England skipper Alastair Cook urges debutant Jake Ball to seize Test opportunity and rip through Pakistan July 13, 2016 England skipper Alastair Cook has backed seamer Jake Ball to rack up the wickets when he makes his international debut in today’s first Investec Test against Pakistan at Lord’s on Thursday. Cook has confirmed that Nottinghamshire quick Ball, who has claimed 96 first-class scalps, has been given the nod over Middlesex rookie Toby Roland-Jones to [...]
Cricket betting: Comeback kid Mohammad Amir to shine – but England to take series July 13, 2016 England swatted Sri Lanka away in an underwhelming start to the cricketing summer and now face a far stiffer opponent in the shape of Pakistan. The two nations have a chaotic cricketing history, littered with controversy and confrontation. If Mike Gatting’s famous finger-wagging with umpire Shakoor Rana in 1987 wasn’t bad enough, Inzamam-ul-Haq then refused [...]
Cricket betting: Forcing a result could be step too far for England at Lord’s July 13, 2016 When Pakistan last played a Test at Lord’s in 2010, three of their players ultimately ended up serving time in jail. Fast-bowler Mohammad Amir, who was convicted of deliberately bowling no-balls in exchange for cash alongside Mohammad Asif, returns to the home of cricket today after serving a five-year ban from the game. The bad [...]
Joe Root hits back at claims England have will have weak middle order for first Pakistan Test July 12, 2016 England batsman Joe Root has hit back at Pakistani suggestions that his move to No3 will weaken the hosts’ middle order in the first Investec Test at Lord’s, which starts on Thursday. Root’s promotion comes after Nick Compton opted to take an extended break from his struggles with the bat, while all-rounder Ben Stokes is [...]
England pick Gary Ballance and Toby Roland-Jones in squad for first Test against Pakistan July 7, 2016 England selectors have backed batsman Gary Ballance to revive his international career in the middle order after recalling him for next week’s first Test against Pakistan at Lord’s. Ballance has not played for England since being dropped from the No3 slot during last year’s Ashes but, with Joe Root set to take that place in [...]
England’s white-ball depth is now a match for the all-conquering 2011 Test side July 6, 2016 The two men who made their international debuts during Tuesday’s Twenty20 International win over Sri Lanka – Liam Dawson and Tymal Mills – deserve a big hand and it goes to show how much strength in depth England have. Not so long ago England looked as though they were struggling to put a white-ball side out; [...]
England unleash Twenty20 thrashing on Sri Lanka and leave skipper Eoin Morgan with permanent smile July 5, 2016 England skipper Eoin Morgan admitted that he cannot stop smiling after his side once again flexed their white-ball muscle by thrashing Sri Lanka by eight wickets in their Twenty20 International in Southampton. In their first match in this format since an agonising defeat to the West Indies in the World T20 final in April, England [...]
Spot-fixer Mohammad Amir stars on return to first-class cricket in England and boosts chances of Test recall July 4, 2016 Pakistan seamer Mohammad Amir claimed three wickets on his return to first-class cricket in England, six years after the spot-fixing scandal which led to a prison sentence. Amir served a jail term as well as a five-year ban from the sport after being found guilty of deliberately bowling no-balls during a Test match at Lord’s in [...]
Improving Rashid benefitting from consistent selection as explosive Roy takes game – and England – to new level June 30, 2016 England's displays over the last week or so have provided further evidence that their disastrous World Cup showing less than 18 months ago was nothing short of a blessing in disguise. My former Surrey team-mate Jason Roy was one of the beneficiaries of a change of management and mindset within the England camp. Regular readers [...]
Opener Jason Roy unaware of his proximity to England record as his stunning century seals series win June 30, 2016 Centurion Jason Roy shrugged off the disappointment of falling agonisingly short of a major international milestone after the explosive opener fired England to a series-clinching six-wicket win over Sri Lanka at the Kia Oval. Roy smashed 162 as England completed their second-highest successful one-day run-chase as the hosts reached a revised target of 308 in [...]