Category: England Cricket

England Cricket News

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Mickey Arthur drafted into new coaches panel to mend England’s ties with county cricket

  • Director of cricket Rob Key keen to ‘work together better’

  • Arthur is former head coach of South Africa and Pakistan

Mickey Arthur, the former South Africa and Pakistan head coach, is one of four appointments to England’s new County Insight Group as the national team seeks to repair relations with the domestic game in the wake of last winter’s Ashes defeat.

Among the recommendations from the internal Ashes review that saw Rob Key and Brendon McCullum remain as director of cricket and men’s head coach respectively was improved dialogue with the county game, not least regarding selection.

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Sibley’s century gives Surrey edge over Essex: county cricket, day three – as it happened

Dom Sibley scored 101 as Surrey carved out a 63-run first-innings lead over Essex, who finished the day on 19 for no wicket

Thanks to Tim Maitland who has an eye on the Headingley stream. “Lengthy stoppage after the first ball of the day at Headingley, after Tom Price injured an ankle fielding on the boundary.”

Lawrence tucks into Simon Harmer, muscling him to the rope to reach fifty off 74 balls.

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County cricket: Abell defies Hampshire’s fiery Baker to keep Somerset on high – as it happened

Former captain struck second hiscentury of season to light flames in West Country hearts while Warwickshire beat Essex

Three in the over for Barker! Charlie Allison, bowled by one that may have kept a bit low. Essex 16 for three...

​Early wickets in sunny Brumbados, Keith Barker striking first ball from the Pavilion End as Dean Elgar is trapped lbw offering no shot. In comes Tall Paul to join Sam Cook, who spared him the hassle last night but has since squirted Barker’s third ball of the day to cover. That’s Barker’s 700th career wicket across formats. Essex 16 for two (need another 190) and an inauspicious start.

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Hampshire v Somerset, Warwickshire v Essex, and more: county cricket – as it happened

Hampshire were frustrated by Somerset’s wagging tail, while Ethan Bamber and Keith Barker kept Warwickshire in the hunt at Edgbaston

At Southampton, Kyle Abbott is hustling with admirable vigour. Baker still running in from the other end, elbows horizontally churning. Rew (85) and Abell (41) have now put on a hundred for the fourth wicket. Somerset 175-3, 63 behind.

And three for Jimmy Anderson, two in an over, old teammate Will Williams lbw and Henry Brookes caught. Gloucestershire all out 136, and I predict a couple of days of toil in the field.

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Lancashire to put matches behind paywall; Rew sparkles for Somerset on rain-hit day – as it happened

James Rew’s unbeaten 77 helped put Somerset in a strong position after bowling out Hampshire for 238, while Jamie Porter made inroads for Essex at Egbaston before the weather intervened

Bad news for Lancs at Bristol, where Ajeet Singh Dale seems to have done something nasty to his hamstring and has limped off. A real shame on his return to his old club. Glos 8-0.

A fascinating piece by Emma John, with a mention of Benny Howell of Hants, Glos and more.

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Ben Stokes plays down talk of McCullum disagreement but plans ‘different’ path to success

  • Stokes: ‘Agreeing on every single thing, that’s impossible’

  • Pair will ‘work together in a slightly different way’

Ben Stokes has moved to play down suggestions of a disagreement between himself and Brendon McCullum, insisting he and the England head coach remain aligned despite an Ashes defeat that, at times, suggested otherwise.

In a video released by the England and Wales Cricket Board on Tuesday, the England Test captain stressed that he and McCullum agreeing with each other all the time would be “unhealthy”. They continue to share the same overall vision for the team, he added, but things will look “different” this summer.

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‘Carelessly squandered’: Wisden scolds England’s tumultuous Ashes tour

  • Series defeat in Australia ‘a chance so blithely spurned’

  • Indian dominance and Starc’s sacrifice recognised

The latest edition of Wisden is ­unsparing in its criticism of England’s Test team, describing their Ashes defeat in Australia as a “wing-and-a-prayer” campaign that ended up “feckless, reckless and legless”.

Published this Thursday, the sport’s longstanding bible has a strong Indian flavour to its awards. Haseeb Hameed, captain of title-winning Nottinghamshire, is the sole Englishman among the five ­players of the year, with Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja and ­Mohammed Siraj recognised for their roles in last year’s memorable 2-2 Test series draw in England.

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Surrey v Leicestershire, Essex v Somerset, and more: county cricket, day four – live

Updates from 11am BST start across the grounds
Sign up for the Spin | Mail Tanya or comment BTL

And the third! Aitchison on a hat-trick. A huge smile at the top of his run gets huger as Bailey plays inside the line and loses his stumps. Lancs 147-8. Mitch Stanley comes out, dropping his helmet and generally getting dressed as he does.

Second ball does it! Coughlin trudging back after a corking ball from Aitchison has him edging behind. Lancs 147-7, the lead 124.

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County cricket season begins: Somerset v Notts, Leicestershire v Sussex and more, day one – live

Updates from 11am BST across the grounds
Team-by-team guide | Email Tanya or comment BTL

A smattering/ripple/slurp of applause as the players take the field. Tom Haines and Daniel Hughes in the middle. A windswept Ian Holland with the ball, the umpire in gloves. Here we go…

Ali Martin spoke to Shoaib Bashir. I really hope he finds the pastures welcoming at Derby – must have been a topsy-turvy few years.

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England interest rekindled and injury substitutes arrive as county cricket returns

  • County Championship kicks off on Good Friday

  • ECB and Ben Stokes say England places are up for grabs

With more of a sparkle in its eye than for years, the County Championship shimmies into life on Good Friday, coat done up, gloves fastened.

After years of wrangling, the schedule has been settled (for now), and the three-year Kookaburra ball trial, which had seam bowlers weeping into their Weetabix, dumped, but there is still place for a regulatory tweak, and it’s a substantial one. This year, the England and Wales Cricket Board is trialling substitutes, allowing a player to be replaced by a fully playing sub, rather than just a covering fielder. And the terms of reference have broadened too: the system will cover sickness and significant life events – such as the birth of a child or a family illness – as well as injury.

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Tribe’s Lions heroics fuel Glamorgan’s belief on return to Championship elite

Bespectacled young batter shone on England duty in Australia and is primed to make a splash in Division One

The daffodils were in suitable bloom in Cardiff, swathes of them, creeping from under the trees in Bute Park, yolky heads bobbing in the spring sunshine. A few hundred metres up the road, Glamorgan’s players were gathering at Sophia Gardens before their biggest season in years, back in Division One of the County Championship for the first time since 2005.

Their campaign last year was a slow burner but blossomed, a close-knit side playing confidently. Alongside a thousand runs each from Colin Ingram and Kiran Carlson were eye-catching performances from two talented then 21-year-olds, Ben Kellaway and Asa Tribe, who went on to be picked for the Lions tours in the winter. In their shellacking by Australia A in the unofficial Test, Tribe hit an unbeaten 129, which was enough to get him a namecheck from the England managing director, Rob Key, in pre-season media musings – the only non-capped player to be mentioned.

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