11:14 AM GMT ESPNcricinfo staff Joe Root, the England captain, says that his team’s overwhelming reaction was one of “relief” after their two-Test tour of Sri Lanka was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The tour’s postponement was confirmed with England midway through the second day of their final warm-up match in Colombo, ahead of
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Marnus Labuschagne goes inside out against spin © EPA The remaining two matches of the Chappell-Hadlee one-day series will not take place along with the three-match T20I series between the two teams in New Zealand later this month due to new travel restrictions imposed by the New Zealand government amid the coronavirus pandemic. More to
5:28 PM GMT ESPNcricinfo staff The ECB are preparing themselves for the possibility that portions of the English domestic season could be played behind closed doors, postponed or cancelled outright, as the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic continue to sweep the game. In the wake of this morning’s postponement of the Test tour of Sri
12:57 PM GMT ESPNcricinfo staff England’s tour match against a Sri Lanka Board President’s XI was called off 11 overs after tea on the second day, a few minutes after the ECB confirmed that the Test series scheduled for later this month had been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. ALSO READ: England series in
3:30 AM GMT Kevin Roberts, the Cricket Australia chief executive, has denied it was “irresponsible” to play Sunday’s women’s T20 World Cup final in front of more than 86,000 spectators at the MCG. However, he has acknowledged the potential exposure of many in attendance to the coronavirus helped lead to the decision to play the
6:39 PM GMT England’s Test series against West Indies and the T20 Blast are under threat from the COVID-19 pandemic, with both events scheduled for a period that the UK government has identified as the likely peak of the virus in the country. Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed at a press conference on Thursday afternoon
9:56 AM GMT It is now a strong possibility that IPL 2020 will take place behind closed doors, in light of the coronavirus threat, with the Indian government indicating it will not stop sporting events from taking place as long as they adhere strictly to health-ministry guidelines discouraging mass gatherings. On Wednesday, the World Health
7:13 PM GMT ESPNcricinfo staff Jack Leach will be given his chance to prove he is ready for a Test return in Galle next week, after being named in England’s XI for their final warm-up match, against a Sri Lanka President’s XI, which gets underway in Colombo on Wednesday. Leach has endured a miserable winter
2:11 PM GMT Cheteshwar Pujara is unlikely to feature in the remainder of the Ranji Trophy final because of back spasms. India’s Test No. 3 felt some stiffness in his back prior to taking the field on Wednesday, the third day of the ongoing final against Bengal, in Rajkot. He eventually didn’t take the field
9:57 AM GMT ESPNcricinfo staff England’s cricket team will refrain from taking selfies with fans and limit public engagements on their tour of Sri Lanka amid the global Coronavirus outbreak. The team also asked “all supporters joining the tour to maintain good levels of hygiene” as advised by the World Health Organisation Britain’s National Health
England will defend their World Cup title in New Zealand next year © Getty Images England will begin the defence of their Women’s World Cup title against Australia in Auckland the day after New Zealand open the tournament on February 6, Waitangi Day. The 30-day, 31-match tournament concludes with the final at Hagley Oval in
1:49 PM GMT Lahore Qalandars will field first, having won the toss. Sohail Akhtar believed dew would play a part later on in the evening, and Lahore will look to keep up the momentum that they have built up over the last two games, which they won. Lahore have only ever won three games in
7:40 AM GMT Vishal Dikshit in Mumbai Jonty Rhodes believes South Africa should “do anything” to win the T20 World Cup, and that means picking AB de Villiers, who hasn’t played international cricket for nearly two years. But the former batsman is concerned that picking de Villiers in this fashion could set a worrying “precedent”
6:15 PM GMT Owners of all eight franchises have signed a letter that was sent to the IPL, asking the league to put on hold the proposed changes concerning the league standing money and the hosting fee payable to the state associations that house the venues. Among the owners that signed letter, which was sent
10:16 AM GMT Following their axing from the Bangladesh Test side, Mahmudullah and Mustafizur Rahman have been included only in the white-ball players’ list in the latest BCB central contracts (Jan to Dec 2020), which for the first time have players separated according to formats. Mashrafe Mortaza, who has stepped down as ODI captain –
2:50 PM GMT Lahore Qalandars captain Sohail Akhtar won the toss and chose to field against Karachi Kings in Lahore in the second half of Sunday’s PSL double-header. Lahore are seeking to build on a resounding eight-wicket win over Quetta Gladiators in an effort to dig themselves out of the cellar on the PSL points
2:03 PM GMT ESPNcricinfo staff England 316 and 39 for 1 (Crawley 27*, Anjula 1-14) lead Sri Lanka Cricket XI 245 (Priyanjan 77, Parkinson 4-68) by 110 runs Matt Parkinson did his best to make a statement to England selectors ahead of the first Test in Sri Lanka by claiming four wickets as the visitors
2:00 AM GMT “We skipped uni for Beth Mooney,” read a placard at one of Australia’s group games at the T20 World Cup. From a squad that boasts superstars in the likes of Ellyse Perry, Meg Lanning, and Alyssa Healy, not often does Mooney, the left-handed opener for Australia, occupy front of mind. That placard,