Cricket – Page 66 – Worldwide Sports News

September 26, 2023

England v Ireland: third men’s one-day international abandoned – as it happened

Ben Duckett, Phil Salt and Zak Crawley all starred with the bat before torrential rain brought a premature end to play in Bristol

5th over: England 65-0 (Salt 42, Jacks 22) Time for a bowling change, Paul Stirling reckons. On comes Craig Young, who has one job: to stem the flow. And he does, cramping the batters for room and going for just a run a ball. Miserly stuff.

4th over: England 60-0 (Salt 39, Jacks 19) Does Jacks settle for playing second fiddle? He does not. He has a gleam in his eye and he flicks Little’s first ball for six, then pulls for six more. Just for a change, Salt plays a straight drive for four. Alas, poor Little – when he does induce a top edge, it lands safely at short fine, and then Salt adds another four. That’s 23 off the over! And the fastest 50 in England ODI history.

September 22, 2023

Ben Duckett looking to nudge England selectors with World Cup looming

Duckett is vice-captain against Ireland at Trent Bridge
28-year-old excited by possible central contract

For England’s looming World Cup defence in India a gaggle of players will sit in reserve back home and it may just be that Ben Duckett is the best fit to jump on a plane should a batter go down injured during the tournament.

An option anywhere in the top seven and armed with an array of sweeps and reverse sweeps, the 28-year-old would offer Jos Buttler and the management excellent flexibility regardless of whether Jason Roy makes himself available. A pugnacious desire to get on with it – evidenced across all formats – is another thing to pop in the pros column.

June 3, 2023

England’s Ben Stokes insists he’s ‘on course to bowl’ in first Ashes Test

Captain ‘happy’ with fitness despite not bowling against Ireland
‘Very impressed’: Stokes hails Josh Tongue after fine showing

A week ago, Ben Stokes had never met Josh Tongue. But as the England captain heads into the Ashes series with questions over his own fitness, he fancies an additional fast bowler has been found to augment his attack.

Tongue was already in the 16-man squad for the first two Tests against Australia before completing a maiden five-wicket haul on debut at Lord’s, with England, a team in a hurry, naming the group at lunch on the third and final day against Ireland.