Cricket

England players dominate the BBL list with 14 names, Ashes stars Harry Brook and Zak Crawley among them, while there are seven in the WBBL platinum group. South Africa provide six of the WBBL players and India five. The drafts will take place on September 3. The WBBL runs from October 19 to December 2

Big picture: Back to the 20-over format Roll up, roll up! We’ve had rollercoaster men’s and women’s Ashes, the Hundred has enjoyed its month in the spotlight… but there’s still room in the sardine can for a bilateral white-ball series or three! Astute followers of the game will be aware that New Zealand arrived in

KL Rahul, India’s first-choice wicketkeeper-batter for the Asia Cup, will not be available for the first two matches at the tournament, against Pakistan and Nepal, head coach Rahul Dravid confirmed at a press conference prior to the start of the tournament. Dravid said Rahul has been “progressing really well”, but won’t be ready in time

You probably already know this name but if you don’t, remember it: Dewald Brevis. Tipped to become South Africa’s next big batting thing since finishing as the leading run-scorer at the 2022 Under-19 World Cup, Brevis has had to wait 18 months to crack the senior side and has racked up a host of domestic

India vice-captain Smriti Mandhana has opted out of the WBBL for the second year in a row, as she could play in the upcoming domestic season. She had skipped the 2022-23 WBBL as well to manage her workload and focus on her India commitments during a busy international year. This time, Mandhana did not put

For the first time WBBL overseas signings will be determined by a draft, taking place on September 3. Here is a full list of all the players nominated. Players that are eligible for a retention pick* have the club next to their name. There is one additional element in the WBBL with six players have

Kane Williamson has two weeks to prove his fitness for the ODI World Cup after he linked up with the New Zealand squad in England to continue his rehab from the ACL injury picked up at the IPL. When Williamson suffered the injury in April he was viewed as only a very slim chance of

Southern Brave 139 for 6 (Wyatt 59, Kemp 31, Cross 3-21) beat Northern Superchargers 105 (Moore 3-15, Bell 3-21) by 34 runs Anya Shrubsole signed off from professional cricket by lifting the Hundred trophy at Lord’s, captaining Southern Brave to their first title in their third final. After successive defeats to Oval Invincibles, they comprehensively

One of the most interesting aspects of the upcoming Australian cricket season is the identity of David Warner‘s successor at the top of the order in the Test team. It remains to be seen whether that vacancy will need filling against Pakistan in mid-December or against West Indies a month later. Warner wants to retire

Manchester Originals 201 for 3 (Buttler 82, Salt 47) beat Southern Brave 196 for 1 (Allen 68, Vince 56*, Conway 51*) by seven wickets Manchester Originals ransacked their way to the highest successful run-chase in the men’s Hundred on a night of boundary-fuelled belligerence at the Kia Oval, sweeping past a seemingly intimidating target set

Recently, Afghanistan beat Bangladesh 2-1 in a three-match ODI series in Chattogram before the home side hit back by winning the T20I series 2-0. Bangladesh won their last bilateral ODI series against Sri Lanka, although Sri Lanka, the co-hosts of the Asia Cup, dominate the head-to-head record 40-9. The two sides will meet on August

Pakistan, the hosts of the tournament, have been allotted just four of the 13 games after the BCCI expressed its inability to tour the country. This led to several flashpoints before a compromise was reached with the Asian Cricket Council, chaired by Jay Shah, who is also BCCI secretary, to sign off on a hybrid

Brook was a surprise omission from England’s 15-man squad last week and responded by hitting 105 not out from 42 balls for Northern Superchargers at Headingley on Tuesday night. He walked in at 10 for 3 after 20 balls, and the next-highest score was just 15. As things stand, he is likely to travel to

New Zealand 126 for 3 (Bowes 35, Phillips 32*, Seifert 30) beat Worcestershire 124 (O Cox 63, Ferguson 3-11, Ravindra 3-15, Jamieson 3-28) by seven wickets New Zealand launched their warm-up programme for the four-match T20I Series with England by defeating Worcestershire by seven wickets at a sold out New Road. The Black Caps fielded

Kallis, Powell and Irfan help California Knights edge past Atlanta Riders California Knights 94 for 2 (Kallis 38*, Powell 33*) beat Atlanta Riders 89 for 4 (Simmons 37, Siddle 2-15) by five runs Once captain Aaron Finch fell for 2, Kallis led California with an unbeaten 38 off 27. Powell dispatched three consecutive Elias Sunny

Birmingham Phoenix 185 for 5 (Smith 52, Duckett 47) beat London Spirit 108 (Mitchell 57, Milne 4-20, Sangha 3-15) by 77 runs Birmingham Phoenix blazed belatedly into form in the Men’s Hundred, signing off their campaign with a 77-run win over London Spirit at Edgbaston. Phoenix at last delivered the collective batting power display which

Qasim Akram will captain Pakistan at the Asian Games, where the men’s team will play for a gold medal in – T20 – cricket between September 28 and October 7 in Hangzhou, China. With World Cup preparations in full swing, Pakistan have, as expected, named a young, second-string squad, with Asif Ali, Mohammad Hasnain, Shahnawaz

South Africa have named Laura Wolvaardt as the new captain of their senior women’s team. Wolvaardt, 24, has for now been appointed for just under two months, for the tour of Pakistan and the home series against New Zealand, which ends on October 15. A CSA release said Wolvaardt’s position will be reviewed following the