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Robert Croft sacked as coach to end 30-year association with Glamorgan

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Welsh legend pays price for county’s flat-lining performances on all fronts

George Dobell17-Oct-2018Hugh Morris has described as “incredibly difficult” the decision to end Robert Croft’s 30-year career with Glamorgan.Morris, the club’s chief executive, acknowledged Croft’s “incredible contribution” to Glamorgan but conceded that, after a grim year, this was “the right time for a change”.Croft had been head coach at Glamorgan for the last three years. Despite seeing the side reach Finals Day in 2017 – the first time they had done so in 13 years – Croft was unable to improve their first-class form. They finished bottom of Division Two in the County Championship in 2018, won only one List A match, and failed to progress to the last eight in the T20 Blast. The departure of 21-year-old Aneurin Donald, one of the club’s brightest prospects, to Hampshire underlined the impression that, too often in the last few years, the club had relied too heavily on imports.Before his spell as head coach, Croft had enjoyed a long career with the club – he made his debut in 1989 and captained the side between 2003 and 2006 – and had a period as assistant coach. His departure leaves the club looking for both a new head coach and director of cricket following last week’s announcement which revealed Morris, who has had a dual role as chief executive and director of cricket since 2013, would be concentrating on the former position. It is likely the new director of cricket will be involved in the appointment of the next head coach.”On behalf of the club I would like to thank Robert for the incredible contribution he has made to Glamorgan, not just as head coach but also as a player, assistant coach and ambassador over the last 30 years,” Morris said.”He is one of our greatest players and the most successful player we have ever had at the club at international level and has done more than anyone to promote not just cricket in Wales, but Welsh cricket to the world.”During his tenure, he has developed a number of young players which Glamorgan will hopefully see the benefit of for years to come. He also oversaw the club reaching the quarter-finals of the Vitality Blast in two of his three years in charge, which culminated in our return to Finals Day last year.”It was an incredibly difficult decision for the board to make, but given our performances in the County Championship we feel it is the right time for a change. Robert is always welcome back at the club and we hope he will continue to act as an ambassador for Glamorgan and Welsh cricket.””After finishing my playing career it was one of my dreams to coach at this great club and I am pleased to have been able to fulfil that dream and play a part in developing the next generation of Welsh cricketers,” Croft said. “I leave knowing that Glamorgan has a number of extremely talented cricketers who can take the club forward.”Although our County Championship campaigns did not go as I would have liked, we were able to compete admirably in the shorter formats of the game with a small and young squad of players.”Glamorgan will always hold a big piece of my heart and I would like to wish the club and supporters well for the future.”Since they were relegated at the end of the 2005 season, Glamorgan have only finished in the top half of Division Two twice. In that period, they have failed to produce an England player. At one stage in 2018, they lost seven Championship games in succession.

Pakistan look to Sohail, Salahuddin in post-MisYou era

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The pair are likely to be the first batsmen to attempt filling the gap left by Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan’s retirements in the upcoming Tests against Sr Lanka, even as Pakistan have bolstered their bowling with the inclusion of uncapped fast bowler Mir

Umar Farooq23-Sep-2017Haris Sohail, who last played first-class cricket in 2014, and Usman Salahuddin have inherited the hardest jobs in Test cricket – to follow in the footsteps of Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan. The pair are likely to be the first to attempt filling those giant shoes, as Pakistan named their first Test squad in the post-MisYou era, to take on Sri Lanka in the UAE.

Pakistan Test squad

Azhar Ali, Shan Masood, Sami Aslam, Babar Azam, Asad Shafiq, Haris Sohail, Usman Salahuddin, Sarfraz Ahmed (capt), Yasir Shah, Mohammad Asghar, Bilal Asif, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Amir, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Abbas, Wahab Riaz

Pakistan, led by Sarfraz Ahmed now, have also picked uncapped fast bowler Mir Hamza and allrounder Bilal Asif in a 16-man squad for the Test series, which starts with the first Test in Abu Dhabi on Thursday. Ahmed Shehzad and Mohammad Rizwan were the two exclusions from the list of probables that went through a five-day conditioning camp in Lahore recently.Much of the early focus will be on Sohail and Salahuddin, as Pakistan look to make up for losing over 15000 Test runs and nearly 200 Tests worth of experience in the middle order. Both are uncapped in Tests, but have represented Pakistan. Salahuddin played two ODIs for Pakistan in 2011, but Sohail was, for a while after his debut in July 2013, a near-fixture in the ODI side.Yasir Shah and Azhar Ali have both made it into the squad as well, and though both ordinarily would’ve been automatic selections, there was some doubt about their participation in the run-up to the announcement. Azhar, Pakistan’s most successful Test batsman over the last year or so, was in doubt with a knee problem and he sat out a two-day practice match at the camp. He has, however, been receiving treatment, according to chief selector Inzamam ul Haq, and a speedy recovery would enable him to be available for both of the Test matches. Pakistan will need, more than anything, his experience.Yasir, on the other hand, was on the verge of becoming the biggest victim of the new fitness drive coach Mickey Arthur and the management have implemented since their arrival. Already, the push to make Pakistan fitter has claimed victims in Sami Aslam and, most famously, Umar Akmal. Yasir’s fitness levels were said to have been a major concern over the last five days, but he has, apparently, pulled through and proved his fitness. Since 2014, he has been Pakistan’s most successful Test bowler.The squad was meant to be announced on Friday but was pushed until Saturday morning, allowing Yasir to undergo another fitness test to reach a value acceptable for a player to be selected. He was the Player of the Series in Pakistan’s last Test assignment in the West Indies earlier this year with 25 wickets in three Tests.”We want to maintain our standard on fitness and we told Yasir to make it or it would be impossible for us to select him,” said Inzamam. “Yasir’s success over the last three-four years has been great but we don’t want to create an exception on fitness. So we waited a day, and that is why we are announcing the team today, on the day of the team’s departure. Yasir is cleared now, having scored a value of 17.5. Azhar has a cyst in his knee and doctors have recommended he can play after taking injections to the knee. So he is fine now and available for selection, and hopefully he will remain fine all the way.”Aslam, the opener, has also been called back into the squad, suggesting the management is happier with his fitness.The two Tests will be the first time Pakistan step onto a field without both Misbah and Younis in seven years, the previous such instance coming at Lord’s in 2010. Both were the backbone of the Test squad that saw Pakistan reach the No.1 Test ranking last year. Inzamam picked Salahuddin and Sohail as prospective replacements.”I have been thinking of both Usman and Haris over the last few series, envisaging the situation after seniors [retired]. Both have done well. Usman has done well as a middle-order batsman while Harris could have made it into the side in 2015 but was injured. So the idea is to give our youngsters an opportunity in our own conditions rather than playing them in away series. This will increase their confidence and both have the potential to fill in for Younis and Misbah. But it does not mean the door is shut on other players making it into the side. Performances will obviously be considered and, if a player is good enough, he can definitely be selected.”Pakistan named five fast bowlers and three specialist spinners, a move Inzamam said was aimed at managing the workload of the bowlers who are better on flat tracks in the UAE.”We all understand that pitches in the UAE are a batting paradise, and there is a big opportunity for batsmen to score runs. It’s really a big challenge to get any team out twice so we have to strengthen our bowling. That’s why we have five fast bowlers with three spinners in our squad. Since the temperature will be around 40 degrees Celsius, we probably have to consider rotating our fast bowlers as well.”

Roy rules the roost in making Test case

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Earlier this week, Surrey knocked Middlesex out of the Royal London One-Day Cup at Lord’s. Now, with Middlesex at the summit of the Championship, Jason Roy has left Surrey bent on another act of sabotage

Tim Wigmore at Lord's04-Aug-2016
ScorecardJason Roy transferred his white-ball form with aplomb•Getty Images

Three weeks ago, Lord’s played host to Pakistan toppling England in one of the great Test matches of recent years. Now the legions of seats, which had been so enthralled by Misbah-ul-Haq’s press-ups and Yasir Shah’s legspin, lay mostly vacant, even with Middlesex eyeing up their first title since 1993.Yet there was much to admire in the opening day of the London Derby, and much of the best of it came from the bat of Jason Roy. A little after tea, as the clouds were beginning to dominate the sky above Lord’s, Roy unfurled consecutive off-drives against Toby Roland-Jones. The first went a little to mid-off’s right, the second a little to his left. Both were pristine shots that went all along the ground for four. Any of the thousands of batsmen who have played first-class cricket at Lord’s would have been proud to claim them as their own.The same was true of this entire innings: 110 runs, made at a sprightly rate but without recourse to slogging, that served as a magnificent riposte to those that imagine him merely a brawny limited-overs specialist. Roy has the technique and range of shots to be so much more, all of which makes his recent run of first-class innings – single-figure scores in six of his previous seven innings, including a pair of ducks in his last two – all the more infuriating.”I’ve found it hard to switch between the three formats this year, but I know I’m not the only one,” Roy said. “Your mindset’s completely different. I’ve tried to keep my movements the same and that’s the hardest thing.”After all the changes, it is to the continuity in his method that Roy credits his success. Last Friday night he made a rollicking 120 not out in a T20 game against Kent at a sold-out Oval. On Monday, only incessant rain denied him the chance to convert his unbeaten 93 against Glamorgan in the one-day cup into another century. After such success, a duck against Middlesex in the one-day cup on Tuesday notwithstanding, it made no sense to reinvent his game for red-ball cricket. Had the rain just come a few minutes later against Glamorgan, Roy would have made a trio of centuries in three different formats in a week, believed to be an unprecedented achievement in professional cricket.”My method is now very similar – it never used to be,” he said. “It was tough going in with a different mindset and different way of batting: it was pretty silly. I just went in and treated it like a 50-over game and got myself in. You’re allowed a bit more time in Championship cricket so if they bowled a maiden at me I wasn’t under pressure. That was the only difference.”I almost enjoy it more in the longer format because I’m not under that pressure to score at six, seven, eight, nine an over: I can just bat. Maybe putting myself under too much pressure, expecting myself to score a million runs is something that I’ve tried to deal with.”Even if this was only Roy’s first first-class century of the summer, and just the seventh of his career, England are excited by the prospect of his transferring his penchant for limited overs destruction into the Test arena.Trevor Bayliss has said he could envisage Roy soon playing Tests. “He’s spoken to me and told me to score as many runs as I can. Obviously volume of runs speaks louder than anything. Unfortunately I haven’t got the volume that I’d have liked but this is a start.”Indeed it is. And to all those who enjoyed a dreamy flick to square leg off Tim Murtagh, immediately followed by a gun-barrel straight drive, both for four – like a salsa dancer, Roy’s best work was done in pairs – the possibilities in England whites seemed tantalising. England are hardly short of middle-order aggressors but Roy in this vein loses nothing by comparison to Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler or Ben Stokes.If his first-class returns in 2016 remain underwhelming – 440 runs at 31.42 apiece do not immediately speak of a Test player – he might soon be a test case for whether Bayliss is willing, as he claims, to pick players for Test cricket largely on their ODI form. His last 11 ODI innings have included three exuberant hundreds.Yet there was much more to Surrey’s resolve than Roy. Rory Burns displayed skill to withstand Murtagh with the new ball, and then gave notice of his own expanded game. The compactness he is always associated with was all on display, but the drives, cuts and nudges to the leg side were timed so serenely that his pace lost little by comparison with Roy.And Ben Foakes, unobtrusive and playing unusually straight – three drives passed only a few inches to the umpire’s right before reaching the ropes – ensured that Surrey ended the day not shy of 400, a commendable effort on a pitch with more life than for some of Middlesex’s early season games here.Earlier this week, Surrey knocked Middlesex out of the Royal London One-Day Cup at Lord’s. Now, with Middlesex at the summit of the Championship, Roy has left Surrey bent on another act of sabotage.

Plucky Cosgrove holds up Lancashire

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Mark Cosgrove staved off the threat of a follow-on to protect Leicestershire in a rain-wrecked but eventful day limited to 24 overs

PA/ECB19-May-2015
ScorecardMark Cosgrove staved off the threat of a follow-on to protect Leicestershire in a rain-wrecked but eventful day limited to 24 overs. In that time, 103 runs were scored and six wickets taken, leaving Lancashire in a position of control, leading by 158 runs with eight second innings wickets remaining at the end of the third day.When Leicestershire lost Tom Wells, leg before on the back foot to Kyle Jarvis, they were still 16 short of saving the follow-on, but skipper Cosgrove was joined by Clint McKay and the Australians took Leicestershire past the follow-on before another shower saw the players head for an early lunch.Only four overs were possible in the afternoon session, but Lancashire made the most of them by picking up two more wickets. First to go was Cosgrove, who had battled his way to 79 before a Nathan Buck inswinger saw him dismissed leg before wicket. There had been no further addition to the score when McKay, who had hit four fours in going to 26, edged a Jarvis outswinger to wicket-keeper Alex Davies.Further rain kept the players off until 5.45pm, but Lancashire needed only one more ball to finish the Leicestershire innings, Jarvis seaming one back in to Charlie Shreck to win another leg before shout, and finish with 5 for 69.Looking to bat positively to give themselves enough time to bowl Leicestershire out on the final day, Lancashire quickly lost Paul Horton run out. He called Karl Brown through for a single, was sent back by Brown, who had slipped, and did not make it.Brown himself followed soon afterwards, edging a Shreck out-swinger to Niall O’Brien behind the stumps, and it should have been three when Alviro Petersen edged the last ball of the day, bowled by Ben Raine, to Wells at third slip, only for the young all-rounder to failed to hold the chance – the fifth time Leicestershire have dropped a good chance in the slips in this match.

Bird stars as Warriors skittled for 67

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Justin Langer’s first day as Western Australia’s Sheffield Shield coach could hardly have gone worse as Jackson Bird led a Tasmanian destruction of the Warriors batting order in Hobart

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Nov-2012
Scorecard
Justin Langer’s first day as Western Australia’s Sheffield Shield coach could hardly have gone worse as Jackson Bird led a Tasmanian destruction of the Warriors batting order in Hobart. Western Australia were skittled for 67 and to make matters worse for the visitors, the Tigers proceeded to pass their total with only one wicket down and went to stumps in a commanding position.Tasmania finished the day at 2 for 201, with Ben Dunk unbeaten on 71 and George Bailey on 42, and their lead had already ballooned to 134 runs. Michael Beer picked up both wickets, Mark Cosgrove and Alex Doolan each for 42, and Mitchell Johnson didn’t do his Test prospects much good with 0 for 50 from 12 overs on a pitch that Bird had enjoyed working on earlier in the day.Bird took a career-best 6 for 25 as the Western Australia batting order failed completely. Marcus Harris (21) and the recalled Shaun Marsh (11) were the only men to make double figures and it continued the trend of sides struggling on the first day at Bellerive Oval – in the three matches there so far this season, the teams batting first have made 112, 95 and 67.

Abbottabad close in on first win

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A round-up of the second day of the seventh round of Division One in the Quaid-E-Azam Trophy 2011-12

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Nov-2011Abbottabad are six wickets away from a comprehensive win against Faisalabad at the Gohati Cricket Stadium in Swabi. Having bowled Faisalabad out for 74 on the first day, Abbottabad managed 311 in their first innings and had Faisalabad tottering at 42 for 4 in their second attempt by the end of the second day. Abbottabad started the day on 110 for 3 and lost an early wicket but Rameez Ahmed completed his half-century and shared a 74-run stand with Riaz Kail. Once Rameez was dismissed, Kail carried on and reached 67. The lower order all made handy contributions to push the score beyond 300. Faisalabad came out to bat needing 237 runs just to avoid an innings defeat and were in trouble by stumps. While Ahmed Jamal did the bulk of the damage in their first innings, it was left-arm spinner Mohammad Naeem who struck three times to wreck Faisalabad’s top order this time around.Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited‘s seamers put them in a strong position against Habib Bank Limited at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, bowling HBL out for 156, thus securing a 45-run first-innings lead. By the end of the second day ZTBL had reached 119 for 1 in their second innings putting them in prime position to push for a win. HBL had got off to a solid start thanks to Ahmed Shehzad’s 42 but wickets began to tumble shortly into the second day and they slipped from 47 for 0 to 115 for 7. The wickets were shared around between ZTBL’s seamers and apart from Shehzad only two of HBL’s top-order batsmen reached double-figures. There was some resistance from Danish Kaneria, who made 25 not out at No. 10, but HBL conceded the lead. In ZTBL’s second innings Sharjeel Khan moved to 43 not out and Yasir Hameed reached 44 not out by stumps.Islamabad‘s seamers bowled Rawalpindi out for 119 on the second day at the at the Diamond Club Ground in Islamabad, forcing them to follow on. Rawalpindi slipped to 26 for 3 in their second attempt but a half-century from Adnan Mufti got them to 100 for 3 by stumps. Rawalpindi are still 70 runs away from making Islamabad bat again, though, and the hosts will be eyeing a first win of the season. Islamabad took their overnight score of 226 for 6 to 289 and were then led by Fakhar Hussain, who took three top-order wickets to leave Rawalpindi reeling at 31 for 4. Zohaib Ahmed helped himself to three wickets too while Nasrullah Khan took four as only three Rawalpindi batsmen reached double-figures. Fakhar repeated his efforts in the next innings, again taking three early wickets before Mufit’s resistance kept Rawalpindi afloat.The match between State Bank of Pakistan and National Bank of Pakistan at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad was finely balanced by the end of the second day with State Bank reaching 237 for 6 in response to National Bank’s 282. The match swung through the day, with National Bank taking an early advantage thanks to a couple of strikes from this season’s second-highest wicket-taker, fast bowler Mohammad Talha. State Bank were 61 for 3 before Rameez Raja’s 79 and Rameez Aziz’s unbeaten 51 lifted them to a strong position. They looked to have the advantage as the end of the day neared, with Aziz and Gulraiz Sadaf putting together a 71-run stand. But Gulraiz became seamer Uzair-ul-Haq’s third victim to give National Bank an opening.The low-scoring match between Pakistan International Airlines and Water and Power Development Authority at the Marghzar Cricket Ground in Islamabad is set for a tense finish as WAPDA finished the second day 161 runs ahead with three wickets remaining. PIA managed to get an eight-run first-innings lead after taking their overnight score of 111 for 5 to 186. Fahad Iqbal added just 12 runs to his overnight score of 50 not out but wicketkeeper Anop Santosh moved to 47 and Najaf Shah contributed 20 at No. 10. Seamer Rana Naved-ul-Hasan bagged his third five-wicket haul of the season to ensure PIA took only a small lead. WAPDA then started their second innings strongly, reaching 74 for 0 thanks to Asif Khan’s 49. Things began to unravel from there and WAPDA were soon 109 for 6. Contributions from Nawaz Sardar and Naved kept them in the game and they will now be aiming to set PIA a target of over 200, which could prove difficult on a pitch where batsmen have struggled.Karachi Blues made a strong comeback against Sialkot at the Jinnah Stadium in Sialkot and finished the second day 38 runs ahead with all ten wickets remaining. Sialkot dominated the first day and started the second on 98 for 0 in response to Karachi’s first-innings total of 166. Karachi’s fast bowlers Mohammad Sami and Tanvir Ahmed got them back into the game, taking four wickets each to make sure Sialkot lost 10 wickets for 133 runs and were bowled out for 249. Overnight batsman Mohammad Yasin took his score to 81 and Mohammad Ayub scored 67 to take Sialkot to 217 for 4. A collapse followed in which four of the last six batsmen were dismissed for ducks and Sialkot were restricted to a lead of 83. That was quickly wiped out by Karachi’s openers who put together an unbeaten stand of 121 at 4.93 runs an over. Shahzaib Hasan had reached 72 not out off 76 balls by the end of the day while Asad Baig moved to 42 not out.

de Villiers double makes it South Africa's day

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AB de Villiers broke records and Pakistani spirits as South Africa took control on the second day at the Sheikh Abu Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi

The Bulletin by Osman Samiuddin21-Nov-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
AB de Villiers was at ease during his double-ton•Associated Press

AB de Villiers broke records and Pakistani spirits as South Africa took control on the second day at the Sheikh Abu Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. de Villiers compiled a monumental unvanquished 278, the highest individual score by a South African to help his side declare on 584 for 9. Pakistani resistance was by turns futile and worthwhile; debutante Tanvir Ahmed bagged a six-for by the close and an important unbroken 57-run stand between Azhar Ali and Taufeeq Umar allowed them to return to fight another day.The story and direction of the Test so far was set by de Villiers. Initially his was a muted, inevitable progression; a continuation of the stealthy way in which he went along on the first day. At no point did he choose to cut loose and it was really a matter of choice, for at no point in the day did he look insecure.A verbal dance with a luckless Umar Gul on the virtues or otherwise of walking – Pakistan thought de Villiers was out twice yesterday – was his highlight of the morning’s first hour. He did break out 80 minutes in to the morning in one over against a tiring Ahmed, a delicious drive sandwiched by a pull and punch through midwicket; the last brought up 150.The damage to Pakistan didn’t seem apparent at first: 74 runs and two wickets in the morning, in fact, was even-stevens. But as the day wore on, de Villiers killed Pakistan gradually, orchestrating a succession of useful lower-order stands. He put on 73 with Mark Boucher, 42 with Johan Botha and, irritatingly for Pakistan, 59 with Dale Steyn.Through them all were regular reminders of the simplicity of de Villiers’ strokeplay, such as an easy glide through gully of Mohammad Sami. To bring up the double as tea approached, he first pulled Gul in front of square before guiding him through gully for another boundary.Steyn’s post-lunch cameo was where the fun really began. There were flick-pulls, drives hit as hard as concrete as well as a magnificent dance-down six over long-on. Paul Harris added a handy 35 but a grand humiliation was served up in an unbeaten 107-run partnership unbeaten with Morne Morkel. The stand broke the South African 10th wicket partnership record that had stood since 1929, when Tuppy Owen-Smith and Sandy Bell put on 103 at Headingley against England.A flurry of boundaries as matters came to an end amply demonstrated de Villiers’ complete and total superiority, as well as that of his side’s. In the second session he scored an even 100. Two overs after tea, as he deftly took a single to midwicket, Graeme Smith stood tallest and loudest in the dressing room applauding as de Villiers went past his captain as holder of the highest individual Test score for South Africa.By then Pakistan were dead men walking. de Villiers had drained them thoroughly and every tailend boundary was simply another prick on a numbed spirit. They had actually begun well, with Gul and Ahmed particularly tight. The latter struck first, a sharp, late inswinger surprising Boucher. The Flintoff-esque celebration was impressive and understandable. Another wicket later ensured the second-best figures on debut for a Pakistani, though by then the fizz had gone.Even Sami bowled an outstanding spell pre-lunch, full of whizzing outswingers. One such caught the edge but two truths of Sami’s career remained unchallenged: one, he has no luck and two, catching is not an Akmal family strength.All things considered they didn’t end badly either. Mohammad Hafeez went in the very first over, but Umar and Ali were firm in a session in which they probably weren’t tested as they should’ve been. The latter looked particularly good, defending and driving with equal assurance. The proper ascent up the mountain will begin tomorrow.

Smith warns Pietersen faces hostile crowds

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Graeme Smith, the South African captain, has warned Kevin Pietersen he faces a hostile reception when the first Test begins at Centurion on Wednesday

Cricinfo staff13-Dec-2009Graeme Smith, the South African captain, has warned Kevin Pietersen he faces a hostile reception when the first Test begins at Centurion on Wednesday.Pietersen was born in Pietermaritzburg and played first-class cricket for Natal in 1997 before moving to England after voicing his displeasure at the racial quota system in place in South Africa. He was given a tough time from the home crowds when he toured South Africa with England’s one-day side in 2004-05 but responded sensationally, smashing 454 runs in six innings.He is yet to play a Test in the country of his birth and while Smith insisted there was no hostility between Pietersen and the South African players, the South African public will not have forgotten the criticisms Pietersen made about their country’s cricket system.”He obviously gets a hostile reception from South African fans because he’s made a lot of remarks about the country that I don’t think he’s ever apologised for, Smith told BBC Radio 5 Live’s Sportsweek. It’s hard for people just to wash away those things and I think that’s why people still give him a hard time.”It creates a little bit of tension towards him. Our job is to play the game. From my perspective there’s certainly no tension going into the game.”It’s up to the players to get on with it. You want the game of cricket to be remembered for some fantastic cricket. That’s how I want cricket to be viewed by the fans and by the media.”We’ve all moved on and got on with our lives. He [Pietersen] has really performed well in his international career. There’s a cricket respect there.”Smith also maintained there was no tension between himself and Andrew Strauss, the England captain, despite their confrontation in the Champions Trophy match between the sides at Centurion earlier this year. Smith requested a runner towards the end of his 141 when he was struck down by cramp but Strauss refused, insisting that because cramp is a fitness problem and not an injury, it didn’t merit a runner.”There’s always going to be differences of opinion between two captains of opposite nations, but there’s very much a mutual respect. I’ve always said Andrew comes across as an intelligent guy, obviously captaincy is bringing out a different side to him. He’s performed well and he seems to be managing the side well. There’s no bad blood whatsoever.”

Botham hits out at 'appalling' Taunton pitch after Durham's two-day defeat

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Ex-Somerset legend says concerns were raised about conditions that ‘reduced game to a farce’

Matt Roller23-Jul-2025Lord Ian Botham, Durham’s honorary president, has slammed his former club Somerset for preparing an “appalling” pitch after 35 wickets fell in five sessions in the County Championship fixture between the two sides.Botham, the legendary England allrounder, spent most of his professional career with Somerset and was a key part of the club’s one-day success in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He later joined Worcestershire and then Durham, and became the latter’s honorary president last year after serving a seven-year term as chairman.He accused his old county of reducing the Championship “to a farce” on Wednesday night after their five-wicket win over Durham by preparing a bright-green pitch on which 22 wickets fell to spinners. Jason Kerr, Somerset’s head coach, described the pitch as “an incredible surface” and said the volume of wickets owed to the quality of his bowlers.”As an ex-Somerset player, I find this appalling,” Botham wrote on X, alongside pictures of the pitch, which were taken before a ball was bowled. “Durham raised serious concerns the day before the game started… change is needed… both Somerset and Durham have high quality batsmen… Somerset do not need to do this… reduces the game to a farce.”Related

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Botham said that the pitch underlined why England have largely opted to ignore county averages in selection in recent years. “These are not first-class cricket conditions in midsummer,” he wrote. “I am not surprised that Rob [Key] and Ben [Stokes] unfortunately have to disregard county performance in assessing players for Test quality appearances.”He also said that the pitch undermined Somerset’s opposition to a proposed cut in the number of Championship fixtures per team from 14 to 12, which Durham support: “At a time when County Cricket is under pressure for relevance as a breeding ground for International Players and Somerset members have apparently voted for the status quo, the club produces this pitch.”Kerr, the Somerset coach, told the ECB Reporters Network: “There has been a lot of noise surrounding the pitch, but I thought it was an incredible surface. You can’t see 400 runs scored in a day, as happened yesterday, and then complain about the wicket.”We have to find a way of getting results here and, because there has been so much cricket at the ground this year, we had to prepare a used pitch. Craig [Overton] and Jack [Leach] exploited any help in it because they are top quality bowlers.”Somerset’s pitches have often attracted opprobrium. They were docked 12 points for the 2021 Championship season after preparing a pitch marked “poor” for their 2019 title decider against Essex, were warned after a two-day finish against Lancashire in 2018, and in 2017 were branded “a disgrace” by Angus Fraser after a relegation shoot-out against Middlesex.

David Teeger removed as South Africa captain for U-19 World Cup

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Cricket South Africa took the decision anticipating protests targeting Teeger for his pro-Israel comments last year

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jan-2024David Teeger has been relieved of the South Africa Under-19 captaincy a week before the World Cup over concerns for his safety following his comments in support of Israeli soldiers in the ongoing conflict with Palestine.Cricket South Africa are bracing for protests at the tournament, which begins on January 19, and said there was a risk that they could “result in conflict or even violence, including between rival groups of protestors”.The decision to remove Teeger as captain, CSA said, was taken “in the best interests of all the players, the SA U-19 team and David himself.” He will continue to remain with the squad as a player and a new captain will be named “in due course”.South Africa’s campaign begins next Friday in Potchefstroom, where they will play West Indies, followed by matches against England and Scotland. The tournament, which was moved from Sri Lanka last November, will also be played in Benoni, which will host the semi-finals and final, Bloemfontein, Kimberley and East London and CSA expects protests at all of them.”As is the case with all such events, CSA has been receiving regular security and risk updates regarding the World Cup. We have been advised that protests related to the war in Gaza can be anticipated at the venues for the tournament,” CSA said in a statement. “We have also been advised that they are likely to focus on the position of the SA Under-19 captain, David Teeger, and that there is a risk that they could result in conflict or even violence, including between rival groups of protestors.”CSA has a primary duty to safeguard the interests and safety of all those involved in the World Cup and must accordingly respect the expert advice of those responsible for the safety of participants and spectators.”In all the circumstances, CSA has decided that David should be relieved of the captaincy for the tournament. This is in the best interests of all the players, the SA U19 team and David himself.”Spectators showed their support for Palestine during the New Year’s Test between South Africa and India at Newlands•AFP/Getty Images

There has already been at least one incident in relation to Teeger’s appointment as South Africa’s U-19 captain at a cricket match in the country. A group of pro-Palestinian supporters picketed outside the main gate at Newlands during the New Year’s Test between South Africa and India. They were then escorted by police to a specifically designated spot from where they continued to question Teeger’s selection. Another group of fans sat in the North Stand with Palestinian flags during the game. CSA expects the numbers of protestors to escalate in light of Teeger’s dedicating an award to the soldiers of Israel last year.On October 22, 2023, Teeger was named the Rising Star at the ABSA Jewish Achiever Awards ceremony and in his acceptance speech, said the following: “But more importantly, yes, I’ve been awarded this award, and yes, I am now the rising star, but the true rising stars are the young soldiers in Israel… So I’d like to dedicate this award to the South African family that married off one son whilst the other is still missing. And I’d like to dedicate it to the state of Israel and to every single soldier fighting so that we can live and thrive in the diaspora.”Teeger’s comments were reported in the South African Jewish Report on October 26 and have since been widely published across South African media. In response, the Palestinian Solidarity Alliance (PSA) lodged an official complaint with the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee. Subsequently, CSA, Lions (the domestic union where Teeger plays), four Johannesburg-based cricket clubs, one concerned cricket supporter, the Abu Asvat Institute of National Building (a civil society group), and a director of a company that sponsors Lions all issued statements of grievance. CSA referred the complaints to advocate Wim Trengrove, who conducted an independent adjudication. Trengrove found that Teeger had acted in accordance with his constitutional right to freedom of expression and did not engage in any unbecoming or detrimental conduct. CSA has accepted the report.However, the PSA said Teeger’s comments caused a “significant rift within the cricket community,” and they continue to question whether he is “fit to represent a diverse South African team and more so, whether he has the necessary capacity to lead any such team.” The PSA called for Teeger’s suspension from the U-19 World Cup squad and vowed to protest during the tournament. Pro-Palestinian sentiment is surging through South Africa after the country took Israel to the International Court of Justice this week.