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About 100 cricketers contracted to Sri Lanka Cricket, including the national players, have not been paid their salaries since Sri Lanka co-hosted the 2011 World Cup, BBC Sinhala reported

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Oct-2011About 100 cricketers contracted to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), including national players, have not been paid their salaries since the 2011 World Cup, co-hosted by Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh, BBC Sinhala has reported.There were also doubts over whether the SLC would be able to pay salaries in the next two months. “There is a truth in those media reports to a certain extent,” SLC chairman Upali Dharmadasa was quoted as telling BBC Sinhala.Dharmadasa said efforts were being made to pay the players as soon as the SLC received the remaining payments from the ICC for staging the World Cup. “The ICC still owes us $4-5 million,” he said.The board had revamped the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo and built two new grounds in Pallekele and Hambantota for the tournament in February and March, and the capital expenditure incurred is reported to have left it in debt.

Ashish Nehra, one of India’s first-choice seamers in the shorter versions of the game, has made himself available for Test cricket, six and a half years since he last turned out in the whites at the highest level

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Oct-2010Ashish Nehra, one of India’s first-choice seamers in the shorter versions of the game, has made himself available for Test cricket, six and a half years since he last turned out in whites at the highest level.”I had never said that I will not play Test cricket again,” Nehra told . “It was just that initially after my comeback, I wanted to concentrate on the ODIs and Twenty20s. Now that I am back in the national side for one and a half years, I feel confident to make a comeback in the Test fold. I will like to make myself available for selection during the South Africa Test series.”A spate of injuries in the mid-2000s pushed Nehra out of the Indian team, but he clawed back into the reckoning with a watershed performance in the 2009 IPL in South Africa, where he stood third in the wickets chart with 18. He has since become a regular in India’s ODI plans and sporadically featured in Twenty20 internationals. His susceptibility to injuries, however, has kept him out of the Test team.Since his international comeback in June 2009, Nehra has played 36 one-dayers, picking 54 wickets at an average just under 30. More importantly, he has not missed a single game due to fitness issues or injuries, and Nehra hopes that he can carry that durability into the longest version. He is headed to the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore to follow a fitness program that will prepare him for the upcoming tour of South Africa.”I am planning to play one Ranji Trophy for Delhi before the New Zealand ODI series to check how my body is holding. I am enjoying my cricket at the moment and I don’t see any reason why I can’t make a comeback.”For me the top-most priority is the World Cup next year. That is why I have been so choosy about playing in the longer version. But after World Cup, there is lot of Test cricket to be played as India would be playing against England, West Indies. I will like to again play Test cricket with the same intensity that I used to at the start of my career.”While Nehra is keen to return to Tests, it remains to be seen whether the selectors, who have treated India’s fast-bowling talents on a case-by-case-basis, will include him in their plans. Zaheer Khan is currently the only seamer who walks into the side in all three formats, but, of late, he has been used selectively in a bid to prolong his career. Nehra, on the other hand, has slotted well into the one-day side, with his ability to move the new ball and deliver yorkers in the closing stages. Ishant Sharma and Sreesanth, who have been lacklustre in the shorter versions, have been persisted with for Test cricket. Both bowlers have reposed that faith with strong performances in recent times, and Nehra will have to stave off competition from them to enter the Test side.

Andrew Flintoff may have turned down a central contract but has insisted that England remains top priority for him, ahead of several domestic Twenty20 deals

Cricinfo staff16-Dec-2009Andrew Flintoff may have turned down a central contract but insists that England remain his top priority, ahead of several domestic Twenty20 deals.Flintoff retired from Tests after the successful Ashes campaign and had rejected an ECB incremental contract soon after. There was speculation that he would become a Twenty20 freelancer, playing full-time in various domestic leagues around the world. He is already the IPL’s most expensive player – along with Kevin Pietersen – after signing an annual US$1.55m deal with the Chennai Super Kings earlier this year.Twenty20 may be more lucrative but England comes first, he told . “I would never turn down England,” he said. “I have shown more than enough passion over the years, and that’s not something you lose because I don’t have a contract.”If I didn’t think I was going to play for England again, I would not have had this latest operation, no way. It is all about playing for England. My intentions are to play every one-day and Twenty20 game for England. It is never going to be a case of picking and choosing.”A series of injuries were one of the reasons behind ending his Test career. He is currently recovering from a post-Ashes knee surgery, which forced him to be on crutches for nearly 12 weeks. Flintoff is still in doubt for England’s tour of Bangladesh in February, but was hopeful his best years in limited-overs cricket were still ahead of him.”I’m not sure I have even played my best yet, especially in one-day cricket – so now I am having this break I think I have got the chance to get better as a player. I am not going to just get by. I genuinely think I can now play my best ever cricket.”After turning down the England contract, Flintoff was linked with domestic Twenty20 deals in Australia and South Africa, sparking concerns that more players may decide to put cash before country. “I don’t think other players will follow what I’ve done,” he said. “There is a real misconception at the moment – people go on about the riches involved in Twenty20 cricket – but you earn your reputation playing Test cricket.”Everyone wants to play that, and then maybe later on in your career some players will have a choice – especially bowlers, who can’t play everything forever.”

With the series already wrapped up, India’s captain will be keen on marking his Mumbai homecoming with a big performance

S Sudarshanan01-Feb-20251:05

Manjrekar: Talents like Samson should be allowed a long patch of failures

Big picture: Homecoming for SKY

A new captain, and a homecoming at the Wankhede, was the theme in the build-up to IPL 2024. It is once again a talking point as the India-England T20I series heads for a finale in Mumbai.Hardik Pandya had a long wait to win the crowd over last year in the IPL, having taken over Mumbai Indians’ captaincy from Rohit Sharma. None of that hostility will be in store for Suryakumar Yadav, who will be captaining India for the first time on his home turf. He has a sound record in T20s at the venue: 1493 runs (second-most for any batter), a strike rate of 156.66, an average of over 38. Even in IPL 2024, when he blew hot and cold, he hit two fifties and a hundred – to go with three ducks – at the venue.Related

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• Compromise may be needed with concussion subs to ensure player safety

However, the Suryakumar that is coming into the game is in unfamiliar territory by his lofty T20I standards. He has gone seven successive innings without a half-century, the longest such streak for him, and tallies just 26 in four outings in this series with two ducks. The high-intent approach of going hard from ball one is partly a cause, with assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate saying consistency and predictability is not a high marker in T20 cricket.This series for England has been about hit-the-deck bowlers, with each of Jofra Archer, Mark Wood and Brydon Carse making use of the hard lengths to undo the India captain. Only in Pune did Suryakumar chip a tame catch off a full ball on his pad.England will once again be looking to hit the right length to spoil Suryakumar’s homecoming, while the hosts will have their sights set on an impressive 4-1 series win.

Form guide

India WLWWW
England LWLLLSuryakumar Yadav hasn’t quite been at his explosive best this series•Associated Press

In the spotlight: Abhishek Sharma and Ben Duckett

One of the flagbearers of India’s fearless batting approach has been Abhishek Sharma. In his brief T20I career, only twice has he been dismissed with a sub-100 strike rate. He’s managed to put away the back-of-length deliveries that Archer and Wood often peppered him with by making room and slapping them over point or cover. That he has not batted longer than 19 balls in any of the games after the first one could be held against him, especially if there is a squeeze at the top of the order when the likes of Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal return. A longer, more impactful knock in Mumbai could make it tough for the selectors to leave him out.One of Ben Duckett’s reputations is that of a spin-hitter. But in the first two games he was out before spin came on. Why England rated him high became clear when he scored 51 in Rajkot, when they managed to eke out a win – even though it was down to the last-wicket stand. Duckett put India’s spinners off their lengths by using the sweep and reverse sweeps, much like he did in Pune before falling to spin. It took time for India to plug his preferred spots, deep square leg and deep point, which meant he had to hit spin through the ‘V’. Can he give England a sound start in the final T20I?

Team news: Ramandeep or Rana for Dube?

Shivam Dube’s concussion puts him in doubt for the fifth T20I. And that could mean a look-in either for Ramandeep Singh, a batting allrounder, or another outing for Harshit Rana if India feel they could do with a second seamer at the Wankhede. Mohammed Shami might also return in place of Arshdeep Singh.India (probable XI): 1 Abhishek Sharma, 2 Sanju Samson (wk), 3 Suryakumar Yadav (capt), 4 Tilak Varma, 5 Hardik Pandya, 6 Rinku Singh, 7 Axar Patel, 8 Ramandeep Singh/Harshit Rana, 9 Arshdeep Singh/Mohammed Shami, 10 Ravi Bishnoi, 11 Varun ChakravarthyAn impressive first outing in the series should see fast bowler Saqib Mahmood hold his place in the XI. England might consider resting Archer, who has played all four T20Is so far, and bringing back Gus Atkinson. Legspinning allrounder Rehan Ahmed could also get a game.England (probable XI): 1 Phil Salt (wk), 2 Ben Duckett, 3 Jos Buttler (capt), 4 Harry Brook, 5 Liam Livingstone, 6 Jamie Smith/Jacob Bethell, 7 Jamie Overton, 8 Brydon Carse, 9 Jofra Archer/Gus Atkinson, 10 Saqib Mahmood, 11 Adil Rashid/Rehan AhmedSaqib Mahmood claimed three wickets in his opening over during the previous game•Associated Press

Pitch and conditions

The weather is expected to be in the mid-20s and dew could play a role at the Wankhede Stadium. Teams batting first have won only three T20Is out of the eight at this venue, but in IPL 2024, teams managed to successfully defend a target in four of the seven matches. Most recently, in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, teams chasing won eight times in 14 matches. The average score in the competition at the venue was 145.

Stats and trivia

• Mahmood has been England’s leading wicket-taker in the powerplay in T20Is since January 2024. He has picked up 12 wickets in just seven innings starting with the Australia series last September. On an average, he strikes every nine balls in the first six overs. Archer is next in the list with 10 scalps from 18 innings.
• India’s captains across men’s formats this season – Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav – average a combined 13.12, the lowest for any team with a minimum of 20 innings batting in the top seven.
• India’s spinners have combined to take 24 wickets in this series, the most they ever have in a bilateral series. Varun Chakravarthy leads the charts with 12 wickets, including a five-wicket haul.

Quotes

“I like the confidence this bowling unit walks onto the field with. The planning we do before games, everybody is contributing in those conversations. The main thing is to go out and execute and even if we are under pressure, like tonight, it was great awareness shown by the group.”

The Zimbabwe captain picked up two demerit points following an altercation with Josh Little and Curtis Campher during the first T20I

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Dec-2023Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza will miss the second and third T20Is against Ireland after picking up a two-match ban following a code-of-conduct breach in the first match of the series on Thursday.Raza, who was Player of the Match for his all-round display (65, and 3 for 28) in a one-wicket win in Harare, was involved in an altercation with two Ireland players during the 14th over of Zimbabwe’s chase. The incident followed a tight single off the bowling of Josh Little, which involved Raza having to run around the bowler in his follow-through.Raza had a heated exchange with Little and Curtis Campher, “charging towards” the duo – according to a Zimbabwe Cricket press release – while “pointing his bat and breaking away from the umpire who had tried to calm the situation”.Raza received two demerit points for the offence, which took his total to four in the last 24 months, leading to his two-match ban. He was also fined 50% of his match fee. Campher and Little picked up one demerit point each, their first in the last 24 months, and were fined 15% of their match fees.Sean Williams will stand in as Zimbabwe captain for the remaining two matches of the T20I series, on Saturday and Sunday.

Craig Overton bags five-for before hosts build on imposing lead over Northants

ECB Reporters Network22-Sep-2022Somerset will go into the final day of their LV= Insurance County Championship match with Northamptonshire at Taunton in a strong position, knowing that victory will guarantee First Division survival.With a lead of 401 and nine second-innings wickets still in hand, the home side can feel confident of at least a draw, which would put them 17 points clear of second-from-bottom Warwickshire.Having bowled out Northamptonshire for 265 from an overnight 184 for 6, Craig Overton finishing with 5 for 38, Somerset built on a first innings lead of 124 by posting 277 for 1.Unbeaten centuries from skipper Tom Abell, his second ton of the match, and Tom Lammonby led the way, while Imam-ul-Haq contributed 52. Abell hit 112 not out and Lammonby 101 not out to effectively bat Northants out of the game.If Somerset can complete victory, it will open up a 25-point gap on Warwickshire and lift them to a comfortable sixth place in Division One, with the final round of fixtures next week.They began the third day against Northants in perfect fashion when Josh Davey had Saif Zaib well caught low down at second slip by Overton off the first ball of the morning.But Tom Taylor, unbeaten on 19 overnight, moved to an impressive fifty off 69 balls by cutting his tenth four off Kasey Aldridge.Another Taylor boundary off Abell took Northants past the follow-on figure at 240 for 7 and Somerset’s attack, lacking the injured Lewis Gregory, were looking frustrated as Lizaad Williams helped add 63 for the fourth wicket.That changed with a needless run out. Taylor played Sajid Khan into the leg side with no intention of taking a single, but Williams, on 23, charged down the pitch from the non-striker’s end and was sent packing by Josh Davey’s throw to the bowler.Aldridge had Ben Sanderson caught at mid-on and Overton wrapped up the innings when Jack White was caught behind, backing away towards square leg.By lunch, Somerset had extended their lead by 12 to 136 and the afternoon session saw Lammonby and Imam build further without undue alarm.Imam was first to his half-century off 74 balls, having hit four fours and a straight six off Rob Keogh, a shot which took the lead to 200.The Pakistan Test opener fell shortly afterwards, allowing a ball from off-spinner Keogh to run up his pad onto a glove before being taken by wicketkeeper Ricardo Vasconcelos, running in front of the stumps.By then the lead was 225 and Lammonby soon followed his opening partner to fifty, having faced 115 balls and hit five fours.By tea, Somerset had progressed to 118 for 1, with Lammonby on 54, and arch-rivals Gloucestershire were on the verge of doing them a huge favour by beating Warwickshire.The final ball at Bristol was shown on the screens down the M5 at the Cooper Associates County Ground to relieved applause from Somerset fans, as in front of them, Lammonby and Abell built a half-century stand from 70 balls.Abell launched a six over mid-wicket off Keogh as his side accelerated towards a declaration in the morning. His fifty occupied 49 deliveries and also featured five fours.Successive Abell boundaries off Keogh took the lead past 350, while another four in the off-spinner’s following over took Somerset’s captain past 1,000 first class runs for the season.A swept single off Keogh completed Abell’s fifth hundred of the summer off 87 balls, with 14 fours and a six.Lammonby lost nothing by comparison, curbing his natural attacking instincts to strike just eight boundaries in his patient 221-ball century. By stumps the stand between the pair was worth 176.Abell left the best till last, a swashbuckling six over extra cover off Josh Cobb in the final over of a Somerset-dominated day.

“I haven’t even looked that far,” Morris said when asked about playing for South Africa in the future

Deivarayan Muthu30-Mar-20212:31

Chris Morris – ‘Stokes and I could be an interesting duo to come up against’

Chris Morris had played all of one international – a T20I against New Zealand in Durban – when he earned his maiden IPL deal in 2013, with the Chennai Super Kings shelling out US$ 625,000 for him. Eight years later, Morris’ South Africa future is uncertain, but he continues to be a sought-after player in the IPL.In the most recent auction, he became the most expensive player ever in the IPL, with the Rajasthan Royals outbidding the Royal Challengers Bangalore to sign him for INR 16.25 crore (USD 2.2 million approx.).Morris recalled the fierce bidding war for him at the auction earlier in February, saying his “breath was taken away”.Related

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“Look, I’ll be the first person to say that my breath was taken away,” Morris said during a virtual-media interaction on Tuesday. “I didn’t expect to first of all be bought for that much and second of all for so many teams to want to employ my services. It’s definitely a humbling feeling…and like I said it took my breath away for that to happen and for teams to keep going for me like that blew my mind.”Between the end of IPL 2020, when Morris was injured, and the IPL 2021 auction, Morris hadn’t played a single competitive game, but the Royals still broke the bank for his big hitting and death bowling. Those dual skills have made him a T20 globetrotter – he has had stints in the BBL, IPL, and T20 Blast in England. This will be Morris’ eighth IPL season and he will return to the Royals, a franchise he represented in 2015, when they made the playoffs. Morris, now 33, said that initially he didn’t see himself playing as many seasons in the league.”I never in my wildest dreams thought I’ll be in my ninth IPL or eighth – math has never been my strong suit – but I never thought I’ll be playing this many IPLs,” he said. “For me to still be needed for my services and be valued is very cool and humbled. We need to put the performances in; it’s as simple as that. When you do contribute to the team and have a bit of fun…amazing things happen when you have fun on the cricket field.”Morris also looked back at the IPL as a “life-changing” event, cherishing the experience of playing with and against top international players in the world.”You want to use the word life-changing, but every single time you come to the IPL, your life changes whether it’s personal or cricket or anything else,” he said. “It’s a life-changing experience to be part of the IPL. It’s been an absolute blast of a journey so far and hopefully there’s a new story to be written over the next nine weeks.”Morris, though, refused to view the IPL as a dry run for the 2021 T20 World Cup, which will also be held in India, insisting that his focus is entirely on performing for the Royals.”Whether there’s a World Cup or not, it’s going to be a very important [IPL] season all the way,” he said. “Like I said, World Cup or no World Cup, [I] still want to win the IPL doesn’t matter what’s coming up after. Your main focus is to win the IPL – the second-biggest trophy, if not the biggest trophy to win in a year without the World Cup. It’s the biggest trophy to win as a cricketer playing domestic cricket. The whole world is watching you, the eyes are on you. It’s the one. It’s the big one to win as a player especially when you’re playing in it for a quite a number of years. You don’t want to use the word tick the box, but definitely something you want to do to have an opportunity to win the IPL.”Other guys will hopefully be focusing on the World Cup and that takes their focus away from the IPL and we can jump onto that. Personally, I’m not worried about the World Cup, I’m here to do the job to win matches and hopefully push for winning the trophy in the IPL.”Earlier this year, when asked about his South Africa future, Morris didn’t provide a firm answer. This time as well, he maintained his stance on the matter, having last played international cricket in the 2019 50-over World Cup.”I haven’t even looked that far,” Morris said. “I’ve just focused on playing for Rajasthan Royals – that’s my immediate focus and port of call right now. We will cross that bridge if we get there – if it ever arrives – but no focus on that and all my focus is here.”Playing for the Royals will invite price-tag pressure – and there will be greater pressure if the injured Jofra Archer is sidelined from the entire tournament – but Morris wasn’t too fussed about it, having dealt with it in the past.”It’s natural to have a little bit of added pressure when something like that has happened [at the auction],” he said. I would be lying if I said there wasn’t any pressure. But, fortunately enough, in the past I have come in [to the tournament] with quite a big price tag on my head, so at the end of the day, you got to perform on the field, no matter what your price tag is. So, there is a little bit of added pressure, but the pressure that you get from a price tag doesn’t affect you on a cricket field at the end of the day.”Morris disagrees with Steyn about too much money talk in IPL
During his PSL stint with the Quetta Gladiators, Dale Steyn, speaking to , reckoned that the IPL was less rewarding than some of the other T20 leagues, with more “emphasis on the amount of money”. Morris, however, disagreed with his former team-mate at South Africa and the Royal Challengers.”No, I don’t feel the same (laughs). Dale’s a free spirit, Dale’s one of the legends of the game, Dale’s one of my favourite people in the world,” Morris said. “Dale’s got his opinions, he will be outspoken about his opinions, but that’s Dale’s character.”I’m not going to delve into it too much and it was just the case of Dale feeling at that time what Dale was feeling – what he was feeling emotionally or physically or mentally. Whatever he feels that’s what he feels, and I’m happy to have a conversation with him about it. But, we’re all different animals, we’re all different people and we have different opinions and that’s what makes the world go around.”

Offences related to corruption in sports will carry a prison term of up to 10 years, as well as various fines

Andrew Fidel Fernando11-Nov-2019Sri Lanka has become the first South Asian nation to criminalise several offences related to match-fixing, after its parliament passed all three readings of a bill entitled “Prevention of Offences Related to Sports” on Monday. Offences related to corruption in sports will carry a prison term of up to 10 years, as well as various fines.Aside from Sports Minister Harin Fernando, who presented the bill to parliament, former Sri Lanka captain Arjuna Ranatunga, who is a cabinet minister, was a strong supporter of the new legislation during Monday’s parliamentary debates. The sports ministry in particular is understood to have worked closely with the ICC’s Anti Corruption Unit during the process of drafting the bill. In fact, although the bill covers all sports, it is the recent ACU investigation into Sri Lankan cricket that is believed to have prompted this legislation.The bill’s ambit is broad. It seeks not only to punish “any person related to a sport” who is directly involved in fixing, but also those who “provide… inside information”, curators who prepare playing surfaces to suit betting operators, and match officials who “deliberately misapply the rules” for money. In addition, it is now also illegal for former players (and others involved in sports) to provide corrupt figures access to current players.Just as significantly, the bill also criminalises “acts of omission”, which includes failure to report corrupt approaches. This means that Sri Lankan cricketers who are approached by potential corruptors may now have to report these approaches not only to the ICC’s ACU under the ICC code, but also to a Special Investigation Unit appointed by Sri Lanka’s government.Although parliament passed this legislation during Monday’s special sitting, it is not law until the Act is gazetted, probably in the course of the next 10 days. A parliament spokesperson said the gazetting is expected to be a mere formality.While Ranatunga was a leading figure during the debate, urging parliament to push an unamended bill through as soon as possible, former SLC president Thilanga Sumathipala proposed amendments to the bill that were ultimately defeated on the floor. Sumathipala was at pains to mention, however, that he was not against the passing of the bill as a whole, only the contents of certain clauses.Sri Lanka’s cricket has been under investigation by the ICC’s ACU since 2017. Several former players have been charged under the ICC code, the most notable of whom is Sanath Jayasuriya, who was banned for two years in February this year.

Stokes missed the second Test at Lord’s this week due to his appearance at Bristol Crown Court, and was omitted from an unchanged 13-man squad for the Trent Bridge Test

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Aug-2018The ECB has left the door open to a recall for Ben Stokes for the third Test against India at Nottingham this week, pending the outcome of his trial for affray.Stokes missed the second Test at Lord’s this week due to his appearance at Bristol Crown Court, and was omitted from an unchanged 13-man squad for the Trent Bridge Test, which gets underway on Saturday.Jamie Porter and Moeen Ali have been retained alongside the 11 men who completed an innings-and-159-run victory on Sunday, a match in which Stokes’ direct replacement, Chris Woakes, was named Man of the Match for his maiden Test century and four wickets across two innings.

England squad

Joe Root (capt), Alastair Cook, Keaton Jennings, Ollie Pope, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Jos Buttler, Chris Woakes, Sam Curran, Adil Rashid, Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Moeen Ali, Jamie Porter.

However, in a press release, the ECB added that they “will make an assessment of Ben Stokes’s availability after the trial in Bristol has concluded”, a turn of phrase that suggested that he could be added to the mix if the court finds in his favour.The trial, which entered its sixth day on Monday morning, has reached the summing-up stage, with the jury expected to retire overnight to consider their verdict in a case that involves one other co-defendant, Ryan Ali. A third defendant, Ryan Hale, has already been acquitted due to a lack of evidence.Regardless of the outcome of the trial, the ECB’s Cricket Disciplinary Commission (CDC) is due to meet within 48 hours of the verdict, to consider what sanctions – if any – should be directed at Stokes and his England team-mate, Alex Hales for their parts in the incident outside Mbargo nightclub in the wake of their ODI victory in Bristol on September 24. Hales was not on trial.Stokes, who was withdrawn from the Ashes pending prosecution, returned to international action in New Zealand in February.England have two days off in the wake of their Lord’s victory, and are due to reconvene at Trent Bridge on Thursday, which would be the realistic cut-off for Stokes’ inclusion in the squad, given the need to train ahead of the Test. His last involvement in the series was a three-wicket burst on the final morning of the Edgbaston Test, which sealed a thrilling 31-run win.Speaking after the Lord’s victory, England’s captain Joe Root made light of Stokes’ absence, particularly in the wake of Woakes’ impressive return to the team.”Ben is obviously a huge part of this squad, so it’s a miss him not being here this week,” Root said. “But what it did do was create an opportunity for Chris to come in and perform – and boy, he didn’t disappoint did he? He was outstanding.”It’s nice to see guys really taking opportunities, and that’s something we really want to harness as an example to the guys in and around the squad – ‘when you get your chance, make it as hard as possible to leave you out’.”It’s a great headache to have for us, going into next week.”Trevor Bayliss, England’s head coach, praised the way in which Stokes’ team-mates had put his issues to one side and kept their focus on in-field matters, and anticipated that the Trent Bridge selection would once again be a straight choice between the extra seamer or a second spinner in Moeen Ali.”The results speak for themselves,” he said. “The guys are able to put anything off field out of their mind and concentrate on what they’re doing, and this was the perfect example.””We were all set to play the second spinner in this match if conditions suited, but with the weather around we didn’t have to make that decision. We went with the extra quick and it worked out.”On the deliberations of the CDC, as and when Stokes’ verdict is passed, Bayliss did not expect to be involved.”After the incident in September last year, the disciplinary committee met and made some decisions and we weren’t consulted then,” he said.

Gary Ballance is to have an X-ray on his left index finger after sustaining a blow on it when batting on the fourth day of the Trent Bridge Test

George Dobell17-Jul-2017
Gary Ballance is to have an X-ray on his left index finger after sustaining a blow on it when batting on the fourth day of the Trent Bridge Test.Ballance was hit by a delivery from Morne Morkel as England slid to a 340-run defeat at the hands of South Africa. It is, in terms of runs, the second-largest defeat South Africa have inflicted upon England.Any break would render Ballance a severe doubt for the third Investec Test which starts at The Oval on July 27.With only 85 runs in the series at an average of 21.15, Ballance has not made a compelling case for his continued selection. While recent policy would suggest the selectors would allow him until the end of the series to prove himself, it is not impossible they could be swayed by any injury doubt.Mark Wood’s bruised left heel will also be monitored over the coming days, with an England spokesman suggesting “he might have a scan” if it was deemed necessary. Wood returned to Test cricket at Lord’s for the first time since October 2015 and has undergone three bouts of surgery on his left ankle.The England selectors are expected to meet over the next couple of days to name their squad for the third Test.Speaking after the game, England’s new captain Joe Root kept his options open in terms of selection, but hinted that he favoured no dramatic changes.”We will sit down over the next couple of days,” he said. “The top six are talented players and they will be desperate to make their chances count when they come along.””It’s important at The Oval we try to get off to a really strong start especially in the first innings and those guys are more than capable of doing it. The way they’ve gone about things in practice and the runs they’ve scored in county cricket have been outstanding and now it’s just about doing it in international cricket.”