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Tasmania were well ahead by the close as Jordan Silk made a half-century

Daniel Brettig08-Nov-2020It’s been a tick over five years since Australia was shot out for 60 in a vital Ashes Test match at Trent Bridge, and no fewer than three members of the New South Wales batting line-up could have been forgiven for suffering from flashbacks as they experienced a similar fate against Tasmania in the Sheffield Shield, rolled for 64 on another surface that did just enough.The Blues captain Peter Nevill, Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon were all a part of both processions, the first largely inflicted by Stuart Board but this one ring-led by an omitted member of that same 2015 Ashes touring party, Peter Siddle, with plenty of help from Jackson Bird, Gabe Bell and Riley Meredith.Their deconstruction of the batting line-up was so complete that New South Wales registered the third lowest total in their storied Shield history, better only than tallies of 56 in Perth in 1998 and 53, also against Tasmania, in Hobart in 2007.Given Tasmania’s recent reluctance to field a specialist spin bowler, the pitch at Gladys Elphick Park was ideal for them, and after their captain Matthew Wade won the toss it was not long before the new ball was talking in Siddle’s experienced hands.Daniel Hughes can scarcely have been dismissed by a better ball, seaming away after angling into him from around the wicket, setting the scene for Bird to coax an edged drive from Nick Larkin and have Kurtis Patterson driving too soon at a fullish delivery for a catch to cover.A score of 3 for 15 was troublesome though not irredeemable, depending on how the Tigers followed up their early overs. Enter Bell, who moved the ball nicely away from Daniel Solway then provoke fatal indecision from Moises Henriques, before Nevill – incidentally the top scorer in Nottingham five years ago with 13 – snicked Siddle into what was by now an ample slips cordon.Mitchell Starc blustered his way to 18, at least getting the Blues to 50, before he too edged to one of the catching men, and Trent Copeland then Lyon did likewise before Sean Abbott skied a catch to Tim Paine to have the Tasmanians padding up for a bat a matter of minutes after lunch.In a further mirror of 2015, the Tigers’ response was far less calamitous, as Jordan Silk dropped anchor with a series of cameos at the other end. By stumps Tasmania were 85 runs in credit with six wickets in hand, even if Starc, Copeland, Abbott, Lyon and Harry Conway made them toil at little more than two runs an over.

Availability of 10 squad members for Boxing Day Test against Sri Lanka is in doubt

Firdose Moonda17-Dec-2020South Africa face a potential selection headache, with 10 members of their 16-man squad to play Sri Lanka involved in domestic first-class matches in which positive cases of Covid-19 have been detected.Rassie van der Dussen, Beuran Hendricks, Wiaan Mulder (all Lions), Migael Pretorius (Knights), Aiden Markram, Dean Elgar, Lungi Ngidi (all Titans), Keshav Maharaj, Sarel Erwee and Keegan Petersen (all Dolphins) were part of fixtures between the Titans and the Dolphins, and between the Lions and the Knights, in which at least five positive tests have been returned. It is not yet known which, if any, of the 10 are infected or are deemed close contacts of those who are infected. If any of them fall into these two categories they will need to isolate for 10 days from December 16.The first Test against Sri Lanka starts on December 26 and only Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis, Temba Bavuma, Anrich Nortje, Kyle Verreynne and Glenton Stuurman are confirmed as available. De Kock, du Plessis, Bavuma and Nortje did not play in this round and Verreynne and Stuurman played in the Cobras-Warriors match, which was unaffected by the virus.The latest round of domestic first-class matches saw the first franchise cricket match called off because of Covid-19 in South Africa. The top of the table clash, between the Titans and the Dolphins, was abandoned after the first day when a Dolphins player tested positive. At least three more players from that franchise have also been infected.Related

• Cricket Australia chairman: No compromises on safety for South Africa tour

• Two SA players test Covid positive as van Tonder, Sipamla earn maiden Test call-ups

• Titans vs Dolphins called off after positive Covid test

• CSA's acting CEO suspended amid disciplinary proceedings

• Pretorius called up to bolster pace attack for SL Tests

In the second match, between the Lions and the Knights, a Lions player tested positive on day three and was withdrawn from the match but play continued. An insider confirmed that the reason that fixture was not abandoned was on the advice of a risk assessment and because the Knights players indicated their willingness to continue.Players from all four franchises are now being monitored and those who are deemed close contacts to the positive cases will be forced to isolate for 10 days. That means they will only come out of quarantine on December 26, on the first day of the Boxing Day Test, and will therefore not be available for selection. Those players could then be added to the bubble ahead of the New Year’s Test, provided they have clean bills of health. Those who enter the bubble will be tested on Saturday, next Monday and next Wednesday, with the first Test to start on Thursday.ESPNcricinfo understands that the biosecure bubble at the Irene Country Club – which is the venue that will host both South Africa and Sri Lanka for the two Tests – is on track and Cricket South Africa expect the series to go ahead, albeit with some absentees. Sri Lanka named a full-strength squad, barring the injured Angelo Mathews, on Thursday and will leave for South Africa on Friday. They may find their hosts severely depleted, depending on how many of their 16-man squad have to isolate following the latest Covid-19 outbreak.South Africa is officially in its second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic and has seen a massive increase in its infection rate in the last two weeks. On Wednesday, the country recorded more than 10,000 cases for the first time since August 1 and further restrictions have been put in place, including a curfew and limits on the number of people at gatherings. The Gauteng province, where the Sri Lanka series will be played, is one of four areas in the country where the spike in cases has been deemed concerning.Sri Lanka are due to be South Africa’s second international visitors this summer, after England who withdrew from their tour last week. England played three T20s but the three scheduled ODIs were postponed after three South African players and two hotel staff tested positive for Covid.Two England players also tested positive but on verification, their results were confirmed negative. England’s bubble was more lenient than Sri Lanka’s will be, after the English players requested recreational activities including golf. They played at five different courses on eight occasions while in South Africa.

Negotiations have resumed between players union, ECB and counties over potential pay cuts

Matt Roller25-Jan-2021James Harris has admitted that the English game still faces “a huge challenge” in the form of the Covid-19 pandemic upon his election to the role of chair at the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA), but said that he is confident that he will be able to steer the organisation through choppy waters.The PCA resumed its negotiations with the ECB and the first-class counties on Monday afternoon as they continue to discuss collective solutions including the possibility of further temporary salary cuts, but hopes that with the prospect of a full domestic schedule and fans returning to grounds this summer, such measures will soon no longer be necessary.Harris, the Middlesex seamer, was confirmed as Daryl Mitchell’s successor on Monday, after serving as vice-chair alongside Heather Knight since last June and as Middlesex’s player representative before that, and described his election as a “huge honour” in his first media interaction in the position.ALSO READ: England confirm two-Test New Zealand series for June“I’ve got some big shoes to fill in those of Daryl Mitchell, who has done a brilliant job,” Harris said. “I was always keen if the role came up and thankfully I’ve had the support of lots of my colleagues around the country. It’s great that I can lean on Mitch – he’s got another month in the post and hopefully I can get up to speed and make sure I’m as clued up as I can be.”No doubt, there’s a huge challenge in front of us. Everyone involved in the game did brilliantly last year, playing as much cricket as we did – at the start of last summer, it would have looked a long way off.”It’s about seeing us through to the end of this pandemic [and building on] the work that Daryl did, getting the players’ committee together and coming up with everything that they have to see us through with collective agreements. There may be more of that required, but we hope there isn’t too much more. We want to be as responsible towards the game as we can be, so that we can build as strong a game as possible around the country.”Harris also gave his endorsement for the Hundred, describing it as a “fantastic concept” which will be a “massive showpiece for cricket in this country”. The PCA’s initial response to the Hundred was lukewarm in 2018 when the ECB unveiled its new competition, with concerns raised over the 100-ball format and possible conflicts of interest, but has since thrown its support behind it.”It’s just another part of a cricketer’s career,” Harris said. “Guys will try and make their way into Hundred teams, and it’s going to provide a lot of opportunities for guys in county cricket, perhaps who wouldn’t have necessarily got a look-in at certain times or for younger guys who might get pushed into the first team a bit earlier.”It’s a different concept. It’s exciting. It’s something that’s going to bring a lot of eyes from around the world onto English cricket, which can only be a good thing.”Harris becomes chair at a time when the PCA’s active playing membership is bigger than ever before, with 41 new members following the ratification of women’s domestic contracts at the end of last year. While he admitted that he has “a lot of learning to do across all areas of the game, both men’s and women’s”, Harris said that he had already reached out to Knight – who will continue as vice-chair – and Kate Cross, the England women’s representative in recent days.”I’m going to support everybody as well as I can,” he said. “We’re building up relationships as much as we can already, and it’s a really exciting time in the women’s game as well, having those new members join the PCA and become full-time professionals. It’s a great time for everyone involved in the game whether male or female.”One relationship that Harris will already feel secure in is that with the PCA’s chief executive, Rob Lynch, who was previously Middlesex’s commercial director and chief operating officer, and took over from Tony Irish on a full-time basis in October. Lynch, who had no say in Harris’ election, said that he had been “thrilled” to hear he had been chosen for the post.”I’ve known him for four or five years and he was always one of my favourite guys to work with at Middlesex,” Lynch said. “We have to put some stability inside the PCA which has been one of the challenges over the last couple of years through some changes in leadership at the top. This year is about rebuilding and being clear about our purpose and our role in the game.”Our job is to find the line between playing a responsible stakeholder role and also pushing tooth and nail for the rights that the players have, because we recognise that we’ll need to continue with that we’ve done. We’re all hoping to get back to a more normal set-up as soon as we can.”

Australia will ponder tinkering with their XI to find a way to keep control of New Zealand’s batting

Andrew McGlashan02-Mar-2021

Big Picture

The logistics have changed significantly due to the impact of the Auckland lockdown, and there won’t be any crowds to witness the rest of the games, but the challenge remains the same for Australia: they need to win three matches in a row in Wellington if they are to take the series.New Zealand, with a full-strength side, are playing dynamic, confident cricket although did breathe a sigh of relief at the end of a pulsating contest in Dunedin where the game was nearly snatched away from Marcus Stoinis and Daniel Sams.Australia have identified that it is the post-powerplay, pre-death period with the ball where they have especially struggled to match New Zealand. From overs 7-16 they have conceded 11.35 and taken just three wickets, while the home side have gone for 9.02 runs per over and claimed 10 wickets.The return to form of Martin Guptill in Dunedin ticked another box for New Zealand with most players having now made a contribution across the first two games. However, Tim Seifert has started with two low scores and Kyle Jamieson has had a tough time going for 56 in Dunedin.Both squads had some downtime in the unusually long break between matches. The Auckland-based New Zealand players who briefly returned home had to hastily leave the city when lockdown was announced and underwent precautionary Covid-19 tests which all came back negative on Monday. New Zealand were the first international side to play behind closed doors during the pandemic, against Australia at the SCG last March, but this will be their first time since.

Last T20I switched to enable Australia to catch charter flight home

Another change has been made to the schedule for the series with the final match on Sunday switched to an earlier start to allow Australia to get a charter flight home from Wellington that evening.

Australia have been desperate to avoid having to quarantine for two weeks on returning home which they would have had to do if they transited through Auckland as was the original plan which is now a “red zone” due to a Covid-19 outbreak.

It means the men will play the first of the double-header matches starting at 12pm local time followed by the New Zealand Women v England Women T20I.

NZC has said if alert levels are lowered in time for the Sunday matches then crowds will be allowed to attend in Wellington.

“We’re thankful NZC have rescheduled so we can avoid those hot zones and we can get back without quarantine,” Andrew McDonald, Australia’s coach, said. “It’s a positive any time you can avoid 14 days of hotel quarantine. I wouldn’t wish it upon too many people to be perfectly honest.”

Form guide

(last five completed matches)
New Zealand WWLWW
Australia LLWLL

In the spotlight

Glenn Maxwell hasn’t got going yet in the series with scores of 1 and 3. In the opening match he edged the swinging new ball to slip and in the second was well caught at short third man when off a top-edged reverse sweep. Where he comes in is dedicated by how many wickets Australia have lost and the ideal scenario is a base to work from but a reasonable number of overs remaining. Depending on the balance of Australia’s attack it could be that his offspin is used a bit more having sent down one over in the series so far.Trent Boult has impressed in two contrasting stages of the innings in the first two games. In Christchurch he found movement with the new ball and claimed early wickets to seal the game, then in Dunedin produced the over that gave New Zealand breathing space at the death when he went for just six in the 18th against the brutal bats of Stoinis and Sams. He has been the standout pace bowler on either side.New Zealand can secure the series with victory in the first of three Wellington matches•Getty Images

Team news

Mitchell Santner was ruled out on the afternoon of the game after waking with a head cold. He was self-isolating as a precaution while awaiting the result of a Covid test. It means New Zealand will have to rebalance their attack. Pace bowler Adam Milne, who is based in Wellington, was drafted into the squad while seamer Hamish Bennett is the other bowling option available.New Zealand (probable) 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Tim Seifert, 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Devon Conway, 5 Glenn Phillips, 6 Jimmy Neesham, 7 Kyle Jamieson, 8 Tim Southee, 9 Ish Sodhi, 10 Hamish Bennett, 11 Trent BoultAustralia coach Andrew McDonald hinted at a change or two being made although he did that before the second match and it became the same XI. There could be a chance that they strengthen the pace attack, perhaps with Andrew Tye or Jason Behrendorff, at the expense of a spinner, although both Ashton Agar and Adam Zampa were given a vote of confidence, or boost the batting and rely on more overs from the allrounders.Australia (possible) 1 Aaron Finch, 2 Josh Philippe, 3 Matthew Wade (wk), 4 Glenn Maxwell, 5 Marcus Stoinis, 6 Mitchell Marsh, 7 Daniel Sams, 8 Ashton Agar/Andrew Tye/Jason Behrendorff/D’Arcy Short, 9 Jhye Richardson, 10 Kane Richardson, 11 Adam Zampa

Pitch and conditions

The Cake Tin, as it is colloquially known, has the lowest run rate (8.03) of any T20I venue in New Zealand. One of the quirks is that teams don’t train at the ground, instead using the Basin Reserve, so visiting sides don’t have much change to assess conditions although with three games in a row there is time for Australia to get used to them. The forecast is for a cloudy but dry evening.

Stats and trivia

• Australia have only played one previous T20I at the venue in 2010
• New Zealand have a good record at the ground with eight wins from 12 matches. Last season they lost in a Super Over against India

Quotes

“The one thing we can control is our bowling. We’ll look at how we use our bowling in that [middle] phase of the game. Clearly as a batting unit we’re trying to be aggressive in that period of time anyway. It’s more how we defend the New Zealand batters and what match-ups we use in that period of time I’d say where we get the most improvement out of our performance.”
Andrew McDonald“It’s definitely different. At the end of the day think it comes down to individuals’ attitudes around that and how they respond. Of course we love playing in front of crowds, but in this Covid era we need to be able to adapt and it’s something we pride ourselves and hope you see a really good performance out of us still.”

Darcie Brown and Hannah Darlington are in line for international debuts as New Zealand gear up to host three ODIs and three T20Is

Daniel Brettig23-Feb-2021Ellyse Perry, Meg Lanning, Rachael Haynes, Alyssa Healy, Jess Jonassen and Megan Schutt are the core of one of the greatest Australian Women’s sides yet to take the field. Their quality has helped the national team to victories at each of the past two T20 World Cups and dominant runs of victories in bilateral series, in addition to their pioneering place in the game’s vault into full-time professionalism in Australia.While this generation remains a lauded bunch still vital to the team’s fortunes, the national selector Shawn Flegler is having to plan for the days when they begin to sidle off into retirement, either one by one – as he would no doubt prefer – or as a group leaving an enormous hole. The delay in the next ODI World Cup, meant to have been played in New Zealand presently but postponed by a year ostensibly due to the Covid-19 pandemic, means it is a younger squad going across the Tasman for a series against New Zealand.

Australia tour of New Zealand schedule

• 1st T20I: March 28 – Seddon Park, Hamilton

• 2nd T20I: March 30 – McLean Park, Napier

• 3rd T20I April 1 – Eden Park, Auckland

• 1st ODI: April 4 – Bay Oval. Mount Maunganui

• 2nd ODI: April 7 – Bay Oval. Mount Maunganui

• 3rd ODI: April 10 – Bay Oval. Mount Maunganui

This is partly to add to the options Australia have available this time next year, notably the re-addition of Tayla Vlaeminck after she missed the 2020 T20 World Cup on home soil with serious injury, but it is also part of the bigger-picture plans to keep “topping up” the Australian XI with fresh generations, much as Sophie Molineux, Georgia Wareham, and Annabel Sutherland have emerged as regulars over the past couple of years.Related

• Vlaeminck in ESPNcricinfo 20 women cricketers for the 2020s

• Australia won't rush back Vlaeminck

“We’ve got an amazing team right now. It’s a strong team, we’ve been able to introduce some young players over the last couple of years in Annabel and Sophie and Georgia, Tahlia McGrath’s had a couple of games here and there as well,” Flegler said. “But you’ve got to keep evolving as a team, you can’t sit still; the competition from around the world is going to keep getting stronger.”You saw that Indian side with a few of their young players like Shafali Verma, a 16-year-old, so they’re getting international experience and it’s important our best young players get that experience where possible as well.”That’s the challenge over the next few years, we’ve got some of the best players in the history of Australian cricket playing right now, but at some point the end comes for everyone, so we need to make sure that team keeps evolving and keeps getting stronger.”That wider focus goes some way to explaining why the likes of Sammy-Jo Johnson, Erin Burns, Molly Strano, Heather Graham and Elyse Villani are missing from the ranks as well as they have played in recent editions of the WBBL. Instead, Darcie Brown, Hannah Darlington are set to experience their first international games, while Sutherland can expect graduating levels of exposure as a batting allrounder who was encouraged wherever possible to go on the attack with the Melbourne Stars.”Darcie had an outstanding WBBL, a fast bowler, bowling outswing at 17, nearly 18 years of age, an exciting prospect, I’ve seen her since she was 13 or 14, first saw her at the Under-15 national championship,” Flegler said. “So, she’s always had that ball speed within her, she’s improved her accuracy over the last 12 months, but really exciting prospect and I’m sure she’ll enjoy the opportunity over there.Head coach Matthew Mott with Ellyse Perry and Tayla Vlaeminck•Getty Images

“Hannah has been involved in the pathway all the way through as well, change-up in pace, that sort of closing death bowler option. With Delissa [Kimmince] unavailable for selection, we thought Hannah would be a great addition, particularly for the T20Is, that’s the focus for Hannah. The bonus is with her leadership qualities as well, I’ve seen that in the pathway, she’s captained NSW Metro and has been selected as vice-captain for NSW – I don’t think they’re particularly happy with me selecting her for this tour, but a great opportunity.”Vlaeminck’s return allows Australia to look again to the sorts of plans they had before the T20 World Cup, namely to use her express pace in the way that Perry’s was once harnessed, in balance with the swing of Schutt and the spin of Jonassen, Wareham and Molineux. “For someone like Tayla, who 12 months ago when she got that injury, you would’ve thought the World Cup was out of the question for her, but now we’re 12 months out from the World Cup, she has the opportunity to go over to New Zealand and test her skills over there,” Flegler said.”It’s another 12 months into playing Darcie and Annabel, even Georgia and Sophie Molineux, another 12 months of international cricket is great for those players, so while it was disappointing, to have this opportunity to go over there and play some games in those conditions 12 months out from a World Cup is an absolute bonus, whereas we wouldn’t have been doing that if the World Cup was on right now. So, [it is] a great opportunity.”I can’t imagine we’ll be able to play Tayla in all the matches, she’s coming back from a big injury and we’re still managing her workloads. It’s really important we see her as a really long-term player for Australia and she’s a high-risk athlete. You watch her bowl, it’s exciting, but she’s on the edge the whole time. We want to make sure she’s still bowling for Australia in 10 years hopefully, so we need to look after her, make sure she gets through this series.”Australia ODI and T20I squad: Meg Lanning (capt), Rachael Haynes, Darcie Brown, Nicola Carey, Hannah Darlington, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy (wk), Jess Jonassen, Tahlia McGrath, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Wareham, Belinda Vakarewa, Tayla Vlaeminck

Wicketkeeper-batsman played a total of 292 matches for his country in a 16-year career

Matt Roller19-Mar-2021Gary Wilson, Ireland’s long-serving wicketkeeper-batsman, has called time on his professional career and taken up a role as head coach and pathway manager for North-West Warriors in the interprovincial set-up.Wilson made 188 appearances across his Test, ODI and T20I careers, and a further 104 for the national team in matches without full international status, making him Ireland’s third most capped player of all time.His career overlapped with those of fellow keepers Niall O’Brien and, more recently, Lorcan Tucker, but he took the gloves for the majority of his international career and his ability with the bat in the middle order meant that he was a regular in the side even when he was overlooked behind the stumps.He was part of the Ireland squad at seven major ICC events – two 50-over World Cups and five World T20s – and captained the side in the T20 World Cup qualifiers in late 2019, which earned them their spot in the tournament later this year.Wilson also enjoyed a long career in county cricket. He was on the books at Surrey for more than a decade after graduating from the MCC Young Cricketers programme, captaining the club 33 times across formats between 2014 and 2015, and later spent two seasons at Derbyshire, where he captained the side in the T20 Blast.