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The Committee of Administrators had asked the state associations to submit compliance reports as regards the implementation of the Lodha reforms and they have been snubbed

Nagraj Gollapudi02-Mar-2017Many state associations have written to the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators stating they are “alarmed” by the COA “overstepping” its jurisdiction and issuing directives that even the court had not included in its various orders.In separate e-mails sent to the COA on Wednesday, the state associations have said that they are protected by rights under the Indian constitution and will only accept directives by the court, which is scheduled to reassemble on March 27.This was the response to a COA directive, asking the state associations for a compliance report with respect to their implementation of the Lodha Committee’s recommendations.The deadline of March 1 has come and gone and while the exact number of state associations opposing the COA is unclear, it is learnt the decision to stand against them was taken by close to 20 BCCI members.It was the state associations, some of them Full Members of the board, which had stalled the implementation of the Lodha reforms, both at BCCI and state levels, raising objection to the recommendations during various court hearings and board meetings. Last week, past and present officials from these disgruntled state associations met in Delhi to formulate a response to the COA directive.It is understood the tone and content of the e-mails sent by the state associations was similar. ESPNcricinfo has accessed a copy which said: “At the very outset, we wish to draw to your attention to the fact that the mandate of the committee is primarily to ensure compliance of the Judgment and Order dated 18.7.2016 passed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court, wherein the Supreme Court itself, has observed and given its finding that the Lodha committee recommendations as accepted by the Hon’ble Court, do not affect the composition of the State Cricket Associations and has thus further clarified that the rights of members of the State Associations under Article 19 (1) (c) of the Constitution of India continues to remain protected.”The state associations also disagreed with the COA’s understanding on the tenure of the office bearers. Originally, the Lodha Commmittee had recommended that a person can serve up to a combined nine years at both BCCI and state level. The Supreme Court, however, ruled that office bearers can have nine years each at central and state level, that is a total of 18 years in cricket administration.Vinod Rai, Diana Edulji and Vikram Limaye, the BCCI administrative panel appointed by the Supreme Court•AFP

However, last week, the COA in an email said due to “the lack of clarity on the exact scope and extent of the disqualification” and as per advice it had received, it reiterated that an office bearer’s tenure could not extend beyond a total of nine years at both BCCI and state levels. This has sparked severe opposition from the state associations.”It is submitted respectfully that we have to strongly disagree with your view that the orders of the Hon’ble Supreme Court are lacking in clarity on the issue of disqualifications in terms of orders dated 2nd, 3rd and 20th January, 2017,” the state association email said. “In fact we feel the orders are clear on the subject. We are alarmed at the attempt to go beyond the order of the Hon’ble Supreme Court by improving on the disqualifications and also upon the categories of persons who are liable to be disqualified.”It was also pointed out that the court order was restricted to only the office bearers. “There is neither any recommendation nor any order of the Hon’ble Supreme Court pertaining to disqualifications being applied to representatives/ nominees/ patrons/ advisors/ committee members/ council members of state/ member associations. Equally, there is no order of the Hon’ble Court in effect that makes persons who have been office bearers of BCCI for a total period of 9 years to be disqualified as office bearers in state cricket associations leave alone to be a representative/ nominee/ patron/ advisor/ committee member or council member.In fact the Hon’ble Court had made it abundantly clear on 20.01.2017 that period of 9 years as office bearer in BCCI would count only towards the BCCI and the period of 9 years in State Associations would count only towards the State Associations. We respectfully feel that you have overstepped your defined role and gone beyond the orders of the Hon’ble Court and the same is without jurisdiction and not in furtherance of any orders of the Hon’ble Supreme Court.”According to these state associations, the COA cannot govern or direct them to do anything since they are “autonomous independent organisations registered under various statutes.” They have told the COA that the court has “agreed” to listen to their objections – most likely at the next hearing on March 27 – and until then they have made it clear that they would not obey any COA directives.”In these circumstances we feel that any further attempts to impose your directives ought to be deferred till the matters are decided.”

Much of the success of Gujarat Lions and Kolkata Knight Riders is because of the performances of their batsmen at Nos. 1 to 4

The Preview by Alagappan Muthu06-Apr-2017

Match facts

Gujarat Lions v Kolkata Knight Riders
Rajkot, April 7, 2017
Start time 2000 local (1430 GMT)
2:50

Raina’s domination of Narine

Head to head

Overall: Gujarat Lions have won both matches between the teams so far.

In the news

Neither team will be able to field their best XI. Gujarat Lions allrounder Dwayne Bravo suffered a hamstring injury in January and is recovering from surgery. He is likely to miss the first two games. Kolkata Knight Riders fast bowler Umesh Yadav has hip and lower-back issues and will be fit to play in two weeks.Knight Riders will also have to make do without allrounder Andre Russell, who is serving a one-year ban for a doping code-violation. His replacement though – Colin de Grandhomme – has a T20 strike-rate of 171 after 91 innings. Shakib Al Hasan will join the team after Bangladesh’s tour of Sri Lanka.Lions have lost a similarly key player. Their local boy Ravindra Jadeja is suffering from “issues” to his spinning finger after starring in a 13-Test long home season. Lions do have a surplus of left-arm spinners – Shadab Jakati and Shivil Kaushik – and are expecting Jadeja back in two weeks.

The likely XIs

Gujarat Lions: 1 Brendon McCullum, 2 Dwayne Smith, 3 Suresh Raina (capt), 4 Aaron Finch, 5 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 6 James Faulkner, 7 Ishan Kishan, 8 Praveen Kumar, 9 Shadab Jakati, 10 Dhawal Kulkarni, 11 Shivil KaushikKolkata Knight Riders: 1 Gautam Gambhir (capt), 2 Robin Uthappa (wk), 3 Manish Pandey, 4 Chris Lynn/Colin de Grandhomme, 5 Chris Woakes, 6 Yusuf Pathan, 7 Suryakumar Yadav, 8 Kuldeep Yadav, 9 Sunil Narine, 10 Ankit Rajpoot, 11 Trent Boult

Stats that matter

• The average score batting first in IPL games in Rajkot is 157. So it is perhaps no surprise that the team chasing has won four out of five IPL matches at the venue.
• The only time a total has been successfully defended was in a 4pm game, when spinners average 23.40 in the first innings and 23.16 in the second innings. In a night game, spinners average 19.88 in the first innings and a whopping 48.50 in the second, which suggests dew could be a factor.
• This match features two of the four best opening partnerships in the IPL. Gautam Gambhir and Robin Uthappa have scored 1478 runs in 39 innings at an average of 37.89. Brendon McCullum and Dwayne Smith have made 1257 runs in 34 innings at an average of 36.97.
• Gambhir averages 29.58 against pace bowling with 85 dismissals – no other batsman has been dismissed as many times by pace in the IPL. But considering he has played nine seasons and bats at the top of the order, against the new ball, that is understandable. The next man on that list is Virat Kohli with 82. Gambhir is excellent against spin though, as an average of 41.22 indicates.
• Lions’ dependency on their top order is well established by how they were the fastest scoring team in the Powerplay in 2016 (8.29), and the slowest scoring team in the last five overs (8.98). Knight Riders corresponding figures were 7.96 and 9.78.
• Lions conceded the most runs in the final five overs in 2016 – 777 off 413 balls at a run-rate of 11.28. Knight Riders are marginally better with 10.37. Over the nine seasons, Knight Riders give up 9.28 per over in the final five, the best among all the active teams in the IPL.
• Suresh Raina has never fallen to Sunil Narine in the IPL. He has scored 65 runs off 43 balls at a strike-rate of 151.
• Rajkot was the most unfriendly venue for spinners in the Powerplay in IPL 2016. They have an economy rate of 9.19 there – the highest among all grounds that hosted more than one match. After the first six overs though, the spinners concede only 6.75 an over, and have picked up 21 wickets.

Manoj Tiwary, who struck a crucial 27 to lift Rising Pune Supergiant in their match against Royal Challengers Bangalore, said he had carefully watched Shane Watson’s bowling and figured out his plan of attack

Shashank Kishore in Bengaluru17-Apr-20171:08

Wasn’t easy for new batsmen going in – Tiwary

Manoj Tiwary watched from the dugout as the Rising Pune Supergiant middle order collapsed, losing five wickets for three runs, against disciplined wicket-to-wicket length bowling from Royal Challengers Bangalore. Runs weren’t flowing freely on a sluggish surface and it seemed Rising Pune would barely touch 140, which, notwithstanding the nature of the surface, is a score well below par at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.Even as the wickets fell, however, Tiwary had made a note of what he could expect when he walked out to bat. Shane Watson had executed a barrage of wide yorkers well against MS Dhoni. Tiwary, walking in to bat in the 17th over, however, did not have the time to line up bowlers like Dhoni did. He simply had to go from the first ball. It helped that he was in form and had scores of 40 not out and 31 in his two knocks so far.Royal Challengers had done well to control the first 18 overs, limiting Rising Pune to 132 for 7. Watson was called in to bowl the penultimate over and he dared Tiwary to swipe across the line in search of boundaries by packing the off side. Tiwary, however, had his plans set. Watson employed the bluff, repeatedly bowling full and wide, and watched his plans backfire spectacularly in a 19-run over.Watson began with a full delivery outside off, which Tiwary reached out and carved between cover and point. Then came a short ball that was signaled wide: the short delivery was now unlikely to be brought on again with the risk of it being called a no-ball. It became a question of Tiwary’s anticipation against Watson’s smarts.The third ball was right in the slot for Tiwary to swing, and he smacked it over cover for four. The next two deliveries were also fuller and were tonked over extra cover and the bowler’s head respectively, the last one going for a six. Tiwary scored 27 off 11 balls and Royal Challengers found that their potential chase of 140 had grown to a target of 162. The hosts eventually fell 27 runs short.”I was just trying to read the mind of the bowler,” Tiwary said. “I was observing what he [Shane Watson] was trying to do to MS Dhoni. He set a field and bowled differently. He got a wicket in the form of MS. For the kind of field set, I knew he’ll bowl similarly to me. Once the bouncer went for a wide, I knew he wouldn’t bowl another one. He bowled in my areas, he missed his execution and I was up for it. Pretty happy to contributed in the last phase.”One of the most important aspects of Tiwary’s batting this season has been his fluency at the crease, which he admits hasn’t always been the case in T20 cricket. Before the start of the IPL, his strike rate across 132 T20 matches stood at 114.75. This season, he has blasted 98 runs at a strike rate of 160.65. Rising Pune may have erred by sending Tiwary at No. 7 on Sunday, below Dan Christian, but he made sure his contribution counted.His enterprising knock helped the team cover up for a middle-overs’ passage when Steven Smith and Dhoni shared a partnership of 58 of 46 deliveries. “It was difficult for the batsmen but I felt that over of Watson obviously, he didn’t apply his brain to be honest, changed it,” Tiwary said. “The wicket was difficult to bat on. If there is moisture underneath, it makes shot-making difficult.”Tiwary’s start to IPL 2017 has been particularly satisfying. Last year, he went unsold at the auction and, hurt by that, he was forced to change his approach in T20s, where he hadn’t quite been sure of his role. Returning to the IPL fold, he said, brought with it a lot of pressure and the weight of expectation.”Strike rates have been at the back of my mind. Even in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, I wanted to focus on that since it’s the demand of the format,” Tiwary said. “I normally try and play the situation. The nature of my batting is such. My role is 50-50, at times I find it difficult to analyse how to go about my game. Couple of seasons ago at Delhi, they used me as a floater. If a wicket falls, I was asked to build. This year, I made up my mind, no matter what the situation is, I’ll look to play aggressively. That is the plan I had and it’s helping me.”

Graham Clark’s maiden century put Durham in command on the second day of their Specsavers County Championship match against Glamorgan at Chester-le-Street

ECB Reporters Network20-Jun-2017

ScorecardGraham Clark’s century put Durham on top•Getty Images

Graham Clark’s maiden century put Durham in command on the second day of their Specsavers County Championship match against Glamorgan at Chester-le-Street.It was evenly balanced when Paul Collingwood joined Clark on 87 for 3 in reply to 295, but Durham’s record stand against Glamorgan of 185 helped them to 280 for 4.Clark was out for 109 three overs before the close, but Collingwood remained unbeaten on 71, the sixth time in his last seven innings he has passed 50, including 127 and 92 not out at Swansea.”It was a huge relief to get to 100. It’s been a dream of mine since I was five or six years old,” Clark said. “Durham have had a strong side and I’ve struggled to make it through into the first team. There have been a few opportunities which I haven’t taken.”So now I feel a bit more settled in the side. But there are always people knocking on the door, so I know I have to keep scoring runs.”Marchant de Lange carried easily the greatest threat in the visiting attack and took three of the wickets. But they continued to feed the pull in front of midwicket, which brought Clark a six and eight of the 17 fours in his 135-ball knock.After Glamorgan’s remaining three wickets added 74 in the morning the cooler day produced 354 runs, compared with 221 on the sun-baked first day.De Lange chanced his arm with the bat it in making 37 before Barry McCarthy wrapped up the Glamorgan tail.De Lange drove him for a straight six before the Irishman found just enough swing to find the edge.Lukas Carey also went for his shots and made 10 before driving to mid-off and two balls later Michael Hogan edged a lavish drive to Stuart Poynter, leaving McCarthy with 3 for 55.In his final match for Durham the out-of-form Stephen Cook made 14 before de Lange had him caught behind off a tentative prod.Jack Burnham, returning after a broken thumb, contributed 25 to a stand of 41 with Cameron Steel before he edged Carey on to the chest of wicketkeeper Tom Cullen and the ball rebounded into the hands of Colin Ingram at first slip.When de Lange returned for a second spell Steel upper cut his first ball for four, drove the second to the cover boundary and watched the fourth balloon over the keeper for four byes. But in attempting a second upper cut he edged a poor ball to Cullen to depart for 32.That brought in Collingwood, who did well to keep out de Lange before beginning to accumulate steadily while relying on Clark to pepper the boundaries.The 24-year-old Cumbrian finally fell when he followed a de Lange away swinger and edged to give Cullen his third catch.

Jason Roy’s form seeped back on a glorious summer’s day at Worcester, Gareth Batty took five wickets and Surrey had a cakewalk to another Lord’s final

David Hopps17-Jun-2017
ScorecardJason Roy put his horrendous run behind him•Getty Images

Initially, there was a bit of head shaking from Jason Roy, the odd pout and a sense that he was not entirely satisfied with his game. Meanwhile, the ball kept whistling to the boundary. An unproductive IPL, sixty-eight runs in his last nine ODI innings, omission for the semi-final of the Champions Trophy and the dejection of an England exit was not designed to fill him with joy.His internal struggle for perfection, however, could not disguise the fact that the form which has eluded him for months was seeping back: 92 from 81 balls by the time he fell lbw to the fiddly cutters of Daryl Mitchell. Surrey wallowed in it; Worcestershire melted before it.”It showed it could have been a different story at Cardiff,” said Surrey’s captain Gareth Batty, with a loyal and pointed implication – so very Surrey – that England should have stuck with him. “He is a wonderful talent. We will have him back every day of the week.”The upshot was a Surrey stroll in the semi-final of the Royal London Cup, Worcestershire dispensed with by 153 runs and a date with Nottinghamshire in the final at Lord’s on July 1 awaits. It will be their third successive Lord’s final, they have not done themselves justice in the last two, and they will need to be at their best to see off Notts. It is a mouthwatering prospect.Surrey’s 363 for 7 felt like a winning score, but not by such an extraordinary margin. Batty will be most satisfied about that. Not for the first time, he got a bit of bird from Worcestershire’s supporters – he was roundly abused when he first returned to his former county back in 2010. Then, he took issue with a spectator. Seven years on, he just contented himself with taking 5 for 40, his best List A figures for Surrey, and didn’t even bother with his final over. Surely he is not mellowing?Frankly, Batty’s spell could not have been more of a piece of cake had he delivered slices of Victoria Sponge served up by the happy band of volunteers in the Ladies Pavilion.He was fortunate to win an lbw decision against Brett D’Oliveira on the slog-sweep when the ball pitched outside the line. Joe Clarke pushed gently outside off stump and was caught at the wicket, John Hastings perished in the deep, Ben Cox patted one to long off, Joe Leach muscled one to long on. The boos had largely subsided by then.Worcestershire had never made such a total in List A cricket and it showed. D’Oliveira’s half-century represented their only organised resistance with the bat after they had lost three wickets in the first seven overs. Moeen Ali had made a mellifluous 36 from 23 balls before he drove an up-and-under, but “organised resistance” is not really the right phrase for it because he rarely gives the impression of much planning with the bat, merely an outpouring of natural talent until the tap turns off. Ross Whiteley also swung a lusty half-century at No. 8 to reduce the margin without really reducing the embarrassment.Contentiously, Worcestershire were without the batting talents of Tom Kohler-Cadmore, whose admission that he was discussing an end-of-season deal with Yorkshire brought an immediate release from his contract. If that was a gamble to imbue Worcestershire with a matchwinning team spirit, it failed dismally.With nine down, Roy, trying to save a boundary, nearly dived headlong into the covers, but escaped harm by inches. Another signal perhaps that his luck was changing.He hoisted Hastings over square leg for a heartening six but a gentle straight drive against Leach was perhaps the first shot that convinced him his touch was back. His half-century was raised within 37 balls as Surrey, 90 in the book within 10 overs, logged the highest Powerplay of the summer.The pitch was benign, the sun shone upon him, and shone upon some perspiring bowlers, too, none suffering more than Hastings, the burly Australian, who recorded Worcestershire’s most expensive analysis in List A cricket – 1 for 97 – and who did well to escape a hundred. Ed Barnard might also have been under pressure, had he bowled more than a single over that went for 17.Roy was an addition to this Surrey batting line-up – Scott Borthwick’s twisted ankle in the warm-up conveniently opened up a place – but otherwise there was familiarity in Surrey’s progress.Their defeat of Yorkshire in the playoffs at Headingley on Tuesday when they made 313 had been formulated around big innings from Kumar Sangakkara and Ben Foakes. The same pair prospered once more, Sangakkara looking set for another century until he gloved Hastings down the leg side on 73 and Foakes gathering 86 – a neat batsman whose range is gradually expanding – until he was run out in the final over.

Luke Wright made his first century since 2015 to give Sussex the advantage on the opening day of their Specsavers County Championship match against Gloucestershire at Hove

ECB Reporters Network26-Jun-2017
ScorecardLuke Wright made his first century since 2015 to give Sussex the advantage on the opening day of their Specsavers County Championship match against Gloucestershire at Hove.Wright, in only his third game since giving up the captaincy, made 118, his best score since he hit a career-best 226 against Worcestershire in September 2015. It was also his first hundred at Hove for two days shy of two years.With his successor as captain, Ben Brown, making 52 and Chris Jordan 50, Sussex recovered from 69 for 3 to post 358 for 9 declared.They then had seven overs in the twilight with the pink ball but Gloucestershire openers Cameron Bancroft and Chris Dent got through unscathed, reaching 31 for 0 at stumps.A crowd of 2,000 was boosted by around 650 local schoolchildren and they enjoyed an entertaining day with Wright leading an aggressive counter-attack by Sussex during the afternoon session when they plundered 173 runs.Wright was in the mood from the very start, lofting his first ball from off-spinner Jack Taylor for one of three sixes. There were also 14 fours including a straight drive to the boundary which brought up the 17th century of his first-class career.The way Wright, and later Brown and Jordan, stroked the pink ball over a fast outfield was in contrast to what happened at the start of the day and again when Gloucestershire took the new ball and immediately claimed three wickets.Fit-again Liam Norwell and David Payne were rewarded with a wicket apiece as Harry Finch and Delray Rawlins, opening after Chris Nash was struck in practice and suffered a concussion, departed cheaply.Luke Wells hit seven fours in his 36 before Taylor had him caught at slip, after the ball had deflected off wicketkeeper Gareth Roderick.Wright then transformed the day, first with Stiaan van Zyl with whom he added 99 in 19 overs before the South African was held at short leg off Taylor, and then alongside his successor as captain.If anything, Wright and Brown increased the tempo. Both attacked anything off line and the ball had to be changed after 54 overs after Wright had clattered it into the protective covers beyond the boundary.His hundred came up off exactly 100 balls while new skipper Brown, returning after six weeks out with a broken finger, matched him shot for shot as they put on 92 in 18 overs. Brown fell two balls after reaching 50 from 60 deliveries with seven fours and a six and Wright departed after tea to a brilliant one-handed catch at midwicket by Phil Mustard, his 118 coming off 129 balls.David Wiese and Chris Jordan took the attack back to Gloucestershire, adding 57 in 13 overs for the seventh wicket but the new ball swung markedly as the floodlights took effect and Gloucestershire picked up three quick wickets, Craig Miles taking two of them in the same over including Jordan for a 78-ball 50 with eight fours.Sussex declared shortly after claiming a fourth bowling point but couldn’t make a breakthrough before the close.

There were three India A wickets left standing on the final day and the seamer took three of them to wrap up a 235-run victory

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Aug-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsJunior Dala picked up his fifth first-class five-for•Getty Images

There were three India A wickets left standing in Pretoria at the start of the fourth day, and they were toppled in fewer than six overs as South Africa A registered victory by a whopping 235 runs. Stephen Cook, who had been dropped from the senior team, was awarded the Man of the Match after scoring 120 – a score that took all 11 of India A’s players to match in the first innings, and as such might give him hope that he remains a contender for the opener’s position when South Africa’s home season begins.India A’s first-innings capitulation featured a top score of 31. On their next try, Ankit Bawne got as far as 46 before he was dismissed off what became the last ball of day three. Junior Dala, the 27-year old seamer, had made that blow and he proved too good for the tail as well, taking all of the wickets the tourists had left on the final day to finish with 5 for 36 in 10.1 overs. India began the day at 192 for 6 after 46.5 overs and, thanks to Dala completing his fifth five-wicket haul in first-class cricket, they ended it 211 all out in 52.1. Allrounder Vijay Shankar who retired hurt for 26 in the first innings did not bat again.

England are to use the limited-overs matches against West Indies to trial a few options as they look to fill Ottis Gibson’s position

George Dobell10-Sep-20173:14

Dobell: England still don’t know their best XI for Ashes tour

England are to use the limited-overs matches against West Indies to trial a few options as their new bowling coach.With Ottis Gibson having left his role as England bowling coach at the end of the Test series against West Indies, to take up his new role as head coach of South Africa, the ECB has advertised the position. Applications will remain open until the end of September and it may be that England do not appoint a permanent replacement until after the Test tours of Australia and New Zealand are completed.That means they could use an interim appointment – perhaps a specialist with experience of Australian conditions – during the Ashes series.
“We are going to get some of the English guys who have expressed some interest in the job involved over the ODI series,” Trevor Bayliss, the England head coach, said. “That way we can see them and they can get a feel for it.”The position is very much open. No one has nailed it down and we have got a bit of time. There’s no point rushing.”Among those who could be involved during the limited-overs games are Chris Silverwood, who is on the brink of leading Essex to the County Championship title as head coach, and Glen Chapple, whose Lancashire side could well finish second in Division One. The options have not yet been finalised.Bayliss also revealed that, rather than looking to appoint a permanent replacement for Gibson before England leave for Australia at the end of October, they may make an interim appointment.”In the past, we’ve had consultants come in,” Bayliss said. “We have had Mahela Jayawardene and people like that, so the thought is that we might try and organise something along those lines just for the winter. We quite possibly won’t have a full-time replacement until next summer.”

England are preparing to be without Ben Stokes for the entirety of the Ashes but Joe Root said they would travel to Australia hoping to “prove a lot of people wrong”

Alan Gardner27-Oct-2017England captains in Australia, with a few honourable exceptions, have often found themselves quickly on the back foot. Joe Root, ahead of his first tour in charge of the Test side, was given some early practice at Lord’s, as England get used to the idea of the self-inflicted absence of one of their best players before they have even left the country.Speaking in the Long Room before the serried ranks of the media ahead of England’s departure to contest the Ashes, Root admitted that they are already planning to be without Ben Stokes for the duration of the series. He also had to fend off questions about whether England have a problem with drinking – after Stokes’ altercation on a night out in Bristol left him under investigation by the police – while countering the suggestion that the tourists will need a “miracle” to defend the Urn in a country where they were ruthlessly whitewashed (and Root was dropped) four years ago.This was all before considering the contributions from the other side, with David Warner last week posing as an Australian Sun Tzu and likening the Ashes to warfare – “I don’t think I would ever put cricket and war in the same bracket,” was Root’s measured response. Sadly he didn’t follow up, in the manner of Ivo Bligh, by saying that England were off to “beard the kangaroo in his den” when they fly on Saturday.Stokes will not be on the plane with them, with the police case still open and internal disciplinary procedures on hold for now. England’s vice-captain is currently “not considered for selection” and the subject is likely to loom over the tour – his counterpart, Warner, has aired his views on that, too – but Root wanted to focus on the players at his disposal.”I think we’ve got to plan as if he’s not going to be there for the whole series,” Root said. “It’s an ongoing investigation, we’re very much in the dark in what’s happening, as is everyone. So as a side we have to make sure we plan accordingly and approach this as our squad.”Ben offers a lot to the team but, as I said, it’s an opportunity for other guys to stand up. In difficult situations, a lot of the time, people do surprise themselves and surprise you and are capable of more than what they might even think themselves. This is one of those occasions when you might just see that and there’s also some guys that have been given another opportunity, who will be desperate to take that. As a side I look at where we are and how we’ve grown as a team and think that this is a great opportunity for us to keep developing and move forward again.”Root is close to Stokes, who he described in his autobiography as a “good friend as well as a team-mate”, and the two led from the front as England secured series wins over South Africa and West Indies this summer. Root also noted in his book that Stokes had been capable of some “daft stuff” in the past and he could be forgiven for wishing away this latest episode, coming ahead of his biggest challenge as captain since succeeding Alastair Cook earlier in the year.He held his counsel, however, when asked if Stokes’ actions had angered him: “That’s between me and Ben, being brutally honest. That should stay between us. It is disappointing that he’s not going to be on the trip but you have to move on and move forward as a team. He’s obviously very disappointed but I can’t speak for him.”Joe Root poses with a replica of the Ashes urn at Lord’s•Getty Images

Alongside the matter of Stokes and Alex Hales being out late in Bristol, England issued written warnings and fines to Jonny Bairstow, Jake Ball and Liam Plunkett for unprofessional conduct during the ODI series against West Indies. Root, while stressing that the players were grown-up enough to ensure similar problems don’t arise in Australia, said it was not the plan to keep everyone “cooped up” while on tour.”At no point did we say they would be,” he said. “That would be a negative way to go about touring what is a great country. Being able to enjoy touring Australia, it is really important go and enjoy the downtime we do get and enjoy the whole nature of touring – the atmosphere of the grounds, the people around the grounds and when you go out for food, the banter that might be flying around and embrace it, because you don’t get many opportunities to go and play in an Ashes series in Australia. It’s something you want to look back on and say you approached it in the right way and gave yourself the best chance to be successful and hopefully come away with some fantastic memories.”Root’s memories of 2013-14 were less than fantastic but he credits being left out for the fifth and final Test in Sydney as one of the catalysts for his subsequent rise to stand among the best currently playing the game. Despite the pressure he and his team will be under this time around, the boyish smile returns with a flicker when he gets back to the topic of cricket.”It was hard. It was a tough tour all round. That’s a great motivation for this one. You want to make sure you have completely different memories. It’s a great place to go and play cricket, the pitches are fantastic and it can be a good place to go and bat, and score big runs. I don’t think we should be daunted by the chat and the noise that can be around an Ashes tour. We should be excited about the opportunity and everything that presents, and try and prove a lot of people wrong over there.”While Stokes has provided an off-field distraction, England finished their home season with several on-field issues to ponder before getting to Australia. An already holey batting line-up looks like needing another plug at No. 6 – though it could be a bowler who comes in, with everyone else moving up – but Root and Trevor Bayliss will address those issues in the warm-up games, starting against a Western Australia XI next week.A Stokes-less England may look a lot less daunting, even if they arrive as the higher-ranked Test side – at No. 3, two spots above Australia – but Root did not waste the chance to get forward and dispatch a gentle half-volley when asserting they can “definitely” win the series.”We’ve played some really strong cricket this summer, coming together really well as a squad and hopefully we can carry that forward,” he said. “There are some new faces within the squad but that gives them opportunities to stamp their mark on the game and really push their case in Test cricket, and also for other guys to stand up and become more senior. Hopefully we can put in some really good performances and do something special.”

A new domestic format will see the first-class season conclude with a four-team Super Provincial Tournament, in which some of the best players in Sri Lanka will compete

Madushka Balasuriya25-Oct-2017Sri Lanka Cricket is placing a renewed focus on provincial cricket, as part of broader plans to revamp the country’s ailing domestic cricket structure. A new domestic format will see the first-class season conclude with a four-team Super Provincial Tournament, in which some of the best players in Sri Lanka will compete.District teams will also participate, though this is not expected to affect the Premier League inter-club season. While the domestic cricket calendar already has a four-team provincial limited-overs tournament, the expanded framework will see teams play a four-day, pink-ball competition – with at least one game under lights per team – a 50-over tournament, and finally a T20 tournament. Scheduled to start in the first week of December, each provincial tournament will also be preceded by an inter-club competition – three-day matches in place of four-day fixtures being the only change.The district teams, meanwhile, will compete in provincial tournaments to supplement the four Super Provincial squads, which will be based around Centres of Excellence in Colombo, Kandy, Galle, and Dambulla.SLC will also be subsiding its 24 first-class clubs up to Rs. 1 million (USD 6,500) each for friendly matches prior to the start of the Premier League Tournament, allowing more clubs to find promising talent.”Before premier tournaments, clubs would usually play friendly matches on their own at their own expense,” tournament committee chairman Bandula Dissanayaka said. “This year SLC has taken that into account and has given them the opportunity to play some friendly matches where SLC will be paying a substantial amount to the clubs in preparation for this tournament.”This is something new where clubs will have an opportunity to test out their young players, who have not played tournament cricket before. And if they’re suitable enough, maybe absorb them into the premier sides.”Sri Lanka Cricket has also tweaked the lower divisions, though not as radically. Division 2 and 3 fixtures will now be organised by provincial and district cricket associations respectively. Division 2 matches, meanwhile, will now be intra-provincial matches, where district clubs will compete to become provincial champions.Some of the tournament’s details however may be subject to change, with a cricket committee appointed by Sri Lanka’s Sports Ministry expected to offer their input in the lead-up. SLC said they were expecting to hear from the sports minister soon.One area they could possibly provide guidance with would be in deciding which provinces certain district clubs would fall under. At present, players are grouped into the four teams based on their place of birth, school attended and current place of work. In previous instances, this meant provincial teams struggled to field strong teams, leading to players from other provinces being brought in.Any changes though would have to be run by relevant stakeholders – in this case the clubs – prior to implementation.