Australian players have dominated the English county scene in recent years, in both their number and with their figures. But the IPL, the new one-overseas player limit, and, ultimately, the rain all had their part to play in limiting Australians’ appearances and their chances to contribute to the opening round of seven first-class matches last week.Chris Rogers, however, made the most of his opportunity to give a nod to the selectors who had dumped him off the contracts list, with a second-innings ton for Derbyshire in their Division Two draw with Gloucestershire in Bristol. He had made an inauspicious 3 in the first dig as the visitors collapsed.His former Western Australian team-mate Marcus North topscored in the home side’s first innings with 87 and did not bat second time out as rain put paid to proceedings after Derbyshire’s Rogers-led rally. Only three wins were registered, the four draws all victims of the weather.Lancashire captain, the English-qualified Stuart Law, made 38 as Lancashire, last year’s runners-up, drew with the champions Surrey at The Oval. His team-mate Brad Hodge made an unbeaten 43 before the rain came. Surrey were without Matt Nicholson, who had a virus.In the second division, Western Australia’s Steve Magoffin took one wicket in each innings as Worcestershire drew with Warwickshire.
The popularity of Twenty20 cricket has spread to Canada, including a chance that Indian Premier League teams could visit the country following “advanced” discussions, Cricket Canada has confirmed to Cricinfo.The board held talks with important IPL figures at the start of the Indian tournament last month but have so far been offered “no promises and no confirmations”.”Atul Ahuja, Cricket Canada’s chief executive, had discussions with leading individuals in respect to possible visits to Canada by IPL teams,” a CC spokesperson said. “In some cases, those discussion were quite advanced, but at the moment there are no promises and no confirmations.”Either way, Twenty20 will be taking centrestage for the next few months in Canadian cricket. The first-ever national Twenty20 championship will be held over the weekend of May 17 and 18 at King City near Toronto, on four turf pitches. There will be 12 matches per day, involving teams from Briitsh Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia. The competition is a formal Cricket Canada event in partnership with their new major sponsor Scotiabank.”There is growing commitment to the Twenty20 format across the country,” said the spokesperson, “in part because it fits perfectly with the North American sporting format.” The Toronto and District Cricket Association now has a separate Twenty20 League, as does the Etobicoke and District Cricket League in the suburbs of Toronto. In British Columbia, their mainland competition launched a Twenty20 league in April, with Sri Lanka’s Arjuna Ranatunga as the chief guest.There will also be a non-representative team from Canada at the upcoming MAQ T20 Cricket Festival May 23-25 at the Broward Stadium north of Miami, Florida.The Twenty20 arrangements are aimed at solidifying cricket across Canada. “It’s also geared to preparing Canada for playing more Twenty20 cricket internationally,” the spokesperson said, “with a particular eye on the Associates tournament in Ireland in August and the June 2009 Twenty20 World Championships.”
ScorecardA collapse – six wickets for 21 runs – by Windward Islands in their chase of 217, gave Trinidad and Tobago a 16-run victory in St Vincent.Windwards top order had led them to a comfortable 181 for 3, with No. 3 Andre Fletcher and Liam Sebastien scoring half-centuries. But legspinner Yannik Cariah ripped through the middle order, and the final six batsmen scored 16 runs together, with three batsmen dismissed for 0, to be bowled out for 202 in the final over. Cariah finished with 5 for 44, his best performance in his three-match List A career.T&T’s innings revolved around a solid top-order performance, led by an unbeaten half-century from Jason Mohammed. Besides Justin Guillen, who was dismissed for 2, all other batsmen scored atleast 20. Spinners Sebastien and Shane Shillingford took two wickets each. ScorecardA balanced and collective effort by Jamaica helped them clinch the contest against Combined Campuses and Colleges by four wickets at Sabina Park, and lead the points table.Having being asked to field, Jamaica kept chipping away at their opponents, as none of the batsmen could anchor the innings. Floyd Reifer and the captain Kyle Corbin got starts, but departed after scoring 32 and 24 respectively. Spinner Nikita Miller was the chief wicket-taker, with three wickets.The home side two wickets early, with opener Jermaine Blackwood and No. 3 Nkrumah Bonner dismissed for a duck. However, Andre McCarthy (45), the captain Tamar Lambert (34) and David Bernard (28) helped them reach the target in the 46th over.
Sunil Narine, the West Indies offspinner, has been reported for bowling with a suspect action during the third ODI against Sri Lanka in Pallekele.Narine finished with figures of 0 for 24 in the Pallekele ODI, which Sri Lanka won by 19 runs based on the Duckworth-Lewis method. The match officials’ report, handed to the West Indies team management after the game, cited concerns about the legality of Narine’s deliveries.Narine will need to undergo testing on his action within 14 days, and will be permitted to continue bowling until the results of his testing are known.This is the first time Narine has been reported in an international game, though he has undergone scrutiny of his action during the IPL and the Champions League T20. He was reported twice in two matches during the 2014 edition of the CLT20, forcing him to miss Kolkata Knight Riders’ final against Chennai Super Kings.Though he was free to bowl in international cricket, West Indies withdrew Narine from their tour of India to allow him “the opportunity to have his action assessed and plan his return to cricket”. West Indies left him out of all their subsequent international assignments until they picked him for the 2015 World Cup. Though he had remodeled his action in the interim, Narine pulled out of the tournament, saying the return would be “a little too much too soon”.Narine endured further trouble with his action during the 2015 IPL – he was first cleared to bowl in the tournament, reported and sent for a re-test, banned from bowling his offbreaks, and then cleared again, with a “final warning”.The Sri Lanka tour was Narine’s first international tournament since August 2014. He picked up four wickets at an average of 18.00 in the three ODIs, while conceding 3.34 runs per over.
Former India allrounder Manoj Prabhakar has been named Afghanistan’s bowling coach until the end of the World T20 in India next year. Prabhakar will join Inzamam-ul-Haq, Afghanistan’s head coach, in the support staff.”I am glad I can guide the Afghan team. They have immense talent and I am sure, in the years to come, the Afghanistan team would emerge as a force to reckon with in all forms of the game,” Prabhakar told . “They have shown a healthy keenness to learn the finer points of the game.”Prabhakar’s most recent coaching stint was with the Delhi state side, where he was sacked two days before the start of the 2011-12 Ranji Trophy season for making critical comments about the players and selectors.Prabhakar’s appointment comes in the wake of recent strong ties between the BCCI and the Afghanistan Cricket Board. The two boards recently signed an MoU with the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority to use the Shahid Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex as their home ground.Afghanistan have shown a tremendous rise in their performances in the last six months. They won five of the seven completed matches they played in the World T20 Qualifier in Ireland in July to qualify for the main event, topped it by clinching a historic 3-2 ODI series win against Zimbabwe, whitewashed Zimbabwe 2-0 in the T20s, and recently won both T20Is against Oman in Abu Dhabi.Afghanistan are slotted with Scotland, Hong Kong and Zimbabwe in Group B of the World T20 and only one of the four teams will make it to Group 1 to join England, South Africa, Sri Lanka and West Indies for the Super 10 stage.
Leicestershire have been granted planning permission to install floodlights at Grace Road, a development that has been viewed as vital to the club’s survival.Floodlit evening T20 matches have become increasingly important to driving gate revenue in the domestic game and Wasim Khan, Leicestershire’s chief executive, said the decision would help the club “retain and grow our audiences”. Khan had previously addressed residents’ concerns about light pollution by warning that, without floodlights, “we might not be here in five years’ time”.The path has now been cleared, with Leicester City Council unanimously approving the proposals. Leicestershire will begin work immediately and hope to have the floodlights in place in time for their opening NatWest Blast game in May.”It is fantastic news for Leicestershire County Cricket Club that planning permission was granted at the meeting,” Khan said. “Floodlights are an important aspect of supporting our sustainability strategy and we look forward to improving the match-day experience for our supporters.”We saw an average 48% increase in attendances at Grace Road for NatWest T20 Blast matches in 2015. The installation of floodlights will help us to both retain and grow our audiences. We can start our NatWest T20 Blast games later in the evening which will give more people the opportunity to attend after work.”Leicestershire are currently one of four counties without permanent floodlights. Gloucestershire have been granted planning permission, while Somerset are expected to draw up plans as part of their ground redevelopment, which would leave Worcestershire as the only county unable to play evening games.
Allrounder Robbie Frylinck has been suspended from his franchise, Dolphins, with immediate effect, although the reason for and length of his sanction is unknown. Pete de Wet, Dolphins’ CEO, told ESPNcricinfo: “I cannot elaborate on the details except to say that this is in no way linked to the CSA investigation into match-fixing.”Frylinck last played for the franchise during the Momentum One-Day Cup at the end of October, before turning out for provincial amateur side Kwa-Zulu Natal during a break in the one-day cup. He was due to join up with Dolphins for the remainer of the one-day cup, which resumes on Friday, but will not be part of their plans for now.Frylinck has been on South Africa’s domestic scene for over 11 years, during which time he has also played as a Kolpak player for Surrey and was on the books of IPL franchise Delhi Daredevils.
IPL 2026 will be held between March 26 and May 31, occupying the same window it has in recent years.While the BCCI hasn’t announced the full fixtures yet, the 19th edition of the IPL will kick off roughly three weeks after the conclusion of the men’s T20 World Cup – scheduled from February 7 to March 8 in India and Sri Lanka – and run for just over two months.It also means that for the second year running, the IPL will clash with the PSL, which is scheduled to be held between March 26 and May 3.Related
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The IPL teams, who announced their list of retained and released players in mid-November, are currently getting into the IPL auction on December 16 in Abu Dhabi, where 369 players have been shortlisted to go under the hammer.A total of 77 slots are available, including 31 for overseas players. Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have the most vacancies, 13, followed by Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) with ten. After trades and retentions, KKR also have the biggest purse available: INR 64.30 crore (US$7.1 million approx.). Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are next with INR 43.40 crore (US$4.8 million approx.).The IPL 2025 final was won on June 3 by Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), who made it their first IPL title win with a six-run win over Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Ahmedabad.
Everton are having a terrible season so far with numerous injury problems and poor performances all contributing to the difficult relegation battle they have found themselves in over the remaining weeks of the season.
Frank Lampard was brought in on Deadline Day to steady the ship after a series of shocking performances and lack of points on the board following a six and a half month stint with Rafa Benitez in charge at Goodison Park, but has struggled to inspire a run of good form since his arrival.
In the Premier League, the ex-Chelsea boss has managed eight, won two and lost six so far, as well as crashing out of the FA Cup to Crystal Palace last month missing out on a spot in the semi-final at Wembley, all of which is not ideal as Everton begin to run out of time to secure safety.
With that being said, the Blues boss should not take all the blame for the poor results he has racked up since he joined in January, as a number of players are failing to pull their weight, and one, in particular, has let the team down time and time again.
Michael Keane has scored two own goals that have led to defeat against Norwich City and Tottenham Hotspurs since the turn of the year, and most recently received his second yellow with a red card to follow in the defeat to West Ham United on Sunday afternoon. Surely this has to be the final nail in the coffin for the calamitous centre-back.
The £19.8m-rated defender who was dubbed a “liability” by Trevor Sinclair, has also been criticised for his negative impact on the Everton team, with Paul Robinson telling Football Insider that Keane is part of a problem that is “costing Everton dearly.”
At this point of the season Lampard really needs players he can rely on for the final push to make sure the Toffees stay inside the Premier League next season and when you look at Keane’s erratic behaviour on the pitch alongside his countless mistakes there is absolutely no reason why moving forward Lampard should put up with it and as a result, should sell the defender at his earliest convenience.
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The Toffees now have ten games left to save their season and ensure they are playing top flight football next season, but it won’t be easy as they have a number of difficult fixtures ahead of them with Arsenal, Liverpool, Man United and Chelsea left to play, so picking up points against Burnley tonight at Turf Moor is an absolute must.
In other news: Signed for £0, then became worth £35m: Everton struck gold over “king of blunders”
Real Madrid are set to appoint Jose Mourinho as their new coach in the coming days replacing current manager Manuel Pellegrini. However this move is making the club into a laughing stock.
Real Madrid finished 2nd in La Liga this season but amassed an impressive 96 points which is their club record points total, yet they lost the title to Barcelona who accumulated 99 points. 96 points is an impressive feat and in previous years would have comfortably won the title in any league in the world. This Barcelona side has been exceptional as well and have been in a class of their own so to lose out to a side like this is no shame.
Pellegrini did a good job with Villarreal before moving to Real Madrid and after his encouraging first season at Madrid, would have definitely been able to improve on this next year. For a club that has nine managers in the last seven years surely they would have finally been looking for some sort of stability. Yet this move is set to continue the seemingly ever-lasting revolving door policy, and until Real Madrid finally get a settled manager and a settled side then they won’t be truly successful.
As for their short-comings this season, Cristiano Ronaldo has missed 12 matches of the campaign and is easily their main player after scoring 33 goals in all competitions. Had Messi been injured for Barcelona then you could argue that they would have lost vital momentum, as the Argentine scored 47 goals in 43 appearances this season. In the Champions League they disappointingly went out in the second round but it was to a Lyon side that have been desperately knocking on the door to reach the later stages of the competition for some years now. Although it still doesn’t make the loss any more acceptable there is no reason they couldn’t have gone on to do better next year.
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The current president of Madrid, Florentino Perez wants Mourinho to lead the club into a new area but at the same time Perez is known for his purchase of ‘galicticos’. However Mourinho’s style is to buy efficient players that suit the team, although he did splash the cash on Andriy Shevchenko whilst at Chelsea, they needed a striker at the time and he was one of the best in world football. Mourinho has also made it very clear that if he is in charge of Real and he will be making all the decisions and the president will not get a say. Given Perez’s input into the team in previous years that agreement surely can’t last.
Manuel Pellegrini has had a successful season at Real Madrid and like Vicente Del Bosque, Fabio Capello and Bernd Schuster looks set to become another manager that has done a good job but hasn’t appealed to the president. Perhaps if changes are to occur at the club for them to go forward they need to be made in the boardroom and not in the dugout.