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Scotland will host Kenya for a five-match series between June 30 to July 10, and the teams will play two World Cricket League matches, two T20 matches and one Intercontinental Cup match

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jun-2013Cricket Scotland has announced that Kenya will tour Scotland for a five-match series between June 30 to July 10. The teams will play two World Cricket League (WCL) Championship matches, two T20 matches and an Intercontinental Cup fixture. All matches will be played at the Mannofield ground in Aberdeen.

Scotland v Kenya 2013 Fixtures

30 June: 1st WCL match
2 July: 2nd WCL match
4 July: 1st T20
5 July: 2nd T20
7-10 July: Intercontinental Cup game

The WCL matches are important for Scotland and Kenya. The teams are currently placed third and fifth respectively, behind leaders Ireland and Netherlands after five rounds of the seven-round tournament.The top two teams will automatically qualify for the World Cup in 2015, and Kenya and Scotland will look to win both matches to better their chances of finishing in the top two.Teams ranked between third and eighth in the league have another shot at qualifying for the World Cup as they will play the qualifiers in New Zealand in February 2014, to compete for the last two spots.Scotland will play their final round of matches against Ireland in September, while Kenya will play Afghanistan in their last two matches of the WCL.

Peter Moores has been accepted on to UK Sport’s Elite Programme for world-class coaching development

George Dobell05-Mar-2013Peter Moores has been accepted on to UK Sport’s Elite Programme for world-class coaching development. The Lancashire head coach is one of only 10 coaches to be accepted on to the programme and one of only two from non-Olympic sports.As part of the role, Moores will share knowledge and expertise with leading coaches currently working in British sport during a three-year programme which was announced by UK Sport last November. The programme is designed to help ensure Britain’s leading athletes can continue to benefit from top-quality coaching as part of UK Sport’s wider planning for the next Olympiad in Rio in 2016. It will not affect his role with Lancashire.There may be a few raised eye-brows at the appointment. Moores endured some disappointing results in his tenure as England coach in 2007 and 2008 and, along with the captain Kevin Pietersen, was sacked after it became clear that the pair’s working relationship had deteriorated to an unsustainable level.His record at domestic level is exceptional, however. He coached Sussex to the first Championship title in their history in 2003 and, having moved to Old Trafford, took a Lancashire side some thought the weakest in many years to a well-deserved Championship title in 2011.While relegation followed in 2012, Moores’ reputation among most players at both clubs and within the England set-up is excellent. He was largely responsible for recognising the international potential of Graeme Swann and Matt Prior and was the man who decided to install James Anderson and Stuart Broad as the leaders of England’s attack. Andy Flower, the current England coach, has always been quick to credit Moores for his foundation-laying role with the side and, when the PCB wanted an independent review of its domestic cricket structure conducted last November, they appointed Moores for the task.”Peter has always been at the forefront of our ongoing efforts to ensure that cricket can learn and share best coaching practice with other sports and I am delighted that he has been chosen to be part of such a prestigious and innovative programme,” Hugh Morris, the ECB’s managing director of England cricket, said. “It is a tremendous personal honour for him and will undoubtedly be of long-term benefit to our game.””I am proud and honoured to have been selected for this fantastic programme,” Moores said. “I have always thrived in elite coaching environments and to be working with top coaches from other sports will be an incredible experience. I continue to have very strong ambitions for my coaching career within cricket and I see this as a great marker in that path. I’d like to thank Lancashire CCC and the ECB for their support throughout this process.”Lancashire’s Cricket Director Mike Watkinson added: “We are delighted that Peter has been accepted to be a part of this world class coaching programme. Despite his successes and achievements as a coach he always strives to improve personally and create a challenging environment for himself and his players. This will be a great opportunity to further develop and share knowledge and experiences across the various sports.”

Travis Head, the South Australia batsman, has suffered head and back injuries as a result of being hit by a car outside an Adelaide hotel on Sunday night

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Jan-2013Travis Head, the South Australia batsman, has suffered head and back injuries as a result of being hit by a car outside an Adelaide hotel on Sunday night. Head, 19, spent the night in hospital but was released on Monday morning and was at home with his family, and was expected to make a full recovery.Head had been out with team-mates celebrating South Australia’s Sheffield Shield victory over Victoria, a match in which he made a valuable contribution of 35 in their chase of 189, when he was struck by a car. The South Australian Cricket Association chief executive Keith Bradshaw said Head was fortunate not to have been more badly hurt.”Ambulance officers were called to the scene and Travis was taken to hospital for treatment,” Bradshaw told reporters in Adelaide on Monday. “He has stitches in his head and back but was released from hospital this morning and is expected to make a full recovery.”I have spoken to Travis this morning. Ambulance officers attending the scene told him that the fact he was under the legal [alcohol] limit may well have saved his life. We are extremely relieved that he did not sustain further injuries and is now at home with his family.”Head, a left-hand batsman who has played 11 first-class games, is considered one of South Australia’s brightest young prospects. As well as being named player of the Under-19 national championships for the second consecutive year, he sits third on South Australia’s Sheffield Shield run tally this summer with 356 runs, behind only Phillip Hughes and Callum Ferguson.

he first day of the Bangalore Test was a perfect one for neutrals as the New Zealand had their most productive day of the series, setting up a challenge for India’s batsmen over the weekend

Siddarth Ravindran in Bangalore31-Aug-2012The first day of the Bangalore Test was a perfect one for neutrals as the underdogs New Zealand had their most productive day of the series, setting up a challenge for India’s batsmen over the weekend. New Zealand fans will be thrilled with the scoreline of 328 for 6, but India weren’t too disheartened after a day on which they were distinctly second-best.The track at the Chinnaswamy Stadium is traditionally batting friendly – the last time a team batting first didn’t make 400 was back in 2001 when England made 336 – and left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha was confident India could match any score New Zealand put up. “The way things are going it’s a good wicket to bat,” he said after the first day’s play. “The kind of batting we have, I am quite confident we can put up a good score.”India could have eroded New Zealand’s advantage had they managed to prise apart a quick 82-run stand for the seventh wicket between Kruger van Wyk and Doug Bracewell in the third session, but Ojha was satisfied with India’s bowling performance. “It was a good first-day wicket and in this kind of surface, they were trying to be aggressive. I think that is what their game plan was. Ross [Taylor] played quite well too. Nevertheless, we picked up six wickets today.”New Zealand maintained a punishing run-rate through much of the day, picking on fast bowler Umesh Yadav in particular. Yadav was generally either too short or too full, gifting boundary-balls in nearly every over as he was taken for almost six an over. The rest of the attack too looked clueless during the hour after lunch when Taylor and Daniel Flynn were scoring at seven an over. Ojha, though, was adamant the bowling didn’t lack discipline.”Zak [Zaheer Khan] bowled superbly in his first spell,” he said. “There was one catch dropped (Martin Guptill was put down by Virat Kohli at third slip in the 10th over), and if that had been taken then it would have been a different story as at that time the pitch was doing a bit. I think Ash [R Ashwin] and Umesh bowled well too. Taking six wickets on this kind of a wicket, which is not doing much, was a good effort.”While the consensus was that it was a bat-first surface, the quicks were expected to get some assistance in the first hour before the track eased out. To everyone’s surprise, though, MS Dhoni decided to open the bowling with Ojha, the first time India have started an innings with a specialist spinner. Ojha didn’t pick up any wickets with the new ball, but explained the thinking behind the unexpected move. “There was some moisture on the wicket and sometime when there is moisture the ball grips, so we wanted to make use of that.”New Zealand opener Guptill was nearly dismissed by Ojha in the third over, when an edge flew past slip, after which he decided to attack the spinner. “I was a little bit surprised (when Ojha opened the bowling),” Guptill said. “We got some interesting balls early on but we were able to get over it.”While his 53 and Taylor’s blistering century have set New Zealand on course for a competitive total, Guptill was aware his side still had plenty to do. “We have to keep up the positive intent. If we put 400-450 on the board and attack them then it’s going to put some pressure on India,” he said. “There is a bit of swing and seam on this wicket and if we can pick up a few wickets early on, it’ll be great.”Ahead of the Test, New Zealand captain Taylor had spoken about how one bad session is enough to ruin a Test; the weekend will show whether his side can sustain their performance after a strong start.

Sri Lanka and Australia will each want to set the tone for the tour with a first-up Twenty20 victory, as much to build confidence in their transitional teams as to get their opponents worried

The Preview by Daniel Brettig05-Aug-2011

Match facts

August 6, Pallekele International Cricket Stadium
Start time 19:00 (13:30 GMT, 23:30 EST)

Big Picture

Australia commence their tour of Sri Lanka under a captain, Cameron White, who will be flying home once the Twenty20 matches have concluded. Sri Lanka, by contrast will be led in all three formats by Tillakaratne Dilshan, leading the team at home for the first time after taking over the reins for the England tour earlier this year.Until a narrow victory over England in the second of two T20 matches following the Ashes, Australia’s form in the shortest format had been poor, losing comfortably to the Sri Lankans in Perth last October and suffering a 2-0 series reverse against Pakistan in England during the 2010 northern summer. Michael Clarke’s retirement from international T20 matches handed the captaincy to White, and he will now be hoping to get the tourists off to a strong start in Kandy.The Sri Lankans have done rather better of late, defeating England in England, but that was their first T20 international since the aforementioned defeat of Australia at the WACA. Lasith Malinga’s unavailability is a significant loss for the hosts, particularly as the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium and its new pitches have the potential for greater pace than most other surfaces on the island.Both sides will want to set the tone for the tour with a first-up victory, as much to build confidence in their transitional teams as to get their opponents worried.

Form guide

Sri Lanka WWWLL
Australia WLLLL

In the spotlight

Angelo Mathews missed the Test series against Engalnd due to injury but eased his way back into some form during the subsequent limited overs matches to demonstrate why he was entrusted with the vice-captaincy before his 24th birthday. Explosive with the bat and intelligent with the ball, he played a key role in lifting the Sri Lankans to a memorable ODI victory over Australia at the MCG last year and will want to repeat the dose on home soil.Steve O’Keefe, like his captain White, is only in Sri Lanka for the T20 matches, and is intent on showing that he should have been allowed to stay on. Peculiarly, his first-class bowling record is far better than any of his spin bowling rivals in Australia, but thus far the national selectors have declined to employ him further. O’Keefe has made no secret of his desire to push for bigger honours, and he can make a start by performing capably here to back-up the 3-29 he took on his T20 debut for Australia against Pakistan in 2010.

Team news

Sri Lanka’s squad includes no fewer than six capable bowlers of spin, while the pace attack looks thin without Malinga, meaning Mathews or Nuwan Kulasekara can be expected to operate with the new ball. Aaron Finch is expected to be available having recovered from a rolled ankle suffered in training, and James Pattinson could be in line for a T20 debut.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Mahela Jayawardene, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan (capt), 3 Kumar Sangakkara, 4 Angelo Mathews, 5 Chamara Silva, 6 Jeevan Mendis, 7 Dinesh Chandimal (wk), 8 Thisara Perera, 9 Nuwan Kulasekara, 10 Suraj Randiv, 11 Suranga LakmalAustralia (probable): 1 David Warner, 2 Shane Watson, 3 Brad Haddin (wk), 4 David Hussey, 5 Cameron White (capt), 6 Shaun Marsh, 7 Steven Smith, 8 Steve O’Keefe, 9 Mitchell Johnson, 10 Brett Lee, 11 James Pattinson

Pitch and conditions

The Australians have been delighted by a hint of pace in the Kandy practice wickets and are hopeful for more of the same from the match strip. The Sri Lankans have trained in the evening to prepare for any moisture that may be present for a 7pm start.

Stats and trivia

• This is Australia’s first T20 international in Sri Lanka
• It is also the first such fixture at the Pallekelle International Stadium
• Sri Lanka’s captain Dilshan is the oldest man on either side at 34, shading the Australian fast bowler Brett Lee by a little more than a month
• Dilshan will be looking for a greater share of his team’s runs, having made a meagre 23 in the five ODIs against England

Quotes

“Australian usually play very hard. They may be a bit inexperienced. But they are tough opponents.”

“Definitely I think the way a series should be run, or a tour should be run, is that you start with your Twenty20s, then your one-dayers and then your Test matches.”

Gilchrist said that while players were interested in not having international fixtures clash with the Twenty20 tournament because of the money they stand to earn, the window would also help build the IPL brand

Cricinfo staff11-Mar-2010Adam Gilchrist, the Deccan Chargers captain, has become the latest to talk of the need for an IPL window. While players were interested in avoiding a clash between the Twenty20 tournament and international fixture list because of the money they stand to earn, he said, the window would also help build the IPL brand.”The ICC and IPL need to really sit down at the table and look closer (at the window),” he said, a day ahead of his team’s opening match against Kolkata Knight Riders. “I am beginning to believe that the players across the globe would like a window to be available because of the glaringly obvious part of a good financial return for players.”But along with that it is premier club competition in the world. If the players feel part of that and are desperate to be part of it is only going to help the brand and there is great benefit for the game of cricket.”Deccan are one of the teams least affected by the lack of a window, with only Australian fast bowler Ryan Harris expected to miss a chunk of the IPL due to international commitments. West Indian fast bowler Kemar Roach could also miss the first couple of IPL matches since he will be busy wrapping up the one-day series against Zimbabwe.A surfeit of Twenty20 matches are scheduled over the next couple of months, with the World Twenty20 starting less than a week after the end of the IPL. Gilchrist said he was happy the IPL was not looking to expand beyond the current six-to seven-week timeframe though new teams were joining the competition next season.”The IPL needs to be aware of not getting too big to the detriment of the game,” he said. “I read with interest Lalit Modi’s very pleasing comments that the commissioner and the committee are aware of that as they look to expand the competition but they are not looking to take too much more time.”

He was taken to the hospital for treatment, with his scans being sent to London for analysis

Danyal Rasool03-Jan-2025Pakistan will have to complete the second Test against South Africa in Cape Town without the services of their opening batter Saim Ayub, who has been ruled out of the remainder of the match after suffering a right ankle injury.Ayub had to be stretchered off the pitch in just the seventh over of the match, when Ryan Rickelton edged a delivery through the slips, sending Ayub off on a chase to deep third alongside Aamer Jamal. Jamal pulled it back in as Ayub stood poised to be the relay fielder, but lost his balance and twisted his ankle. He went down immediately and appeared in anguish holding the lower part of his leg as the physio rushed on.Despite prolonged treatment outside the boundary line, Ayub was unable to put any weight on his right ankle, and appeared to be in tears as he was placed on to a stretcher and taken off, with the injury casting a pall over proceedings for Pakistan. Things only got worse a few overs later when his replacement, Abdullah Shafique, put down a simple chance Aiden Markram at cover. It would not cost Pakistan much, though, with Markram falling to Khurram Shahzad two overs later.Ayub was sent to hospital soon after the incident, and shortly after the close of play, the PCB confirmed he would play no further part in the contest. “Saim underwent X-rays and MRI tests this afternoon,” the statement read. “The reports have been sent to specialists in London for further advice on the treatment and time away from competitive cricket.”Ayub has been a breakout star across formats over the last few months, and was Player of the Series when Pakistan beat South Africa 3-0 in the ODI series last month, scoring two hundreds in three games.He is one of the few all-format regulars for Pakistan, and was expected to be a key figure for the side in the upcoming Champions Trophy that Pakistan will host, beginning in February. That participation may now be in serious doubt.”It’s a big blow, the kind of form he’s in,” Salman Agha, Ayub’s team-mate, said at the close of play. “He would have been a great asset on this wicket. I wish him well and hopefully he’ll be better soon.”

New England cap could be among raft of players in demand with county contract due to expire

Matt Roller01-Jun-2023Josh Tongue was quick to talk up Worcestershire’s role in him winning his first Test cap for England against Ireland at Lord’s this week, but it remains to be seen if he will still be at the county in 2024.Tongue is the first Worcestershire player to make a men’s Test debut for England since Moeen Ali in 2014, and said on Tuesday that his debut would be “a massive thing” for the club. “There are a lot of people at Worcester who have influenced my career,” he added.But Tongue is among a number of Worcestershire players whose deals with the county are due to end this year and June 1, the day of his debut, also marks the date when county cricketers whose contracts expire at the end of a season are free to talk to other clubs.Jack Haynes, the 22-year-old batter, is also out of contract this season, and losing either player would be a significant blow for Worcestershire. Both Haynes and Tongue are graduates of the club’s academy, and were part of England Lions’ tour to Sri Lanka earlier this year.Worcestershire have enjoyed a strong start to the 2023 season on the pitch: they are joint-third in Division Two of the County Championship with two wins from six and have won all three of their T20 Blast games to date.But off it, they are in a state of flux. The club reported an annual loss of just over £200,000 for 2022 and their financial health is dependent on ECB distributions, which account for around 60% of their annual income.The club announced an intention to appoint a director of cricket in July 2022 but the position remains vacant, with Paul Pridgeon – the head of their ‘cricket steering group’, an unpaid role – in charge of contract negotiations with players and their representatives.Related

• Josh Tongue added to England men's Test squad to face Ireland

• Tongue set for Lord's debut as England leave Woakes out

• England and Ireland's Lord's appetiser lingers in shadow of future feasts

• County directors call for 'urgent' review into standard contracts amid franchise exodus

There are several other Worcestershire players whose existing contracts are due to expire at the end of this season including Pat Brown, Ben Cox, Dillon Pennington and Mitchell Stanley. They have already lost Moeen and Ed Barnard of late, who both joined Warwickshire last winter.Elsewhere, a number of players who have been part of recent England squads are out of contract. James Bracey and David Payne’s deals with Gloucestershire are up at the end of the year, while Dan Lawrence – who was today released from the England Test squad for T20 Blast duty – is in the final year of his Essex deal and Jordan Cox is in the same situation at Kent.Matt Parkinson, who made his Test debut a year ago this week, dropped out of Lancashire’s Championship side earlier this year and is also in the final year of his contract. He is now free to speak to other counties as he weighs up his future.Parkinson played one game on loan at Durham earlier this year, but they are understood to have lined up his twin brother Callum as their main spin-bowling target, having relied on overseas spinners in the Championship this season.The opening of county cricket’s ‘transfer window’ comes at a time when player contracts are up for discussion, with directors of cricket recently calling for an “urgent” review into the standard 12-month contract due to the proliferation of English players involved in franchise tournaments around the world.

Finishes with 109 wickets in 41 first-class matches and 47 wickets in 46 limited-overs games

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Nov-2020Uttar Pradesh’s Sudeep Tyagi, 33, called time on a stop-start 13-year career on Tuesday, the highlight being his elevation to the Indian team in 2009. In all, he featured in four ODIs and one T20I – all in the same year.Tyagi finishes with 109 wickets in 41 first-class matches and 47 wickets in 46 limited-overs games. He played a majority of these matches for Uttar Pradesh, the side he debuted for in 2007 with a 10-wicket haul. He followed that up with a nine-for in his second outing as Uttar Pradesh made their second straight Ranji Trophy final. Later on, he had brief stints at Saurashtra and Hyderabad.Tyagi’s India call-up came on the back of some incisive spells in the IPL for Chennai Super Kings in 2009. Although he managed just five wickets in eight games, the then selection committee, led by Kris Srikkanth, considered him a “great prospect” and handed him a debut in an ODI against Sri Lanka later that year, a match that was abandoned because of a poor pitch.”I have achieved what is every player’s dream to represent the country and wearing the Indian flag is a dream I lived,” he said in a statement. “I want to thank MS Dhoni under whom I played my first ODI. I want to thank my role models Mohammad Kaif, RP Singh and Suresh Raina. It is very difficult to do this but to move ahead we must let go.”A mixture of injuries and form meant he couldn’t be a regular in the domestic circuit anymore. His last competitive game was in 2017.

WBBL technical committee had not approved Hayley Silver-Holmes’ return to squad but she was listed in starting XI

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Nov-2020Cricket Australia are investigating the Sydney Sixers after they included Hayley Silver-Holmes in their playing XI to face the Melbourne Renegades at North Sydney Oval on Saturday without the pace bowler being part of their 15-member squad.Silver-Holmes had been recovering from a foot injury over the previous two weeks and had been replaced in the squad by Alisha Bates. Having recovered to play Saturday’s match against the Renegades, she was listed in the starting XI, but her return to the squad had not yet been approved by the tournament’s technical committee.The “administrative error”, which the Sixers alerted officials to themselves, was only spotted shortly before she was due to take the field for the second innings and she was withdrawn with Maddy Darke acting as a substitute fielder. Silver-Holmes had not batted during the Sixers’ innings, so she had not taken any active part in the game.”The rebel WBBL is aware of an administrative error pertaining to player selection in the Sydney Sixers-Melbourne Renegades match on Saturday,” a Cricket Australia statement said.”The Sixers self-reported an issue relating to Hayley Silver-Holmes’ paperwork shortly after the Sixers-Renegades game had commenced. Silver-Holmes did not bat nor take the field for the Renegades’ run-chase. The rebel WBBL will provide an update on the matter in due course.”It meant the Sixers were a bowler short as they failed to defend 166 and although captain Ellyse Perry was still able to call on seven others, they were not able to stop Lizelle Lee and Courtney Webb steering a fine chase.The defeat left the Sixers with only a slim chance of making the semi-finals with one match left on Sunday and needing the Sydney Thunder or the Perth Scorchers to lose, then having to beat the table-topping Melbourne Stars by a big margin to improve their net run-rate.