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Captain Jason Holder says squad have “a duty to show solidarity”

Matt Roller28-Jun-2020West Indies will wear a Black Lives Matter emblem on the collars of their shirts during July’s Test series against England.Captain Jason Holder hinted in his first press conference of the tour that West Indies would look to support the movement in some way, and said in a statement on Sunday: “We believe we have a duty to show solidarity and also to help raise awareness.”The logo used will be that worn on the shirts of all 20 Premier League football clubs since the sport’s restart earlier this month, designed by Alisha Hosannah, whose partner Troy Deeney is Watford’s captain. Deeney was contacted by CWI for approval, and the ICC gave permission for the emblem to be worn on the teams’ collars.ALSO READ: Holder says ‘world must come together’ as West Indies arrive for historic tour“This is a pivotal moment in history for sports, for the game of cricket and for the West Indies cricket team,” Holder said. “We have come to England to retain the Wisden Trophy but we are very conscious of happenings around the world and the fight for justice and equality.”As a group of young men, we know of the rich and diverse history of West Indies cricket and we know we are guardians of the great game for generation to come.”We did not take our decision lightly. We know what it is for people to make judgments because of the colour of our skin, so we know what it feels like, this goes beyond the boundary. There must be equality and there must be unity. Until we get that as people, we cannot stop.”We have to find some way to have equal rights and people must not be viewed differently because of the colour of their skin or ethnic background.”Jason Holder sports the new West Indies shirt•CWI

Deeney said: “Alisha and I are immensely proud to be asked and take part in a monumental moment in world sport, this amazing decision by the West Indies cricket team to show their support for Black Lives Matter.”Watching cricket with my grandad, and seeing Brian Lara transcend from being a cricketer to a worldwide superstar, shaped my childhood, so it’s great to be able to help West Indies cricket show their support in such a meaningful way.”The shirts are expected to be worn for the first time in this week’s first-class, four-day warm-up match at Emirates Old Trafford, which starts on Monday.The ICC had previously told ESPNcricinfo that they would operate a “common-sense approach to the implementation of regulations” regarding demonstrations of solidarity with the movement, which would be assessed on a “case-by-case basis”.England are also expected to mark their support for the movement during the series following discussions within the squad, and may also wear blue armbands in recognition of the contribution of NHS staff during the Covid-19 pandemic. The ECB announced last week that players would wear the names of cricket-supporting key workers on their training shirts ahead of the first Test.West Indies’ shirts will also be the first to feature a chest sponsor, like those seen in football since the 1970s. The ICC’s chief executives’ committee ratified a change earlier this month to allow a relaxation of rules on apparel logos for the next 12 months, seemingly to help them maintain relations with sponsors during a difficult financial period.Logos on the fronts of players’ shirts will not be permitted to exceed 32 square inches in size, as per the regulations for ODI and T20I kits. England are also expected to release a shirt with a chest sponsor in the next few days.

Rugby World Cup winning captain Francois Pienaar hopes he can contribute with insights into high performance as a member of the four-person committee tasked with reviewing South Africa’s national cricket teams

Firdose Moonda20-Apr-2016Understanding the core of a winning culture could be chief on the agenda for the four-person committee tasked with reviewing South Africa’s national cricket teams. Francois Pienaar, the 1995 Rugby World Cup-winning captain who is on the panel, explained that although the scope of the review has yet to be defined, he hopes to bring his knowledge of high performance to the process.”We are designing the scope on April 28 and then that goes to the [CSA] board and the board will then sign off on it and we will start on our work. For now we are deciding where the key focus areas will be and how we divvy up the roles,” Pienaar told journalists at the launch of the Cape Town marathon, an event for which he is one of the ambassadors.”I have been involved in high-performance teams and it’s not about which sport, it’s about the processes in place. There are four or five things you need to get right – and one of them is a bit of luck – to win. If you do four or five things really well, you will have a really good chance of winning.”According to Pienaar, who maintained a 100% record alongside coach Kitch Christie and with the Transvaal team in the 1993 Super Rugby competition, one of those things is ensuring that success is transferred from domestic to international level.”Let’s go back in rugby. Every World Cup that has been won since 1987, the core of that winning national team came from the club side that dominated. So that side knew how to win. Like in 1995, the core of our team was from the Lions,” he said.South African cricket faces an immediate problem in that regard because none of the six franchises can claim to be truly dominant. In addition to that, very few internationals turn out regularly for their franchise teams. To combat that, cricket may want to pay particular attention to the processes Pienaar described, which can create a winning culture even if the individuals involved change.”CEOs and coaches and captains come and go but you have to understand the culture of high-performance teams and you can’t tinker with that. As soon as you start tinkering with that, then you stand the risk of not remaining a high-performance team. That process is for me the most exciting thing and looking at how you put processes in place to ensure you will always be knocking on the door of a trophy, or a series or a championship,” he said.Apart from being involved in successful South African teams, Pienaar was also a player-coach at Saracens in England, whom he helped to their first ever cup win and where he created a structure he is “very proud of”, which has ensured they “are still a high-performance team”. Does he think he will be able to do the same for South African cricket?”It’s for me to bring a different approach and a different view and for us as a panel to recommend certain things. It’s not that we are the fount of knowledge. Definitely not,” he said.Pienaar hopes the panel’s recommendations will be made public on completion.

Surrey’s surprise round of belt-tightening, which led them not to offer new contracts to Alec Stewart and Ian Ward, means that Stewart has played his last game of professional cricket

Wisden Comment by Steven Lynch10-Nov-2015

Surrey’s surprise round of belt-tightening, which led them not to offer new contracts to Alec Stewart and Ian Ward, means that Stewart has played his last game of professional cricket. Fittingly, it was a great match – the remarkable comeback to win the final Test against South Africa – but his abrupt decision to retire from first-class cricket as well leaves an empty feeling, almost as if he’d missed the last step at the top of that steep staircase leading to the Oval dressing-room.Perhaps it’s fitting that there will be no tearful Surrey farewell for Stewart. After all, he hasn’t played a full season for them since 1990, when he became an England regular. Before that, though, he had almost ten years of the county circuit, in which he became a master of the polished 70-odd.He might not have played much for Surrey recently, but somehow Stewart belongs under the chocolate-brown cap, and it would have been hard to adjust to those chiselled features being crowned by the Hampshire rose or the Leicester fox – or, Heaven forbid, the three seaxes of that lot north of the river.What you can imagine is that Jon Batty, who has scored plenty of runs himself for Surrey in Stewart’s absence, wasn’t too thrilled at the thought of turning out for the stiffs while the old boy went on a farewell tour of the counties next season. Even so, it’s hard to understand why someone who, according to the selectors, was the best wicketkeeper in the country a fortnight ago is now out of a job. Actually it’s more because Stewart himself didn’t fancy it. On Sunday, he told the News of the World: “There’s no point just turning up to play for the sake of it. I’ve always striven to get to the top, ie England. Once that has gone, why are you playing?”And so we are left to assess Alec – and without taking the Micky. The junior Stewart has been as squeaky-clean as one of his nicknames almost throughout his career – cricket whites, boots and opinions all neatly polished. Journalists wanting a sensational soundbite eventually stopped trying to get blood out of the Gaffer, which is why it’s widely assumed now that following Mike Atherton into the commentary box isn’t an option.The sports-management business is a more likely scenario. You can imagine Stewart jumping into well-pressed blazer and chinos for a meeting with all the alacrity he showed in donning the three lions 133 times in Tests and 170 times in one-dayers.He’ll be remembered as a good wicketkeeper and a fine batsman – but once again there’s that missing-step feeling. He could have been one of the great batsmen, up there with his old mate Goochie and the like, if he’d been left to open the innings and not saddled with the wicketkeeping gloves. The stats are conclusive: in Tests he averaged a Mercedes 46.70 when not keeping wicket, a Mondeo 34.92 when he did. Most of the regular keeping came later in his career, when he might have expected to be building that already excellent average.It’s ironic that Stewart follows his fellow fortysomething, Robin Smith, into retirement in the same week. They were singled out by Ray Illingworth, the manager, as the fall guys for the miserable 1995-96 season, when defeat in South Africa preceded a wan World Cup. Neither Stewart nor Smith was in the side for the first home Test of 1996, against India, but Nick Knight broke a finger in that game and Stewart returned for the second, and biffed 66. Smith never played another Test for England: Stewart managed to squeeze in another 80.The Judge will be remembered for his crunching square cut. The Gaffer had no such signature stroke. There was the pinpoint cover-drive, with the bat drawn forward as if on a string; the hard-hit pull, to balls lower than usual for that shot, which sent them scudding towards the midwicket boundary; and sometimes a busy back-and-across, bat twitching, before clunking an on-drive past the bowler. All done while booted and suited immaculately. Above all Alec Stewart will be remembered for his presence, his pride, and his professionalism.

Islamabad recovered the vast ground they lost to Quetta and overcame a first-innings deficit to secure a nine-wicket win on the fourth day at the Diamond Club Ground

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Jan-2013Islamabad recovered the vast ground they lost to Quetta and overcame a large first-innings deficit to secure a nine-wicket win on the fourth day at the Diamond Club Ground. They took six points from the game, while Quetta earned none.Such a result seemed improbable after Quetta had scored 263 in the first innings and then dismissed Islamabad for 134. Quetta’s first ten batsmen all got starts but Qaiser Abbas’ 73 and Jalat Khan’s 40 were the most significant contributions. Zohaib Ahmed took 4 for 74 for Islamabad.Islamabad’s first innings was wrecked by Gohar Faiz, who took a career-best 8 for 50. Opener Raheel Majeed’s 31 was the top score for Islamabad.The turnaround began on the third day, when Nasrullah Khan took 5 for 27 to help Islamabad dismiss Quetta for 122 in 34.2 overs. He ensured Islamabad hadn’t been batted out of the game, and were chasing a target of only 252. They ended that day on 45 for 0.On the final day, Islamabad’s openers converted their start into a 207-run stand. Majeed made an unbeaten 124 and Shan Masood scored 96 before he edged to the wicketkeeper. By the time they were separated, victory was all but assured. The target was achieved in the 65th over with no further loss for Islamabad.

Maybe they are in denial or maybe he was simply in an impossible position, but there were times when it was hard to remain straight faced when Samit Patel spoke to the media after the second day’s play in Ahmedabad.

George Dobell in Ahmedabad16-Nov-2012Maybe they are in denial or maybe he was simply in an impossible position, but there were times when it was hard to remain straight faced when Samit Patel spoke to the media after the second day’s play in Ahmedabad.It was not his laudable faith in his teammates, or his admirable desire to fight from the desperate position in which England find themselves that provoked the raised eyebrows. Both are to his credit. It was the insistence, in the face of all facts, that England were “good players of spin” that was hard to take. For England, with one or two notable exceptions, are not good players of spin. The record does not suggest that. It grabs us by the shoulders and screams in our faces. It has been proved over the last year really rather often and no amount of insistence otherwise will change that. Only an improvement in form will do so.Patel’s explanation for England’s struggles in their reply was also grimly amusing. “The ball’s harder and I think it spins more when the ball’s harder,” he explained. And, while there is some truth in that, it ignores the fact that England also had a new ball. In fact they had two of them.To be fair to Patel, he was in an almost impossible position. Having been kept out in the field for the best part of two days and then lost early wickets, there was little positive to take from proceedings. At least when he spoke of the challenge ahead, his words rang true.”We have two world-class batsmen at the crease,” he said. “Ian Bell is still to come, there’s me and there is Matt Prior. There is a lot of batting. There’s no question about how long we can bat. We’ve got the same potential of batting as India have and we’ve got to keep believing that. I think the telling time will be when the ball gets soft; then we can get in.”We’ve put in the hard yards; we know what we can do. Tomorrow, we hope we can show what we’re made of. We’re going to have to play some good cricket. It’s hard work – but that’s Test cricket. We have to front up. We can’t go anywhere. We’ve got to stand up and be counted. It’s no place for hiding.”Patel was also quite right to acknowledge that India’s batsmen had played beautifully. “Sometimes you have to give credit to the batsmen,” he said. “Sehwag played outstandingly well and Pujara carried on. Yuvraj played as he does. They’re good players of spin. As the Indians showed, if you bat a long time, you can wear teams down. That’s what they did. It’s something we expected. You lose the toss, and field for two days. We knew what was coming and we’re prepared.”

Middlesex left Essex rooted at the bottom of the Clydesdale Bank40 Group A table as they carved out a nine wicket victory at Chelmsford.

19-Jul-2012
ScorecardMiddlesex left Essex rooted at the bottom of the Clydesdale Bank40 Group A table as they carved out a nine wicket victory at Chelmsford. After the home side totalled 146 for 7 in a clash reduced to 25 overs per side because of rain, Middlesex achieved success with 15 balls to spare.Their crushing triumph was inspired by Chris Rogers and Dawid Malan who gathered runs with embarrassing ease. They were cautious at the outset, scoring just 16 from the first five overs against David Masters and Graham Napier. But then they increased the tempo considerably as the 50 was raised in the 10th over and 100 in the 16th.The only early blemish came when Rogers offered a chance to a leaping Tom Westley at slip when he had made 16, but the Australian made good his escape to reach his half-century from 48 balls. He had moved to 64 with the aid of two sixes and six fours, before he holed out to Masters off Tymal Mills having taken his side to within 11 runs of their target.Malan finished unbeaten with 76 from 68 deliveries that included seven fours and two sixes and fittingly it was he who took Middlesex to their target with two boundaries in an over from left-arm fast bowler Mills.Apart from Mark Pettini, the Essex top-order struggled to make an impact in the face of tight bowling backed up by fine work in the field. It was one piece of great work in the deep that brought Pettini’s innings of 44 from 43 deliveries to an end. Rogers was responsible for that as he threw down the stumps from deep mid-wicket as the Essex captain for the day attempted a second run.Pettini, who was leading the side because James Foster was excused duty as his wife is due to give birth, scored his runs from 64 balls before he departed in the 14th over.It was another six overs before the 100 was raised but much needed impetus was provided late on by Adam Wheater and Jaik Mickleburgh. They put together 53 in five overs, Wheater smashing three sixes in making 33 from 19 balls before he was caught in the deep while Mickleburgh’s unbeaten 22 arrived in 15 balls.Toby Roland-Jones was the pick of the Middlesex bowlers with 3 for 25 from his permitted five overs, an effort that enabled the visitors to keep alive their hopes of reaching the knockout stages in the competition.

Lalit Modi and Sanjay Dixit, one-time bitter rivals in the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA), have announced a truce and decided to stand united against the current state administration, headed by CP Joshi

Nagraj Gollapudi20-Feb-2012Lalit Modi and Sanjay Dixit, one-time bitter rivals in the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA), have announced a truce and decided to stand united against the current state administration, headed by CP Joshi. Ousted IPL chairman Modi, who was defeated by Joshi – a minister in the federal government – in the 2009 RCA elections, announced his patch-up with Dixit via his Twitter account.
“RCA should only have people who will serve the game and [work for the] betterment of the game. There can be no compromise [on] that,” Modi wrote. “@Sanjay_Dixit has done that too. Others are there [in power now] because of our differences in the past. Not because they have done anything for the game.””When two persons with [a] passion for cricket combine, [the] sky is the limit,” Dixit wrote in reply to Modi’s positive tweet.Facing a common rival in Joshi has probably played its part in both Modi and Dixit joining forces. It was Joshi who suspended Dixit from his post of secretary, following a rift over the appointment of RCA officials last July. At the time, Modi had supported the move. “Dixit was ruining cricket in Rajasthan. Irregularities have become common in the RCA’s functioning,” Modi was quoted as saying by the . In response to that quote Dixit had tweeted: “Fugitives are not allowed in the RCA, whether through front door or back door”.But the bitterness of the past has seemingly now been replaced by a more accommodating attitude. Dixit told ESPNcricinfo, cryptically, that his past differences with Modi were “more of form than that of substance” and was reluctant to elaborate.The next RCA election is about fifteen months away and Dixit said that the patch-up was made keeping in mind the “long term” benefits. “He [Modi] was in power at the RCA, and I had two-and-a-half years [in charge]. We are the only two people who have done something for Rajasthan cricket,” he said. “Shri CP Joshi has no idea of cricket. So we have decided to bury our differences in the interest of Rajasthan cricket.”Dixit said that the current RCA setup, chaired by Joshi, had been keeping him from actively participating in the administration of cricket in the state. “I still am the honorary secretary [of the RCA] but because of some disputes, I am not getting [to play an] active part. [It’s] because of Dr CP Joshi’s style of functioning.”

Former Australia Women’s captain Belinda Clark has become only the second woman to be inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Sep-2011Former Australia Women’s captain Belinda Clark has become only the second woman to be inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame. Joining Clark in the Hall of Fame were former Australia allrounder Alan Davidson, former West Indies fast bowler Curtly Ambrose and the late Australia fast bowler Frederick Spofforth.Clark holds the record for the most matches as captain in the women’s game, and led Australia to victory in the 2005 World Cup. Australia lost only 17 of the 101 games under her leadership. She averaged 45.95 in 15 Tests with a top score of 136. Her ODI figures were better, an average of 47.49 in 118 games. The highlight of her batting career was the unbeaten 229 against Denmark in Mumbai in 1997, which made her the first player, male or female, to score a double-century in one-dayers. Since her retirement in 2005, nobody has beaten her record of 4844 ODI runs in the women’s game.”It is a great honour to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame and it has been an amazing five years for women’s cricket globally,” Clark said of her induction. “Recognition of female players in the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame is a great initiative and I am proud to join Rachael Heyhoe-Flint, to become the second female inductee, on a long list of outstanding cricketers.”It means a lot to be recognised by the international organization and I am very proud to be included.”Davidson, Ambrose and Clark will be inducted during the ICC awards in London, while Spofforth will be inducted later next year in a ceremony involving the former fast bowler’s family.

Matt Prior said that his team still fancied their chances of sealing the series against Sri Lanka with a game to spare, despite enduring a tough time in the field on the second day

Andrew Miller at Lord's04-Jun-2011England’s centurion, Matt Prior, has said that his team still fancied their chances of sealing the series against Sri Lanka with a game to spare, despite enduring a tough time in the field on the second day at Lord’s. Thanks to an unbeaten century from Tillakaratne Dilshan, Sri Lanka closed the second day on 231 for 1, a feisty response to their total of 82 all out in the second innings in Cardiff.”We’re an honest enough team to know that we didn’t bowl and field as well as we can do, as well as we have done,” said Prior at the close. “Things don’t always go perfectly to plan in Test cricket. But the thing I know about this team and its character is that we’ll come back tomorrow even harder, even better prepared and even more ready and willing to hit the mark again.”The day started well enough for England, with Prior converting his overnight 73 into an impressive 126 from 131 balls, his second Test century at the ground, and his fifth in 42 Tests overall. His performance helped lift England from a precarious 201 for 5 to an imposing 486 all out, although by the close, Dilshan’s first century as Sri Lanka captain had redressed the balance significantly.Asked whether England had expected too little from Sri Lanka in the aftermath of their Cardiff disaster, Prior denied that was the case. “You can’t expect to bowl a team out in 25 overs every time you walk out,” he said. “I think we just need to go back to basics, take stock of what’s happened today – and I’m sure you’ll see an improved bowling and fielding performance tomorrow.”We walked off after our first innings very, very pleased with the score we got. But then Tillakaratne Dilshan came in and played a very good innings, showing great intent on a pretty docile wicket.”Matt Prior’s fifth Test hundred drew him level with the great Alan Knott•PA Photos

England’s attack had a menacing look to it at the start of the Test, with Chris Tremlett, Steven Finn and Stuart Broad all registering between 6’6″ and 6’8″. However, the lofty approach lacked subtlety on a benign wicket, with Finn in particular struggling for line and length. England severely missed the lateral movement that the injured James Anderson could have provided.”You are always going to feel like you’re missing a guy like Jimmy Anderson, because he’s the best swing bowler in the world,” said Prior. “He’s absolute class, and you always want him in your team.”But Finny has come in and is a fantastic bowler in his own right. You saw how many wickets he took in the Ashes and in his short career so far. The line-up as it stands, three big guys and Swanny, is a world-class bowling outfit. We know that, and we back them 100%.”With that in mind, Prior reiterated his faith in his team-mates. “This team keeps surprising itself, keeps pulling things out even when it’s looking ominous,” he said. “To get that score on the board, when we’ve been 20-odd for 3, is a fantastic effort in the first place.”We are not in a bad position and still have a 250-lead. If we do bowl and field well tomorrow, there’s no reason why we can’t get a good first-innings lead. If we bat well again, we’re holding all the cards in this Test match.”On a personal note, Prior’s fifth Test hundred drew him level with Alan Knott, arguably the greatest wicketkeeper-batsman in England’s history, and it was a fact of which he was keenly aware. “It’s something I’m very, very proud of,” he said. “I do keep track of records of other England wicketkeepers from the past, so it’s a nice milestone.The bulk of his runs on the final day came in a 108-run stand for the seventh wicket with Stuart Broad. However, the manner in which he reached three figures was not the most convincing, as four consecutive edges, including a drop at slip by Mahela Jayawardene, carried him from 86 to 99, before a clip to midwicket secured his name on the honour’s board.”The plan is always to take a little moment to get yourself in, but it didn’t really happen … we went from first gear to sixth, which always happens with Broady,” he said. “But in a situation like that, if you’re feeling good you almost just have to go with the flow and ride your luck a little bit – and obviously I was very fortunate through the 90s.”I just thought ‘it’s my day’. Mahela Jayawardene is one of best, if not the best, slip fielders I’ve ever seen, so when he drops you you know you’re on a good thing. You need a bit of luck every now and then, and I had my fair share.”

Along with 90s from Shan Masood and Ben Cox, Foxes dominate Kent attack

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay16-Sep-2025Kent 17 for 0 trail Leicestershire 459 for 7 dec (Patel 114, Cox 93, Masood 90, Hill 54) by 442 runsA fine century from Rishi Patel, along with 90s from Shan Masood and Ben Cox, saw Leicestershire secure maximum batting bonus points and left them the verge of securing the Division Two title as they dominated a callow Kent attack after being put into bat at the UptonSteel County Ground.Beginning the match 25 points clear of second-placed Glamorgan, the Foxes could not have hoped for a better second day of this Rothesay County Championship match after the first was entirely lost to the weather.It made for a chastening first-class debut for 19-year-old all-rounder Corey Flintoff – one of a remarkable five teenagers in the Kent side – who, with father Andrew watching, bowled 15 wicket-less overs for 91 runs, though he did take a catch.Kent openers Harry Finch and Ben Dawkins survived a difficult nine overs before the light closed in.After the loss of the entire first day to the strong winds that made handling the covers too dangerous to undertake, it was a relief to see the ground ready for play from the start.Flintoff, the second son of former England allrounder Andrew to be embarking on a career as a professional cricketer, following in the footsteps of brother Rocky, took his place in what must surely have been the youngest slip cordon ever formed in county cricket, all three slips and gully being in their teens.They were in the game early, when Jaydn Denly at second slip dropped a straightforward chance given by Sol Budinger off the bowling of Joey Evison. To make matters worse, Denly left the field with illness soon afterwards, while Evison’s feelings will not have improved when Budinger casually swung an in-swinger over the midwicket boundary for six. The Kent allrounder had his revenge soon afterwards however, when Budinger again edged to second slip and this time Flintoff held on.Patel, however, looked in good touch from the start. The 27-year-old has struggled for consistency this season after missing the early weeks with a thumb injury, but has recently shown signs of finding the form which saw him called into an England Lions training camp, and he took full toll on the regular loose deliveries from the visiting attack.There were plenty of testing balls too, and George Garrett produced a beauty to square up and bowl Ian Holland, but a score of 151 for 2 off 30 overs at lunch told its own story. Having hit ten boundaries in going to his half-century, Patel hit another ten in going to three figures, his second Championship century of the season, shortly after lunch.Kent were already looking down the barrel, but Patel played too soon at an Ekansh Singh delivery and got a leading edge that looped to mid-on, a maiden first-class wicket for the 19-year-old, and Lewis Hill, having registered his seventh half-century of the season, slashed a wide short ball from Michael Cohen straight to point.When Steve Eskinazi, who never settled, went leg before to Evison, Leicestershire were in danger of wasting their flying start, but the elegant Masood was calmness personified, and he found lively support from Cox. Together they added 161 for the sixth wicket and both seemed certain to reach three figures, but Garrett, bowling with the new ball, pushed one across Masood to find an edge which carried to slip before Grant Stewart took a fine leaping catch at mid-on to dismiss Cox off the bowling of Evison.