-overs skipper Aaron Finch baulked at endorsing the coach to continue beyond his current contract.Despite the success of the team, claiming the T20 World Cup and the Ashes in four months, angst remains over Langer’s coaching style with last August’s crisis meetings about Langer’s intensity still fresh in the minds of the players who pleaded for change.Langer has been left perplexed and frustrated by the process, adamant that he has made the necessary adjustments the players had asked for which has led to the recent success.There was also no news who would be CA’s new permanent chairman following the resignation of Earl Eddings last year. A decision on the chairman was one of the other key agenda items at today’s board meeting that appears to have been swamped by Langer’s contract discussions.One agenda item that was ticked off was Australia’s upcoming tour of Pakistan with the dates for the three-format tour locked in. The dates will overlap with the IPL leaving some players and coaches involved in Australia’s tour unavailable for at least the 10 days of the tournament.

Both teams are coming off a lean trot in T20Is, but the visitors like the format, while the hosts don’t

Mohammad Isam02-Mar-2022

Big picture

Afghanistan will be happy with action shifting to the two-match T20I series that begins in Dhaka on Thursday, but Bangladesh might feel differently; they have started to dread the format in recent times. Bangladesh have lost their last eight T20Is, and although Afghanistan didn’t cover themselves in glory in the T20 World Cup last year, everyone agrees that they love T20s, and they have the personnel for it.This time, Afghanistan have a new-look side after dropping a number of senior cricketers, most notably, Mohammad Shahzad, Gulbadin Naib, Hamid Hassan and Hashmatullah Shahidi. They have made way for, among others, Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai and Nijat Masood. Asghar Afghan has also retired, which leaves more responsibility on the shoulders of senior pros Mohammad Nabi and Najibullah Zadran.With Naveen-ul-Haq also absent, they will also have a new-look pace attack, with Karim Janat and Omarzai in the mix as the allrounders. Their main strength, as always, will be the spin trio of Rashid Khan, Nabi and Mujeeb Ur Rahman, and now they also have Qais Ahmad, who did well in the BPL.Bangladesh have returned to some of their T20 World Cup players, including Litton Das and Shakib Al Hasan. While Shakib was out with an injury recently, Litton was dropped after the World Cup, perhaps unfairly. They will still be without Mushfiqur Rahim though, who’s out of at least the first match with a “contusion of the right thumb”. “He will be under observation of the medical team and will be assessed on Friday before a decision is made regarding his availability for the second and final match of the series,” as per a BCB statement.*The selectors have included Munim Shahriar, the big-hitting opener who made a good first impression in this season’s BPL.But getting rid of Shamim Hossain and Nurul Hasan does seem hasty, given that they were growing into the finishers’ role. That will now go back to Mahmudullah, who would expect Yasir Ali and Afif Hossain to help him out in the last few overs.How Bangladesh shape their pace attack might be interesting too. They may want to look at Taskin Ahmed and Shoriful Islam up front, with Mustafizur Rahman the floater, so to say, to attack Rahmanullah Gurbaz, but that could be at the cost of an extra batter.

Form guide

Bangladesh LLLLL (Last five completed matches; most recent first)

Afghanistan LLWLWAfghanistan’s bowling plans will revolve around Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi, as well as Mujeeb Ur Rahman•AFP/Getty Images

In the spotlight

The big-hitting Rahmanullah Gurbaz struck his third ODI hundred earlier this week. Gurbaz’s 180.51 strike rate in this season’s PSL adds to Afghanistan’s top-order firepower that already includes Hazratullah Zazai and newcomer Rasooli. Gurbaz prefers to hit the ball down the ground but he has also shown his willingness to launch into pull shots and the square cut.

Team news

Shakib and Litton will slot into the XI, while Shahriar could make his international debut. Mushfiqur Rahim picked up a finger injury during training on Wednesday and will miss the match. Nurul Hasan* was added to the squad overnight and could come in straightaway.Bangladesh (probable): 1 Litton Das, 2 Munim Shahriar, 3 Shakib Al Hasan, 4 Nurul Hasan (wk), 5 Mahmudullah (capt), 6 Yasir Ali, 7 Afif Hossain, 8 Mahedi Hasan, 9 Taskin Ahmed, 10 Nasum Ahmed, 11 Mustafizur RahmanRasooli and Omarzai could make their T20I debuts looking at how Afghanistan have been looking at making changes and giving their team a fresh look.Afghanistan (probable): 1 Hazratullah Zazai, 2 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 3 Darwish Rasooli, 4 Najibullah Zadran, 5 Mohammad Nabi (capt), 6 Azmatullah Omarzai, 7 Karim Janat, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 10 Fazalhaq Farooqi, 11 Farid Ahmed

Pitch and conditions

It will be interesting to see if the Shere Bangla National Stadium’s curator Gamini Silva avoids laying out a turner, something he is used to doing even for T20s. Chattogram had a grassy pitch that worked against the Afghanistan spinners, so Dhaka could also go that way. Dry weather is forecast.

Stats and trivia

• Afghanistan have won four of their six T20Is against Bangladesh.
• Mahmudullah is 29 runs away from becoming the first Bangladesh batter to reach 2000 runs in T20Is. Shakib, who holds the record for most wickets in the format, is 106 runs away from 2000 runs.

*

Jamie Overton tops 90mph/145kph at The Oval, according to new speed-gun data

Matt Roller27-Apr-2022The leading fast bowlers on the county circuit are having their speeds tracked in the early stages of the Championship season as the ECB’s scouting and talent identification department look to improve the quality of data available before players are selected for England.While bowling coaches can use handheld guns that measure bowling speeds from a short distance away in training, it has historically been unusual for them to be recorded in county cricket outside of televised games.But this summer, the ECB are using three ‘radar’ speed guns – similar to those used in baseball – to track the speeds of England-qualified fast bowlers around the country.Related

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Last week, they were in use at The Oval – where Jamie Overton was clocked at a top speed above 90mph/145kph – as well as Wantage Road and Edgbaston. The ECB believes that there is a difference of around 3mph between bowlers’ speeds as measured by the radar guns and those used in televised games, meaning Overton’s true top speed may have been even higher.As well as fast bowlers’ average and top speeds, ECB scouts will take interest in the drop-off in pace during and between spells, which will help illustrate a player’s ability to sustain their top speeds across a four-day game.The data will also enable batters’ ability against high-pace bowlers to be evaluated more accurately, rather than relying on first-hand scouting reports or speeds from televised white-ball games.In the longer term, the ECB is working on a project to introduce ball-tracking technology in all county cricket, which it believes will be a major breakthrough for scouting and talent identification.That would involve umpires wearing small, GoPro-style cameras on their coats or hats, with trials held in ‘best vs best’ age-group fixtures at the high-performance centre at Loughborough last year.

Video analyst Sherullah Afghan and physio Dr. Sifatullah Wardak have returned to Afghanistan, and are set to be reemployed by the board

Umar Farooq16-May-2022Two out of four Afghanistan team members from the 2022 Under-19 World Cup touring party returned to the country three months after staying back in England with a view to seeking asylum in the wake of the Taliban takeover of the country. ESPNcricinfo understands both have been accepted back by the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) and are likely to be reemployed by the board.Afghanistan finished fourth at the Under-19 World Cup in the Caribbean, three places higher than in 2020. While returning from Antigua, the team had a scheduled stopover in London. While the rest of the Afghanistan squad, including the coaching and support staff, boarded their flight from London, four members of the travelling party decided to stay on at Heathrow with a view to seeking asylum.”There were three officials and one player [who stayed on in London], with video analyst Sherullah Afghan and physio Dr. Sifatullah Wardak among them, but those two have decided to return to Kabul,” ACB chief executive Naseeb Khan told ESPNcricinfo. “It was not the first time that people in our country stayed in other countries in various ways or were smuggled out of the country. I am pleased that our technical staff has returned to the ACB, and I warmly welcome them.”Their presence shows that security in Afghanistan is improving day by day and that the ACB has overcome the challenges it faced in the early days of the regime change. I hope those young people who have left the country return, as there are several possibilities for them to serve their country on various occasions. The doors are open for all Afghans.”Both officials met with the ACB’s top brass at the board headquarters in Kabul as the duo admitted that they preferred to return to serve their cricket. “Afghanistan needs manpower in technical aspects, so we decided to return back and work in our very own country because there is peace and prosperity in the country, so the priority must be given to Afghanistan,” Wardak said in a statement.ACB chairman Mirwais Ashraf confirmed that both will be given employment. “The game has spread to all parts of the country,” said Ashraf. “The country is in need of technical staff and capacities, so everyone must strive hard to work for the country.”Immediately after Taliban took over the country last August, hundreds of Afghans including at least one former president, bureaucrats, sportspersons and civilians left. Since the takeover, the cricket board has been reshuffled extensively, and the working structure was revamped. Former allrounder Ashraf was brought in as the new chairman.Despite being a Full Member country, availing visas has become progressively tougher for Afghan cricketers and support staff, especially in the aftermath of the Taliban establishing a government. To alleviate the problem and expedite visas, the ACB has decided to procure UAE residency visas for nearly two dozen players and officials. The residence visas will allow the players and officials to stay in the UAE for longer periods of time while also ensuring they are able to apply for visas without physically needing to be present in Afghanistan.Afghanistan’s next tour is against Ireland in Belfast in August, with the ACB in the process of procuring UK visas.

Warne’s Order of Australia also reflected his charity and philanthropic work

ESPNcricinfo staff and AAP13-Jun-2022Australia captain Meg Lanning and the late Shane Warne have been recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.Lanning, who has led Australia to consecutive T20 World Cup titles and most recently the ODI World Cup, has been awarded Member (AM) in the General Division for significant service to women’s cricket at the elite level.Since taking on the Australian captaincy in 2014 when she was 21, Lanning has overall won three T20 World Cup titles as well as three Ashes victories in 2015, 2019 and 2021-22 (she missed 2017-18 due to injury) and been in charge of a record-breaking 26-match ODI winning streak. She is comfortably Australia’s leading run-scorer in T20Is and closing in on the same landmark in ODIs.Warne, who died aged 52 on March 4 when he suffered a heart attack in Thailand, has been posthumously appointed an Order of Australia (AO) for distinguished service to cricket as a player, role model and commentator, to the community through charitable initiatives, and for philanthropic contributions.Warne’s extraordinary feats on the field – which brought him 1,001 international wickets – put him among the greatest to have ever played the game, but this honour also reflects his broader impact on the game and wider society.In 2020, Warne auctioned his baggy green to raise money for bushfire victims and it fetched over AUD$1 million – a record price paid for an item of Australian sports memorabilia.There was also the Shane Warne Foundation, which raised AUD$7.8 million to support ill and underprivileged children in Australia for a dozen years before closing.But other organisations quietly benefited from Warne’s philanthropy. He was a benefactor for My Room Children’s Cancer Charity. And a long-time supporter of Challenge, which also helped kids with cancer.Warne donated memorabilia and made voluntary appearances at fundraising events for a range of charities including Elton John AIDS Foundation, Australian Red Cross, Scope and the Small Steps Project.And his reach extended beyond Australia, with support for the 2011 Christchurch earthquake recovery and contributions to the rebuilding of the town of Galle in Sri Lanka and its cricket stadium following the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami.Warne also supported various UN development programs including the Lion’s Share wildlife fund. The UN announced the establishment of a conservation grant in his name after his death.Other cricketers to be honoured as Member (AM) in the General Division were Doug Walters, the former allrounder who played 74 Tests, and former Australia captain Muriel Picton who played seven Tests between 1961 and 1969.”We are enormously proud to see Australian women’s captain Meg Lanning recognised in today’s Honour List,” Cricket Australia CEO Nick Hockley said. “Her leadership and performances have been central to the outstanding success of our women’s team.”Shane Warne was one of the most talented and charismatic cricketers the world has ever seen and we are reminded today of the indelible legacy he created both on and off the field.”Muriel Picton and Doug Walters both hold a special place in Australian cricket and we are delighted that they have been recognised today as Members of the General Division.”