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Former England spinner will take up the role in January ahead of the team’s tour of the Caribbean

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Dec-2018Ashley Giles has been confirmed as the ECB’s new Managing Director of England Men’s Cricket, and will take up the role in January ahead of the team’s tour of the Caribbean.Giles, who played 54 Tests as a left-arm spinner, including the 2005 Ashes victory, is currently Sport Director at Warwickshire. He replaces Andrew Strauss, who stepped down in October for family reasons.”I am delighted to be joining the ECB and shaping the future of England cricket throughout the men’s game,” said Giles.”I am very grateful for the opportunity and excited about working with some talented people. The legacy left by Andrew Strauss has put the performance programme in a stable place. It is fundamental that I facilitate the great work currently being carried out, meet our objectives and help our sport achieve great things in the coming years both domestically and internationally.”Giles, 45, joins the ECB at the start of what promises to be one of the most crucial years in the history of English cricket. With a home World Cup closely followed by the Ashes, two competitions for which the team are current favourites, there is expectation and opportunity for the ECB, as well as considerable jeopardy if they fail to make the impact that might be expected of a side that, in white-ball cricket in particular, has transformed its horizons since the ignominy of the 2015 World Cup.Much of the credit for the upturn in white-ball fortunes can be attributed to Strauss, whose appointment of Trevor Bayliss as head coach was made in recognition of the need to seize on the transformative opportunities offered by a home World Cup – something that England singularly failed to acknowledge when they crashed out early in their last hosting of the event in 1999.”I believe it is important for the game to have a strong international set-up, which is showing great promise in what will be a significant year for our red- and white-ball teams leading into the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup this summer and The Ashes,” said Giles. “The next 12 months could transform the game like no other time in recent memory.”In a press release, the ECB stated that Giles “will be responsible for the long-term strategy of the England men’s cricket teams and the performance pathways leading into the international teams. He will also be responsible for developing the right coaching and management structure to support it.”The appointment follows a month-long formal recruitment process led by ECB chief executive, Tom Harrison. As ESPNcricinfo reported last week, Giles emerged as the standout candidate after several significant rivals for the role, including Andy Flower, Martyn Moxon and the ECB director of women’s cricket, Clare Connor, all chose not to pursue their interest.”We were fortunate throughout this process to interview some of the most talented and respected people in the game,” said Harrison.”Ashley was the standout candidate amongst a very strong field. He will bring a fresh perspective to the role and build on the excellent work carried out by Andrew Strauss over the past three and a half years. He has a tremendous passion for England cricket, extensive knowledge of our county game, and a wealth of experience from playing at the highest level to becoming a respected leader in the sport.”He will lead the England men’s teams forward in what is a pivotal year with an ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup and the Specsavers Ashes Series, both on home soil. This is a key appointment and we are excited about Ashley’s arrival.”It’s quite a comeback at the ECB from Giles, who was England’s limited-overs coach from 2012 to 2014, and a national team selector for six years from 2008. On his watch, England reached the final of the 2013 Champions Trophy, but he was sacked in the wake of their poor showing at the World T20 in Bangladesh the following year – his dismissal being signed off by the man whose role he now fills, the original England team director, Paul Downton.Prior to his move into coaching, Giles played for Warwickshire for 13 years and, following his retirement in 2007, became the club’s director of cricket, leading them to the championship title in 2012.He subsequently took over as head coach and cricket director at Lancashire, and in his first season at Old Trafford, he won the Blast and led the county to promotion to Division One of the County Championship.He returned to Warwickshire as Sport Director in January 2017, in the wake of their relegation from the Championship top flight, and oversaw an immediate return as Division Two champions, as well as finalists in the T20 Blast.”Finally, I would like thank Warwickshire County Cricket Club and in particular Chairman, Norman Gascoigne, and Chief Executive, Neil Snowball, for their guidance and support during my time at Edgbaston.”

A five-wicket victory over Scotland in Port Moresby meant they are only two points behind Netherlands

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Oct-2017Papua New Guinea have moved up to second place on the World Cricket League points table on the back of beating Scotland by five wickets in Port Moresby. Bouncing back in fine style, with Mahuru Dai’s 63 off 54 balls, they chased the target of 204 with two overs and five wickets to spare.The small target was helpful considering only one of the top five could move past 25. Captain Assad Vala had taken the score to 130 for 5 before handing the reins over to Dai, who came in during the 31st over, and went on a boundary-hitting spree. He struck 10 fours, which accounted for 63% of his runs, and ensured Scotland’s bowlers, despite the work they put in to push the chase to the 48th over, were defeated.A much larger portion of the blame fell on the batsmen, which would have been doubly disappointing considering Scotland had won the toss. Matthew Cross made 91 off 120 balls – accounting for nearly half of his team’s total – as his team-mates fell in a heap around him. The next highest score was 22.

Chris Tremain and Daniel Worrall picked up nine wickets between them as India A were handed an eight-wicket loss in their Quadrangular series opener against Australia A in Townsville

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Aug-2016
ScorecardChris Tremain’s maiden five-wicket haul spurred Australia A on to a comprehensive win in their series opener•Cricket Australia/Getty Images

The fast bowling pair of Chris Tremain and Daniel Worrall picked up nine wickets between them as India A were handed an eight-wicket thumping in their Quadrangular series opener against Australia A in Townsville.India A’s innings lasted just 15.4 overs as they were bowled out for 55 after being sent in to bat. Only Axar Patel, batting at No. 8, managed to get into double digits, top scoring with 15. Tremain, playing in only his fifth List-A game, recorded his maiden five-wicket haul, while Worrall picked up four.Tremain triggered the meltdown when he struck thrice in the third over, removing Karun Nair, Mandeep Singh and Manish Pandey, all India internationals, in the space of four deliveries. He returned to dismiss Sanju Samson and opener Faiz Fazal in his next over, the fifth of the innings, to cap off a five-wicket haul.Worrall then sliced through the lower middle order, to finish with his best returns in eight List A games so far. Michael Neser, the third seamer, was the other wicket-taker for Australia A, dismissing Axar.Australia A’s chase was slow but relatively steady in the face of India A’s spin. India A managed to nip out two wickets courtesy Yuzvendra Chahal, the legspinner, and Axar, the left-arm spinner before Kurtis Patterson and Peter Handscomb saw the hosts home in the 18th over.Australia A next take on the National Performance Squad at the same venue on August 16, while India A will play their second game against South Africa A a day later.

Netherlands opener Stephan Myburgh’s first fifty of the tournament ensured his team cruised to a six-wicket victory against Canada in Edinburgh

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Jul-2015
ScorecardFile photo: Stephan Myburgh blasted six fours and four sixes for his 67•IDI/Getty

Netherlands opener Stephan Myburgh’s first fifty of the tournament ensured his team cruised to a six-wicket victory against Canada in Edinburgh. Set a challenging 173 for the win, Myburgh and his opening partner Wesley Barresi began rapidly, blazing 65 inside five overs. Both players wasted no time in getting going, with Myburgh starting the innings with a six, and Barresi finishing the over with three consecutive fours, off Jeremy Gordon.Barresi was eventually dismissed for a 15-ball 33 after slamming seven fours, but Myburgh carried on to make 67 off 30 balls with six fours and four sixes, including 21 runs off an over from Rizwan Cheema. Nitish Kumar ended the carnage by trapping Myburgh lbw in the ninth over, but by then, most of the damage had been done as Netherlands needed just 64 runs from 70 deliveries. Cecil Pervez offered Canada a glimmer by picking up two wickets in consecutive overs, but Michael Swart’s unbeaten 34 took Netherlands home with 15 balls to spare.Earlier, Canada, having been inserted, rode on a half-century from Ruvindu Gunasekera (51) and late blitzes from Cheema and Hamza Tariq to post 172 for 8. Gunasekera and Hiral Patel began brightly with a 56-run opening stand, but Netherlands fought back with key top-order wickets in quick succession. Canada were precariously placed at 98 for 4 in the 14th over, but Cheema’s 12-ball 28, and Tariq’s 20-ball 40 powered the team past the 170-run mark. Swart was Netherlands’ best bowler, collecting 2 for 24 from four overs.

Essex have revealed plans for an £80 million upgrade of their Chelmsford home

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Jan-2013Essex have revealed plans for an £80 million upgrade of their Chelmsford home. The development will turn the County Ground “from a stadium into a destination” according to club treasurer Keith Brown.The plans include a new pavilion and banqueting suite for 500 people, a new indoor school, car park, public square and a bridge over the river Chelmer, which runs behind one end of the ground.The development will be funded by 320 apartments built on land owned by the club adjacent to the ground.The project has been delayed by the economic downturn with plans initially drawn up in 2004 and planning permission granted in 2010.The first phase will see 62 apartments built on the current car park. 90% of those apartments have already been sold. Work on the pavilion is not expected to begin until 2014 with the whole project completed by 2017.”Chelmsford is becoming very attractive,” Brown said. “The current stadium is very old and quite simply, needed replacing, and the only way was to have an enabling development. The whole site will link up to the city much more and offer much more for people to visit to the club ground.”The model of development reflects Gloucestershire’s plans to fund their own £10 million ground revamp with a block of apartments at Bristol.

Sri Lanka A battled their way back into the five-match series against England Lions with a six-wicket win in Kurunegala

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Jan-2012
ScorecardSri Lanka A battled their way back into the five-match series against England Lions with a six-wicket win in Kurunegala. Despite Jos Buttler’s second century in three matches for the Lions, Sri Lanka completed their run chase with 15 balls to spare thanks in large part to a composed innings of 94 from No. 3 Dimuth Karunaratne.Karunaratne, who made his ODI debut during Sri Lanka’s tour of England last year, was involved in a century stand with Bhanuka Rajapaksa after the hosts had lost their first two wickets for just 22. The two youngsters combined to put on 132 in 23 overs, with Rajapaksa recording an almost run-a-ball 72. Karunaratne was denied a century when he was dismissed by Danny Briggs but by then Sri Lanka were comfortably placed to finish the job, with Thilina Kandamby sealing victory – and reaching his own half-century – with a six.The Lions’ innings had been based around another significant contribution from Buttler, whose first limited-overs hundred brought England victory in Dambulla last week. The Somerset man was on the losing side this time, however, as the rest of England’s batsmen failed to make the most of their starts. Jonny Bairstow’s 31 was the next-best score as England’s momentum, particularly in the closing overs, was repeatedly checked by the tumble of wickets.

Pakistan will be focused on the cricket and not distracted by the spot-fixing controversy, team manager Intikhab Alam has insisted

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Dec-2010Pakistan will be focused on the cricket and not distracted by the spot-fixing controversy, team manager Intikhab Alam has insisted. The Pakistan squad arrived in New Zealand today for a tour that includes three Twenty20s, two Tests and six ODIs. Alam said the team was geared up for the challenge even as three of its former members – Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir – are under investigation for their alleged involvement in the spot-fixing controversy, and await their fate upon the conclusion of their hearing before the ICC’s anti-corruption tribunal, to be held in Doha between January 6-11. All three have been provisionally suspended pending the result of the investigation.”Everybody’s been briefed, everybody’s very clear in their minds what is expected from management, what is expected from the players as well. I have no doubt in my mind we cannot afford any more such unfortunate incidents,” Alam said. “They understand what we expect from them, what the country expects from them, what the board expects from them.”Pakistan served up an impressive performance against South Africa in their previous assignment in the UAE, drawing the two Tests and leveling the ODI series 2-2 before losing the decider. However, the tour was marred by the abrupt departure of wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider, who fled to the United Kingdom – where he has sought asylum – citing threats to his life and to his family.”South Africa’s probably one of the best teams at the moment, so it was a morale booster after all that we went through,” Waqar Younis, the Pakistan coach, said. “We’ve played some decent cricket in the one-dayers as well as in the Test matches. We never got into a position of winning any Test matches but we showed some guts and made sure we managed some draws.”The hosts, meanwhile, have had a torrid run in ODIs, losing 11 consecutive games, including successive series defeats away to Bangladesh and India, to leave their preparation for the 2011 World Cup in shambles. “It’s always been a tough time for them on the subcontinent and this time they didn’t really play the best of their cricket,” Waqar said. “This is an opportunity for us also but we don’t really want to forget that New Zealand in their own country, they are a very fine side. We’ve got to make sure we do the basics right and try to win the maximum we can.”Pakistan begin their tour with a warm-up game in Auckland on Thursday before the three-match Twenty20 series gets underway at Eden Park on Boxing Day.

Tamim Iqbal has said doing well against India gives him extra satisfaction, for they are his favourite rivals

Sriram Veera in Chittagong15-Jan-2010Tamim Iqbal has said doing well against India gives him extra satisfaction, for they are his favourite rivals. He added he was aiming to develop more patience and play longer knocks, similar to his century against West Indies.Tamim’s violent six off Zaheer Khan after charging down the track was one of the best shots of the 2007 World Cup, and certainly one of the most famous strikes ever by a Bangladeshi batsman. Does he reserve his best for India?”They [India] are my idols,” he said. “I really admire the batting of Gautam Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh and, in fact, want to speak to Gambhir during this series about my batting. It’s a pleasure to play against India, as they are one of the big teams of the world and it gives you extra satisfaction. Winning against India is special because of you guys [media].The media attention, and I’m telling the truth, when I do well against India also matters.”When asked if there was a niggle between him and Zaheer, for both had an exchange of words, not for the first time, in the recently-concluded tri-nation ODI series, Tamim said: “No there is nothing like that. It was just a misunderstanding with him. That happens in cricket. I don’t know him that off the field but I am sure once we meet and chat, we will get along well.”It’s not as if I do anything extra against him. Hitting the bad ball for four is my target. If I get one I just punish it whether the bowler is Zaheer Khan or anyone else.”Aggression has been never been a problem with Tamim, but patience has. Tamim said he was aware of that and knew patience was the key to becoming a successful opener. He hit a breezy 84 against New Zealand on his Test debut, but rates his 248-ball 128 against West Indies as the possible turning-point in his career.”I batted almost 80 overs [and 311 minutes],” Tamim said. “It’s the only time I have batted for that long. The century wasn’t much, it wasn’t that great but the fact that I played so many balls was extra special. I don’t know what happened to me that day but I was enjoying it and I really want to bat like that again. I want to control my mind more and play like that in Test cricket.”Tamim said he has worked hard on his batting to correct the flaws and hopes he will rattle more big scores in the future. “There were some weak points in my batting,” he said. “I can’t tell you guys what, but there were some areas where I was weak. I have worked really hard with coach Mohammad Salahuddin, who really helped me a lot. Jamie Siddons, too, has helped me in becoming a better player now.”Tamim will get a chance to showcase his learning and batting in two days time on a flat track in Chittagong. His captain Shakib has already said Bangladesh will take draw as a good result. “A draw will be good for us,” Shakib said. “I am confident that we will have a good chance if we can score 700 runs in the two innings.” The captain’s task will be made easier if Tamim plays a long, patient innings.

Both scored centuries to power New Zealand to the highest total in Champions Trophy history, before Santner led an immaculate defence

Firdose Moonda05-Mar-20251:51

What makes Ravindra such a standout player?

New Zealand are into their seventh ICC final and fourth in the ODI format after posting the highest score in Champions Trophy history and beating South Africa by 50 runs in their semi-final in Lahore. They will play India in Sunday’s final in Dubai on the back of a major confidence boost following their commanding win.Rachin Ravindra scored his fifth ODI hundred – all of them have come in ICC events – Kane Williamson racked up a third successive century against South Africa, and Daryl Mitchelocps://www.espncricinfo.com/cricketers/mitchell-santner-502714″>Mitchell Santner took 3 for 43, his wickets including those of South Africa’s captain Temba Bavuma, their consistent No. 3 Rassie van der Dussen and their most destructive hitter Heinrich Klaasen, as New Zealand defended their score with aplomb and progressed to the final.Related

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The match was long over as a contest by the 47th over of South Africa’s chase, when David Miller was batting on 52 with only No. 11 Lungi Ngidi for company. But just enough time remained for Miller to farm the strike, face all 18 balls that remained, and reach a 67-ball century off the last ball of the match.This is the fifth semi-final that New Zealand have won at an ICC ODI event while South Africa have lost nine out of 11 (and only won one), and their search for a second major title after the inaugural Champions Trophy in 1998 goes on.Much of the focus may be on South Africa’s batting given that they have not won any of the five semi-finals they have chased in, but this time they lost the game in the field. Their bowling effort was unusually off-colour as they failed to take advantage of early swing, bowled too many pace-on deliveries despite seeing the efficacy of pace-off, and they put down two catches. Lungi Ngidi was their best bowler with his steady selection of slower balls and picked up the early wicket of Will Young with the new ball and the important one of Mitchell with the older one, but both Marco Jansen and Keshav Maharaj went wicketless.Kane Williamson and Rachin Ravindra put on 164, the highest partnership for New Zealand in the Champions Trophy•ICC/Getty Images

Put simply, South Africa were no match for the combination of Ravindra and Williamson, the courageous and the calm, who shared in New Zealand’s highest Champions Trophy stand of 164 for the second wicket and complemented each other perfectly. Both may say they didn’t play their most fluent innings but they approached a flat pitch differently, especially in terms of the pace of their scoring, and kept South Africa guessing. Ravindra maintained a strike rate of more than 100 throughout his innings to keep pressure on the bowlers while Williamson took his time to get to his half-century (61 balls) before taking just 30 more deliveries to bring up his century.After winning the toss, Santner decided to bat first, in the hope that the breeze would negate the possibility of dew in the evening, and he could put scoreboard pressure on South Africa. He was right on both counts.New Zealand started streakily when Young edged Ngidi over Jansen at slip, but soon found their touch. Ravindra led the way with a takedown of Jansen’s short balls. He pulled a bumper through square leg and then hit him for three fours in his fourth over, through cover, midwicket and extra cover, leaving Jansen wondering which of the cutter, the full ball or the bouncer was his best option. Ngidi stemmed the tide when he had Young caught at mid-off and New Zealand ended the first powerplay on 56 for 1.Williamson scored 11 off his first 14 balls before Rabada bowled a stunning maiden over to him that constantly kept him on his toes with changes of pace and length, and Williamson was happy to bide time. Ravindra brought up his half-century off 47 balls in the 18th over, in which he hit Wiaan Mulder for three fours. South Africa had brought on Maharaj in the 17th and his first four overs were tight – he conceded just 14 runs – before Ravindra decided to take him on. He was not fully in control when he fetched Maharaj from outside off to hit through long-on but then charged and smashed a straight six next ball. That over cost 13 runs, and Maharaj’s next 12, and he was replaced by Ngidi, who almost made an important breakthrough.Williamson, on 56, slashed at the last ball of that over, Ngidi’s sixth, and got a healthy edge but Klaasen, diving one-handed to his right, could not hold on. Ngidi caused problems for Ravindra too and beat him outside off in his next over. He was on 97 and South Africa asked for a caught-behind review in vain. Ravindra went on to bring up his century off Rabada in the next over, off the 93rd ball he faced. New Zealand also brought up their 200 in that over, the 32nd, as Rabada went for 17 with Williamson changing gears.After a sedate start, Williamson was at his inventive best as he raced towards his hundred•Associated Press

He was on 80 off 77 balls when Ravindra was caught behind off Rabada, and took another 14 deliveries to get to his hundred with a ramp off Mulder. The same shot didn’t work later in the over, and Williamson was caught at short fine, but New Zealand had the platform to go big. They were 252 for 3 after 40 overs before Jansen and Rabada squeezed, bowling four overs for 27 runs and the wicket of Tom Latham.But then… carnage. Mitchell tonked Ngidi for a six and two fours, Phillips took four successive fours off Jansen’s penultimate over, and New Zealand were on their way. They scored 83 runs in the last six overs to cross 360 and leave South Africa with a mountain to climb.And at least one of them started the ascent slowly. When Ryan Rickelton was out for 17 off 11, Bavuma was batting on 3 off 17. He continued to labour, and moved to 10 off 24 before cutting loose. In the ninth over, he walked down the pitch to Matt Henry and hit over mid-off, and in the 10th, hooked Kyle Jamieson behind square for six. South Africa rescued the first powerplay and finished it on 56 for 1, exactly the same as New Zealand. With the in-form van der Dussen with him, Bavuma demonstrated an ability to kick on and the pair formed a dangerous combination.They took on the spinners, with both batters bringing up their fifties in successive Michael Bracewell overs, and their stand grew to 105 before Bavuma became Santner’s first victim. He tried to hit his counterpart over cover, but was undone by flight and miscued the ball to Kane Williamson at backward point. Still, South Africa were on track. New Zealand had been 143 for 1 at the halfway stage; South Africa were 143 for 2.But Santner was to have the decisive say. He bowled van der Dussen with a quicker one that straightened past his edge as he looked to work into the leg side, and then had Klaasen caught by Henry diving forward at long-on. Henry tumbled onto his right shoulder and left the field in some discomfort, which forced New Zealand to turn to Ravindra as a sixth bowler. It worked a charm when Aiden Markram popped a catch back to him that he took in front of his face.South Africa needed 170 runs from the last 15 overs with five wickets in hand, and ESPNcricnfo’s win predictor gave them less than 0.5% chance of winning. Even with Miller still at the crease, that seemed accurate. Miller batted to the end and brought up his seventh ODI century off the last ball of the match. His cradle celebration appeared to dedicate the knock to his one-month-old son Benji, but much like his century in the ODI World Cup semi-final in 2023, it might have left him feeling “a bit hollow.” South Africa may share that sentiment with another opportunity at a trophy gone, but for New Zealand, who last lifted an ICC ODI trophy in the year 2000, the dream is alive.

The top seven sides at the ODI World Cup along with hosts Pakistan will compete in the eight-team event

Nagraj Gollapudi and Matt Roller29-Oct-2023The top seven sides at the end of the league stage of the ongoing ODI World Cup in India will qualify for the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy, along with hosts Pakistan, to compete in the eight-team event.An ICC spokesperson confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that the qualification system for the 2025 Champions Trophy was approved by the ICC Board in 2021, when the competition was brought back as one of the eight men’s global tournaments to be held in the 2024-31 cycle.The development has come as a surprise to a few boards – both whose teams are in India as well as others who missed making it to the ODI World Cup – who told ESPNcricinfo that they were unaware about qualification for the 2025 Champions Trophy being at stake in this tournament.At present, Bangladesh and England are at No. 9 and 10 on the ODI World Cup points table, and therefore outside the top seven who will qualify for the Champions Trophy along with hosts Pakistan. “Yeah, I’m aware of that,” England captain Jos Buttler said when asked if he knew a place in the Champions Trophy was at stake following their loss to India in Lucknow. “And absolutely, it just proves we’ve still got lots to play for.”This also means other Full-Member nations like West Indies, Zimbabwe and Ireland will not even have the opportunity to qualify for the tournament, by virtue of not having made it to the 2023 ODI World Cup.In November 2021, the ICC had unveiled several global events for both men and women in the new cycle (2024-31) including two editions of the Champions Trophy – in 2025 and 2029. In a media statement, the ICC had said that the Champions Trophy would be an eight-team event and the tournament structure “will follow previous editions with two groups of four, semi-finals and final”.For the 2013 and 2017 editions of the Champions Trophy, the top eight teams in the ODI rankings at a cut-off date qualified for the event. It is understood that the decision to have the top seven teams at this World Cup qualify for the 2025 Champions Trophy was approved originally by the ICC’s chief executives committee following which the ICC board ratified the recommendation.One Full Member board confirmed that the qualification pathways for all the events were discussed and approved at the 2021 ICC meetings. For the 2027 men’s ODI World Cup, which will be a 14-team tournament co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia, the qualification process is: the two Full Member hosts – South Africa and Zimbabwe – plus eight highest-ranked teams as of March 31, 2027, and four remaining teams through global qualifier tournaments.The qualification for the 2025 Champions Trophy was highlighted this week by Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan more than once. With his team almost out of the semi-final race in the ODI World Cup, Shakib spoke of the importance of finishing in the top eight. “I mean, not the semi-final hope. It is not a semi-final possibility,” Shakib said on Saturday, after Bangladesh were beaten by Netherlands. “At least, do a little better. Suppose, you have to be in the [top] ranking 8 if you want to play in the Champions Trophy. So, there are still three matches left considering that in mind.”