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Allrounder was due to play Birmingham Phoenix’s final two group games but has been withdrawn

Matt Roller12-Aug-2024The ECB have pulled Chris Woakes out of the final week of the Hundred “due to the management of his workload” ahead of England’s Test series against Sri Lanka next week.Woakes was initially expected to play Birmingham Phoenix’s final two group-stage matches in the Hundred, against Trent Rockets (Monday) and Manchester Originals (Thursday), both at Edgbaston. But the Phoenix announced on Monday that he had been made “unavailable for the remainder of the competition”.England denied that Woakes’ withdrawal from the Hundred is linked to the hamstring injury that Ben Stokes, their Test captain, suffered while playing for Northern Superchargers on Sunday night, indicating that the decision had been made before that match. But if Stokes is ruled out of the Sri Lanka series as anticipated, Woakes is likely to play a greater role as England’s main allrounder.Stokes is due to undergo a scan on his hamstring on Tuesday after limping off the field and retiring hurt during the Superchargers’ win over Manchester Originals on Sunday night. He ended the night on crutches and Harry Brook, the Superchargers’ captain, said that the injury “doesn’t look great” ahead of England’s Test series against Sri Lanka, which starts in Manchester on August 21.Related

• Gus Atkinson pulled out of Hundred final by ECB

• Sri Lanka face fight to save game in only tour match before England Tests

• Hamstring tear rules Ben Stokes out of summer, aiming for Pakistan tour

• 'Tired' pitches to blame for low scores in men's Hundred, says Lewis Gregory

• Stokes injury overshadows Pooran heroics in Northern Derby

The uncapped Jordan Cox is England’s spare batter, with Dan Lawrence set to replace the injured Zak Crawley at the top of the order, and could replace Stokes at No. 6 if they opt to pick only four main bowling options. Alternatively, Jamie Smith and Woakes could shuffle up to No. 6 and 7 respectively, with Matthew Potts or Olly Stone replacing Stokes and batting at No. 8.None of England’s frontline bowlers from their final two Tests against West Indies have played in the Hundred this year. Gus Atkinson has been with the Oval Invincibles squad but has not been selected, while neither Shoaib Bashir nor Mark Wood has a deal in the competition. Bashir has only been selected once by Somerset in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup, while Wood has not featured for Durham.Stokes is not the only England player who has been injured playing in the Hundred this year. Dillon Pennington, an unused member of the Test squad against West Indies, bowled five balls for Northern Superchargers in their win against Oval Invnicibles then pulled up with a hamstring injury which has ruled him out for the season.Meanwhile, Ian Bell is due to link up with Sri Lanka as part of their coaching staff during their series against England. Bell has been working closely with Smith during the Hundred at Birmingham Phoenix: “He’s reminded me a few times that he’s going to be in the opposite camp in this series,” Smith told Sky Sports ahead of Monday night’s game.

Hefty total backed up by four-fors for D’Oliveira, Brown

ECB Reporters Network02-Jun-2023Worcestershire 226 for 5 (Bracewell 55, Hose 51*) beat Nottinghamshire 170 (Hales 71, D’Oliveira 4-11 Brown 4-25) by 56 runsWorcestershire Rapids made it four wins from four matches in the Vitality Blast after their 226 for five – the second highest total in their history in the T20 format – proved way too many for North Group rivals Notts Outlaws at Trent Bridge, who lost by 56 runs.Michael Bracewell (55), Adam Hose (51 not out), Brett D’Oliveira (44) and Jack Haynes (42) were the chief beneficiaries as a depleted Outlaws attack were largely taken apart after opting to bowl first on a good pitch, only skipper Steven Mullaney (two for 28) emerging with credit as injured trio Jake Ball, Olly Stone and Luke Fletcher were badly missed.Nott coach Peter Moores admitted: “We are struggling without three frontline bowlers and that hurt us tonight. Having said that we didn’t play well, which is frustrating because we lost control of the game right from the start. Steven Mullaney and Matt Carter bowled well on a really good pitch but the other lads didn’t quite get it right.”Alex Hales led a positive powerplay on the way to 71 from 35 balls and Shaheen Afridi provided some late excitement with four sixes in the same over but with D’Oliveira claiming a career-best four for 11 from his two overs of leg spin and Pat Brown four for 25 the Outlaws, who would have needed to make their biggest score chasing, were never really contenders.Rapids piled up a massive 87 without loss in the six powerplay overs, D’Oliveira setting the pace with 44 from 20 balls, Bracewell not far behind with 38 from 17. Both cleared the ropes twice.The pair put on 98 in 41 balls for the first wicket, although Bracewell had a let-off on six when chipping Afridi to short midwicket, where Colin Munro stretched an arm above his head but could only push the ball behind him. That came during an eventful over that saw the Pakistan star visibly aggrieved over a no-ball call for having too many fielders outside the ring, his mood not helped when the extra ball flew off the edge of Bracewell’s bat for four.A breakthrough for the Outlaws arrived when D’Oliveira holed out to deep square leg off Samit Patel in the seventh over, after which two wickets in consecutive overs hinted at a fightback as Bracewell was bowled making room to cut and Mitchell Santner, back from the IPL to start a third stint with the Rapids, gave Mullaney an easy caught-and-bowled.But at 125 for three in the 11th, Jack Haynes was joined by Adam Hose to add another 53 from 22 balls, the former cracking a couple of slog-swept maximums before Matt Montgomery completed a fine catch on the run at deep extra cover to end his progress on 42 from 25 balls.Mullaney, easily the pick of the Outlaws bowlers, conceded only two from the 17th but the last three overs saw Afridi and Conor McKerr surrender another 41 for the solitary wicket of Kashif Ali as Hose finished 51 not out from 27 balls with three fours and four sixes, two off McKerr in the penultimate over and an audacious scoop for another off Afridi in the last.Needing more than 11 runs per over to go close to the Rapids’ total, the Outlaws were comfortably ahead of that with 76 on the board from the powerplay, although they lost one of their key weapons when Joe Clarke, after an escape on 17, was caught at short fine leg for 25 off 16 balls.Hales was finding the gaps in the field with ominous regularity, reaching his third fifty of this season’s Blast in 21 balls with two sixes, carved over extra cover off Adam Finch and off-spinner Bracewell, as well as seven fours, but a couple of tight overs from Bracewell and Santner’s left-arm spin brought the first element of scoreboard pressure and yielded a dividend for the Rapids when their former team-mate Colin Munro, another who might have done some serious damage, skied one off Brown to be caught at long on.Two more wickets lost in the next over, as new Montgomery and Tom Moores both found fielders in their efforts to put the pressure back on the visiting side against D’Oliveira’s leg spin, left the Outlaws 99 for four after 10 overs with Hales seemingly now their only hope of making a game of it.But he lost more partners when Bracewell bowled Lyndon James and Mullaney was caught on the extra cover boundary by a diving Hose off D’Oliveira, Hales departing in the same over, throwing everything into a similar shot but falling to a superb catch, again by Hose, who parried the ball above the rope and caught it as it dropped.Afridi’s four sixes off one Bracewell over provided a flurry of late entertainment but he, Samit Patel and Matt Carter predictably perished in their desperate pursuit of runs as the Outlaws were bowled out for 170 in the 19th over.

Pakistan veteran Mohammad Hafeez and Zimbabwe allrounder Sikandar Raza are also in the mix

Shashank Kishore15-Mar-2022Hanuma Vihari and Abhimanyu Easwaran are among seven Indian players who are taking part, for varying durations, in the ongoing Dhaka Premier League (DPL), Bangladesh’s only List A (50-over) competition. The others are Parvez Rasool, Baba Aparajith, Ashok Menaria, Chirag Jani and Gurinder Singh. All of them were unsold at the February auction ahead of IPL 2022.Vihari, who was a part of India’s Test XI, which completed a 2-0 sweep over Sri Lanka in Mohali and Bengaluru, will head home to Hyderabad for a short break before traveling to Dhaka. He is expected to join his team, Abahani Limited, later this week. He will miss the first three games of the season for the team, and Afghanistan middle-order batter Najibullah Zadran has been signed up by the club for those games.Easwaran, captain of the Bengal first-class side in India’s domestic circuit and also on the fringes of the national Test side, which he has been with as a reserve in recent times, will turn out for Prime Bank. Rasool will play for Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi, Aparajith for Rupganj Tigers, Menaria for Khelaghar, Jani for Legends of Rupganj, and Gurinder for Gazi Group Cricketers.Vihari, Easwaran, Aparajith, Menaria and Rasool aren’t strangers to the DPL, having taken part in it before Covid-19 struck in 2019-2020. Other prominent Indian players, like Dinesh Karthik, Manoj Tiwary and Yusuf Pathan, have also played in the DPL in the past.This season, all the participating teams have been allowed one overseas player. Apart from the Indians, Pakistan veteran Mohammad Hafeez will play for Mohammedan Sporting and Zimbabwe allrounder Sikandar Raza will turn out for Shinepukur.The premier Bangladeshi cricketers are on tour in South Africa•AFP

Traditionally a 50-overs tournament, the DPL was tweaked to a T20 format last year to give national players game time in preparation for the T20 World Cup in late 2021. That was also the only year when no foreign players were brought in.The DPL features 11 teams, which will play each other once in a round-robin format. The top six teams then play each other in the Super League once. The bottom two teams from the league phase will be relegated to Dhaka’s first division league.The addition of several overseas players adds some heft to a competition that will largely be devoid of local star power, as the national team is currently in South Africa preparing for three ODIs and two Tests. With the tour set to end on April 12, it’s likely the country’s top players will only be available for the last two weeks of the competition.April to September is typically seen as a free window for India’s domestic players that don’t have IPL teams. While some head to Bangladesh for the DPL, some others, like Faiz Fazal, have featured in club cricket in the UK. This season, too, Cheteshwar Pujara will play for Sussex in the English county circuit.This year, the BCCI is in the process of concluding the first phase – league and one pre-quarter-final – of a truncated Ranji Trophy, with the knockouts scheduled for June, after the IPL.

Fast bowler emboldened by displays from Archer, Nortje, Rabada in the UAE this year

Andrew Miller03-Nov-2020Mark Wood says he is looking forward to spending more time out in the middle and less time “counting pictures on the walls”, after being named in both squads for England’s forthcoming limited-overs tour of South Africa – a trip on which he hopes to reaffirm the value of raw pace in T20I cricket, following the stand-out performances of Jofra Archer, Anrich Nortje and Kagiso Rabada at this year’s IPL.Wood, 30, endured a frustrating home summer in 2020, in which he featured in just the first of England’s six Tests against West Indies and Pakistan, and was subsequently overlooked for a Test contract at end of September. Addressing that issue last week, he warned that he may have to consider becoming a white-ball specialist in order to manage his priorities in the latter part of his career, especially given his long history of ankle injuries.However, speaking at the launch of #Funds4Runs, a new ECB and LV= grassroots initiative, Wood insisted he was relishing the return to England bubble life – with the players set to arrive in South Africa on November 17 ahead of three T20Is and three ODIs from November 27 to December 9 – and that he was still committed to all three formats despite missing out on a red-ball deal, particularly with England’s next Ashes tour looming in just under 12 months’ time.”I obviously love playing for England,” Wood said. “But at the minute, that’s the route they’ve gone down, and I’ll have to prove again that, if selected, I can do the business. Hopefully in the future the rewards come, and if they don’t, then I’ll reassess and see where my cricket lies.”I’d like to play all three formats, but [white-ball only] is something in the future I might have to think about,” he added. “Looking at my body … I’ve got a young family, spending time away from home … things like that. But growing up, I always wanted to play for England across all formats, no matter what it was, so I’m still trying to chase that dream.”Although there was never much doubt that Wood would get the call for South Africa, he did admit to a degree of relief when the selection was announced, given that his last white-ball display in the country, back in February, didn’t go entirely to plan. Coming off the back of his successful return to the Test team, in which he was named player of the match after a rapid nine-wicket display in the series decider at Johannesburg, Wood’s four wickets in the T20Is came at a cost of almost two runs a ball as he struggled to make the adjustment from red ball to white.”Sometimes you have to sacrifice little bits of training because, if you’re solely focused on one format, then you can put all your effort into that,” Wood said. “I didn’t bowl well in South Africa last time, so I’ve got a point to prove this time and, hopefully, I can keep up with the battle-hardened players that have been in the IPL.”Few are as battle-hardened as the trio of quicks who have lit up the tournament in the UAE. With a focus on speed over variations at this year’s event, Rabada and Nortje have formed an at-times irresistible alliance for Delhi Capitals in their run to the play-offs, claiming 25 and 19 wickets respectively, while Archer has taken 20 wickets at an economy rate of 6.55, a return that kept Rajasthan Royals competitive to the bitter end despite them finishing at the foot of the table.And while Wood opted out of any involvement in this year’s IPL, due to his lengthy time in the English summer bubbles, he admits he has half an eye on the next event in the New Year, and recognises that a big performance this winter could well earn him a lucrative call-up, given how in vogue 90mph-plus bowlers currently are.ALSO READ: Archer, Curran, Stokes rested for England ODIs in South Africa“To have two English lads come across, me and Jofra, against the two South African lads in the upcoming series, I think it’ll be quite exciting to see how we both combat each other,” he said. “The game has moved on so much. You need the variations but ultimately, if you get it right at that speed, then it’s hard to deal with. Of course, if you get it wrong at that speed, it can go very wrong, so it is fine margins, but it’s nice to see it’s not just the spinners that can have a massive impact on T20 cricket.”Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje compare notes•BCCI

Wood’s only previous involvement in the IPL was a one-off outing for Chennai Super Kings against Mumbai Indians in the 2018 event – he conceded 49 runs in four wicketless overs and did not feature again. But given that the 2021 IPL may yet have to take place in the UAE as well due to Covid-19, he knows the franchises could yet come calling in the new year.”The pace lads have had a great impact this IPL,” he said. “I had a small chance to go this year but the timings didn’t quite fit. But if it comes around again, I can maybe prove my worth better than the one game I had for Chennai a couple of years ago.”It’s very hard to get into the IPL because there’s so many good local players, never mind international players,” he added. “It is the hardest competition, but if I can get in, it’ll only help me for England as well, because it’s all about pressure situations. Regardless of whether it’s in India or the UAE, it’s still a fantastic competition to be a part of and one which I hope I can be.”However, any such ambition further down the line will doubtless depend on Wood making his mark for England once again, as he braces for a return to life in the bubble.”We were looked after brilliantly in Southampton and Manchester, and I’m sure South Africa will be just the same,” he said. “Mental health is very important, but now we know what it’s going to be about, we can hopefully cope with it. It will help being in sunny weather in a nice hotel, I’m sure, but if we see someone struggling, the support network is there.”I’m ready to go back in, I think,” he added. “Previously it was a bit into the unknown, but you get used to it. I know now what to take, and what will keep us occupied, so I’m looking forward to getting back out there and trying some cricket, and hopefully not counting too many pictures on the walls this time.”#Funds4Runs is a £1million investment pot jointly funded by ECB and LV= General Insurance which will help support grassroots cricket communities impacted by COVID-19. Register your interest at ecb.co.uk/funds4runs or more info at https://www.lv.com/gi/cricket

India’s chief selector also explains that Rishabh Pant and Mayank Agarwal were picked as World Cup replacements on team management’s requests

Vishal Dikshit in Mumbai21-Jul-2019The 3D sequels aren’t over yet. Among the clarifications India’s chief selector MSK Prasad made on Sunday were a couple related to World Cup selections. Prasad stressed the decision to leave out Ambati Rayudu did not have any bias. He also explained why Rishabh Pant and Mayank Agarwal had been picked as replacements for the injured Shikhar Dhawan and Vijay Shankar respectively, and admitted the choices may have seemed “confusing” to people.The Rayudu riddle
The World Cup final hangover may be wearing off but Indian cricket’s obsession with a discarded No. 4 is not. When India’s World Cup squad was announced in April, Rayudu had been left out in favour of Vijay Shankar, with Prasad saying the latter brought “three dimensions” to the side. A day after the announcement, Rayudu in a not-so-cryptic tweet said: “Just ordered a new set of 3d glasses to watch the World Cup.” It was followed by a winking and a smiling emoji. On Sunday, while announcing India’s squads for the West Indies tour, Prasad said he had “really enjoyed” that tweet. “Frankly speaking, it was a lovely tweet, I really enjoyed it. Seriously. It was a very timely one, very sarcastic. it was fantastic one. I don’t know how it struck him.”He also addressed the “emotional” side of Rayudu’s decision to retire from all forms of cricket earlier this month.
Although he had been marked as India’s No. 4 by Virat Kohli last year, the selectors didn’t pick him to go to England even after Vijay Shankar was injured and the team needed replacements. Prasad insisted there was no bias in that decision, and added that his committee had backed Rayudu previously.”First of all, how much emotions have gone through anybody, the same emotions also have gone through the selection committee,” Prasad said on Sunday. “When we pick any player and he does well, we feel so happy for him. Similarly, when someone, out of emotions, goes out in this way, selection committee members also feel for it.”But, having said that, with regard to the decision that was taken, it was devoid of any bias or any favouritism. From the beginning, I have been telling why we have picked Vijay Shankar, why we have picked Rishabh Pant or Mayank Agarwal. Somewhere, it is definitely related to Rayudu’s case also. There’s no second thought, there’s nothing against that.”I will give you a small example on Rayudu. When Rayudu was picked on the basis of the 2017-18 T20 performance, we picked him in the one-day side, there was a lot of criticism but we had some thoughts about him. Subsequently, when he failed a fitness test, this selection committee backed him and we put him through a fitness programme for a month, and we ensured that he comes back fit and comes into the side. Once he came into the side we backed him, but due to certain permutations and combinations of the side, we couldn’t pick him. That doesn’t make this selection committee or me, in person, biased.”I hope you will understand that there was a certain programme that was set to see that Rayudu should come into the side. There’s nothing that we did against any particular person. So how much Rayudu is emotional, we are also emotional. We as ex-cricketers also feel for him. That’s it, that’s what I can say.”Getty Images

Picking Pant for Dhawan, Agarwal for Vijay Shankar
When an inexperienced middle-order batsman replaced an injured opener, and then an uncapped opener took an injured allrounder’s place in India’s World Cup squad, it “baffled” several fans and experts, including Sunil Gavaskar. After the side’s semi-final loss to New Zealand, Gavaskar said a batsman like Rayudu should have been in the squad, since he was among the standbys, and could have handled the crisis of being 24 for 4 in a semi-final better.”It is not the selection committee’s decision. It is the team management which has been asking these things,” Gavaskar had said. “We are not saying you are wrong but at the moment what we are seeing didn’t work out, so we need to know.”Prasad addressed these issues on Sunday, clarifying that Pant and Agarwal had been picked on requests made by the team management.”When Shikhar Dhawan got injured, we had a third opener in KL Rahul. At that juncture, after those two-three matches, we didn’t have a left-hander at the top,” Prasad explained. “Since KL Rahul was going to open, the team management requested for a left-hander and we had no choice other than Pant. We were very clear about that. We know what he is capable of. That’s the reason why we had to bring in a left-hander, which actually confused many people thinking why a middle-order batsman has been picked for an opener.”When Vijay Shankar was injured, again a middle-order player was injured, and an opener was brought in. In a game against England, when KL Rahul was trying for a catch, he had a big fall on the boundary line and he didn’t field for the rest of the innings. There was a medical emergency at that stage whether he will be continuing or not. There was so much of a worry factor. At that juncture, a written communication was given to us that we need a back-up opener.”We looked at some of the openers. Some were not in form, the others were injured. That is why we went for Mayank Agarwal. So that is very clear, no confusion on this. I’m sure by the end of the day all these speculations will be clear.”

Ricky Ponting has suggested that Billy Stanlake can become one of the great Test bowlers and it appears new Australia coach Justin Langer is of the same mind

David Hopps16-May-2018Australian fast bowler Billy Stanlake has been withdrawn from his deal with Yorkshire for the Vitality T20 Blast as he switches his focus to proving that he has a future at Test level.The late change of heart, determined by Cricket Australia and Stanlake’s representatives following Justin Langer’s appointment as head coach, leaves Yorkshire high and dry only a month before the start of the T20 season.It will only heighten the feeling within county cricket that with the game in such flux, and the cricket calendar so crowded, agreements with overseas players can no longer be relied upon.Stanlake, who is centrally contracted by Cricket Australia, sustained a fractured finger playing for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL and only began bowling in the nets again last Friday.But fitness was not an issue for the abandonment of his Yorkshire deal. He has been named in Australia’s squad for five ODIs and one T20 in England from June 13-27, which represents Langer’s first assignment.Langer, it appears, also believes that Stanlake has potential in the red-ball format and the player is also eager to prove his worth in the longer form of the game.Ricky Ponting, the former Australia captain, certainly thinks so, suggesting in February that he “could be one of the all-time great fast bowlers.”So far his injury record has precluded him from making much of an impact – he has managed only two first-class games, the last of them in November 2015, afflicted by serious back injuries and, more uncommonly, an infected toe which came close to amputation.He will now concentrate on a full pre-season with the Queensland Bulls, with an eye on potential Sheffield Shield involvement later in the year.Martyn Moxon, Yorkshire’s director of cricket, was in disconsolate mood when he said: “Cricket Australia got in touch on Friday and have decided on a different strategy for Billy Stanlake.”Now the new Australia coach is in place, they want him to play some different cricket to T20 during the period he was due to be with us. Consequently, they’ve pulled him out of our deal, which is obviously very disappointing for us. We’re not the only county, it would appear, who has been affected by this.”We’ll assess the situation as to whether we go for a replacement or not. We may choose to stick with our own players.”Stanlake was set to play a minimum of 12 matches for Yorkshire, missing the opening two because of Australia commitments but then due to play right through to final group match against Nottinghamshire at Headingley on August 17.

South Africa legspinner Imran Tahir has claimed the top spot in the ODI rankings for bowlers, to go with his No. 1 rank in T20 internationals

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Feb-20170:45

Tahir tops ODI rankings for bowlers for the third time

South Africa legspinner Imran Tahir has claimed the top spot in the ODI rankings for bowlers, to go with his No. 1 rank in T20 internationals. South Africa have also overtaken Australia to become the No. 1 ranked ODI team after their 5-0 whitewash of Sri Lanka at home.Tahir passed New Zealand fast bowler Trent Boult and West Indies spinner Sunil Narine in the ODI charts, after claiming ten wickets at 20 apiece against Sri Lanka. Kagiso Rabada, at No. 7, is the only other South African bowler in the top ten.South Africa batsman Faf du Plessis also achieved a career-high rank in ODIs – climbing seven places to No. 4 – after making 410 runs in five innings against Sri Lanka, at an average of 102 and strike rate of 105. His team-mates Quinton de Kock and Hashim Amla are at No. 5 and 7, while AB de Villiers is at No. 2.After taking a 3-0 lead in the series against Sri Lanka, South Africa were in with a chance of taking the No. 1 spot from Australia because Aaron finch’s side lost the Chappell-Hadlee Series 0-2 in New Zealand.. AB de Villiers’s team duly went on to complete the 5-0 result.

A round-up of the Momentum One Day Cup games played on January 29, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Jan-2016Half-centuries from Andrew Puttick, JP Duminy and Jason Smith gave Cape Cobras the platform for a 68-run win over Dolphins in Cape Town. Cobras, who chose to bat, got off to a good start courtesy Puttick and Stiaan van Zyl (35), who added 116 for the first wicket. Ayavuya Myoli picked up three quick wickets thereafter, and Cobras were 125 for 6 when Puttick was dismissed for a 95-ball 79 (10×4, 1×6). Duminy then resurrected the innings with a 62-ball 68 (4×4, 2×6), putting on 45 with Justin Ontong (20) for the fourth wicket and then 91 with Smith for the sixth. Smith finished unbeaten on a run-a-ball 50 (3×4, 1×6), as Cobras closed on 265 for 7.Dolphins slipped to 31 for 3 in 11 overs, and their chase never really recovered. There were no substantial contributions barring David Miller’s 42 and Ryan McLaren’s 52, as they were bowled out for 197 inside the 45th over. To go with his performance with the bat, Duminy also picked up two wickets with his offspin.A splendid all-round effort from Chris Morris helped Titans complete a comfortable 55-run win against Knights in Benoni. He first blitzed a 16-ball 45, an innings that featured two fours and five sixes, to lift Titans past the 300 mark and then returned figures of 3 for 30 to help bowl Knights out for 246.After being inserted to bat, Quinton de Kock (22) and Henry Davids (65) added an opening stand of 45. However, it was Faf du Plessis’ 72 that anchored the middle overs, steadily building the score in the process. Albie Morkel provided the impetus towards the end with a brisk 40, before Morris struck four consecutive sixes in the final over to lift Titans to 301. Malusi Siboto and Shadley van Schalkwyk picked up two wickets apiece.In the chase, Knights were reduced to 36 for 3 before Rilee Rossouw (62) and Pete van Biljon (32) forged a 87-run stand to keep them in the hunt. However, another clump of wickets fell, which effectively killed the game. Knights were ultimately bowled out in the 47th over, with Morkel and Tabraiz Shamsi contributing with two scalps each.Stephen Cook struck his second century of the tournament to lift Lions to a thrilling four-run win against Warriors in Johannesburg. Chasing 257, Warriors were cruising and required 12 to win off the last two overs before the set-man Christiaan Jonker was dismissed. The penultimate over, bowled by Carmi le Roux, went for just two. Colin Ingram and Jonker compiled fifties to keep Warriors on course in the chase, but Lions regularly chipped away at the wickets.Earlier, it was Cook’s ton that anchored the Lions innings. He formed stands of 69 and 74 with Alviro Petersen (37) and Nicky can den Bergh (45), but momentum was lost with a host of wickets towards the end. Sisanda Magala picked up his third List A five-for to help derail the Lions charge.

Gareth Batty will miss the Friends Life t20 Finals Day after being handed a two-match suspension following the on-pitch spat with Peter Trego during Surrey’s quarter-final against Somerset at The Oval

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Aug-2013Gareth Batty will miss Friends Life t20 Finals Day after being handed a two-match suspension for “appalling” behaviour following the on-pitch spat with Peter Trego during Surrey’s quarter-final against Somerset at The Oval.Batty, the Surrey captain, was found guilty of two level two breaches of the ECB’s code of conduction relating to “inappropriate and deliberate physical contact” and “using language or a gesture that is obscene or of a serious insulting nature”.It means Surrey will be without their captain and frontline one-day spinner for Finals Day on August 17 at Edgbaston, where they have been drawn to face the holders, Hampshire, in the semi-finals. Batty was already fulfilling the captaincy role on an interim basis following the injury that ruled Graeme Smith out for the season and Surrey will now have to scour the team for another leader. Steven Davies and Vikram Solanki are likely to be the leading candidates.The incident in the quarter-final occurred when Trego was bowled by Batty and began walking back to the pavilion, which took him towards Surrey’s celebrating players. Batty was then seen to shove Trego while also mouthing obscenities towards him.Gerard Elias QC, the chairman of the cricket discipline commission (CDC), described Batty’s behaviour as “appalling” and said he did consider whether further action should be taken along with the immediate suspension but decided not to refer the matter to a disciplinary panel.Elias said: “This was a high profile televised match with much at stake for both sides. In these circumstances, the Cricket Discipline Commission expects players to have regard to the image of the game and their place as role models, and to control their emotions accordingly.”Gareth Batty was not merely a player but was the Surrey captain. His conduct as such was appalling. Not only was he involved in deliberately and inappropriately physically confronting a batsman he had just dismissed, he subsequently engaged in a foul-mouthed tirade at the batsman.”Plainly, he acted contrary to the spirit of the game and in a way which brings cricket into disrepute and failed to set the leadership example expected.”The ECB statement continued: “The CDC takes this opportunity to remind players and captains of their duties and responsibilities as ambassadors for the game. So called ‘high pressure’ matches will not be regarded as any excuse for playing the game other than in accordance with the discipline regulations and in the proper spirit.”The penalty for a first level two offence is three points and the penalty for a second level two offence within 24 months is six points. Batty has therefore received a total of nine penalty points, triggering an automatic suspension for a period of two matches. This penalty will remain on his record for a period of two years.

England’s elite players would have more of a say in the management of their workloads under proposals that are being drawn up by PCA

David Hopps at The Oval19-Jul-2012England’s elite players would have more of a say in the management of their workloads under proposals that are being drawn up by the Professional Cricketers Association (PCA) ahead of the redrafting of central contracts next year.If PCA proposals are accepted, England would shift slightly towards the sort of squad system that has become an accepted part of Premier League football, as the most senior and successful players such as Kevin Pietersen were given more licence to miss matches regarded as less important.Angus Porter, chief executive of the PCA, facilitated unsuccessful negotiations last week between Pietersen and his representatives and Hugh Morris, the managing director of England cricket, which failed to end the stand-off which has led to Pietersen’s premature retirement from all England limited-overs cricket.Pietersen wanted rest from more one-day matches and also proposed missing at least one of England’s May Tests to enable him to play a full IPL season.Porter remains adamant that a more formalised rotation system is essential if England’s top players are to maximise their time in the game. The current three-year agreement expires in autumn 2013 and the PCA and ECB are anxious to draw up a new deal before next summer’s Ashes series.”This is an issue we need to get to grips with and one that we will be discussing in the next central contracts negotiation,” Porter said. “We all recognise that with a really hectic schedule managing workloads is important particularly for senior players who have played the longest and who play in all formats of the game.”We need to find a way to provide a little bit more structure to what is already happening – to develop England cricket as a squad game where you not only try to win every game but you try to keep the talent fresh and at the top as long as possible.”Some kind of process that introduces some form of flexibility for those players who have been at the top for a good length of time is desirable and consistent with that.”Porter also pointed to the example of the ATP circuit where leading tennis players are exempt from less prestigious tournaments and so delay their retirement as a result. Roger Federer, who defeated Andy Murray in the Wimbledon men’s final earlier this month, may already have retired without the management of his playing demands.Reducing the amount of international cricket is virtually impossible under the self-perpetuating system where the Future Tours Programme is fixed until 2020 and TV rights have been sold well ahead – Sky TV in the UK have a deal until 2017 with a further two-year option – on the basis of these deals. That only leaves the options of rest and rotation and a more orderly fixture list.”The existing rules work well in some cases – Andrew Strauss is a good example of somebody who has benefited – and less well in others,” Porter said. “It is not inconceivable that they might allow players to retire from Test cricket and play in both forms of one-day cricket.”What central contracts could not resolve, said Porter, was the ECB’s uneasy relationship towards IPL.”I do think the ECB and the other boards have to grasp that nettle, accept the IPL exists and identify a window for it so we do not always have to manage the consequences of an event which without constraint will continue to grow and move around the schedule. It shouldn’t be the most difficult thing in the world.”IPL is this dirty great big thing that is not fixed in time and space in the FTP and until or unless the Boards and the ICC get to grips with it, accept that it is here to stay and identify a window of a sensible length for it, it is impossible for any of us to plan.”That will become increasingly evident between 2014 and 2016. ICC one-day tournaments are scheduled in March and April for each of those years, pushing IPL even later into the year – infiltrating England’s international season to an even greater extent.”Like most traditionalists, I believe that Test cricket is the priority,” Porter said, adding that it was an understandable ambition for England players to want to take part in “the most lucrative, high-profile and fantastic tournament. Being practical about it, IPL is different and is bigger. It is not impossible for us to do something about it if we can get the IPL placed in a window. “Unless accommodation between English cricket and IPL is found, Pietersen, depicted by many as a self-obsessed maverick, might turn out to be the harbinger of a battle-scarred future as future England players are frustrated in their desire to play in cricket’s most glamorous and rewarding T20 tournament.Porter, closer to the negotiations than most, said: “I can’t take issue with either side in the argument. Both have been very reasonable in their points of view and have tried to find some middle ground but you come back to the fact that at the moment there is an irreconcilable issue that IPL clashes with test cricket and the ECB regards Test cricket with absolute primacy. Much as they want to be reasonable they can’t and won’t budge.”