Amsterdam: The Netherlands women’s cricket XI will play Scotland in a tri-series to determine which of the two countries will qualify for the ICC Global Qualifier for the 2017 Women’s World Cup in England. The three matches will take part between 12 and 15 July at Garon Park, Southend, Essex.
Two old hands return to the squad of 14: former captain and top-bat Helmien Rambaldo from Quick (The Hague), and bowler Marloes Braat from Hermes DVS (Schiedam). The team will be captained by Esther de Lange (Kampong, Utrecht). Coach is Sean Trouw, assisted by former international Caroline de Fouw, who also takes up the managers role.
The squad:
Esther de Lange (c, Kampong), Miranda Veringmeier, Cher van Slobbe, Lisa Klokgieters, Marloes Braat (Hermes DVS), Helmien Rambaldo, Annemijn Thomson, Coco Steenstra Toussaint (Quick Hg), Esther Corder, Babette de Leede (VCC), Sterre Kalis (HCC), Heather Siegers, Silver Siegers (R&W), Julia van der Werf (VOC).
The Global Qualifier will be held early 2017, the venue is yet to be announced. The winners of the European play-off will join Zimbabwe and two other qualifiers from respectively the Asia and East Asia/Pacific regions. Added to these four teams will be the bottom-4 of the ICC Women’s Championship, plus Bangladesh and Ireland ( based on their places on the ICC ODI-ranking.)
The top four teams from this Global Qualifier will grab a spot at the 2017 World Cup.
Preceding this tri-series the teams will face each other on Sunday 10 July in an ECB One Day Championship division 2 match, also @ Garon Park.
South Africa women’s team skipper Mignon du Preez has stepped down from the post in all formats in order to focus on her batting.
Reflecting on her decision, the 27-year-old admitted that she took this extremely difficult decision for her personal as well as the benefit of the team.
“Stepping down from the captaincy role will give me an opportunity to work on my own game, which has taken a downturn in the last couple of seasons. I believe I can make a better contribution by putting runs on the board, and offering support and advice to the next captain,” Du Preez was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
Leg-spinner Dane van Niekerk, who played 56 ODIs, 57 T20Is and a Test match for the country, will succeed Du Preez across all formats.
Du Preez had led South Africa in 46 ODIs, 50 T20Is and a Test match in her span of four years as a captain.
The Cricket Boutique is a brand new online shop supplying handmade cricket bats crafted from English willow in the UK.
The Cricket Boutique has set out to provide the best that independent and boutique bat makers have to offer, only supplying cricket bats that have been handmade in the UK using English Willow and by the actual companies Bat Maker, or Pod Shaver as they are also known.
“Researching who actually still makes their Cricket Bats in the UK was harder than you would think! It was not just a quick Internet search. A great deal of effort had to be put in to make sure what TCB would be supplying actually fit in with the company ethos,” owner and founder Mark Metcalfe explains.
Mark is a keen cricketer and has played in the Lincolnshire League with Haxey CC for the past 20 years.
The Cricket Boutique currently offers bats, softs and bags from Aldred Cricket Bats, Charlie French, Helygen, Jedi, Mangled, Reaper Cricket, Red Ink Cricket and Robert James and is always looking to add more independent bat makers to that list.
By supplying Handmade brands, not only does The Cricket Boutique provide high quality products but it also supports the British Manufacturing Industry.
“A large percentage of Cricket Bats are now no longer made in the UK. English Willow is shipped abroad, made in to bats and then shipped back to the UK for sale,” Mark continues.
“The Cricket Boutique really does support manufacturing in the UK by only supplying bats made in the UK. This was one of the main selection criteria when acquiring brands to deal with.”
If you would like to find out more about what The Cricket Boutique has to offer then please go tohttp://www.thecricketboutique.co.uk or find them on Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms.
North Carolina, USA: The campaign of the Pakistan Cricket team, on the long tour of England, has hit a slight delay as the weather didn’t allow the players to carryout the training session in Southampton.
The continues rain, confined the Pakistan player indoors where the net session was carried out.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) sent the national cricket team to England about three weeks ahead of the scheduled start of the tour.
After a long training camp, the Pakistan team will face the host, England in the first Test match at the Lord’s from July 14th.
Both teams will play four tests, five ODIs and a T20 match.
One the other hand, the women team of Pakistan have also failed to start their ODI series against the home side.
The 1st ODI between the England Women and Pakistan Women at Leicester was washed-out due to rain. The match will now be played on the following day (Tuesday).
DUBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has released the fresh ODI rankings of the teams, batsmen and bowlers. In the team’s ranking Pakistan are on 9th position while there is no Pakistani features in the top-20 list of the batsmen. The best Pakistan batsman, in the list, is Muhammad Hafeez who is on the 23rd position with Ahmad Shahzad at 37th and Azhar Ali at 45th are the next in line from Pakistan.
The ODI batsmen list is topped by South Africa’s AB De Villiers with Virat Kohli and Hashim Amla on the 2nd and 3rd positions respectively.
In the bowlers’ rankings, West Indies’ Sunil Narine is at the top pedestal while New Zealand’s Trent Boult and South Africa’s Imran Tahir are on the 2nd and 3rd positions respectively.
Pakistan’s Muhammad Irfan is at the 9th position while Muhammad Hafeez at 20th, Wahab Riaz at 50th, Yasir Shah at 54th and Junaid Khan is at 60th position in the bowlers’ list.
Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan is the top all-rounder while Pakistan’s Muhammad Hafeez is on the 2nd position. Sri Lanka’s Tilkarantne Dilshan, Angelo Mathews and James Faulkner are at the 3rd, 4th and 5th positions respectively.
KARACHI: The decision to award fresh central contracts to the players has been delayed for at least a couple of months as the relevant authorities at the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) want to access the performance of the national and the ‘A’ teams on the England tour.
The central contracts of the players are due to expire on June 30th.
“Coach Mickey Arthur and chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq will give their input after seeing the performance and utility of players [both from senior and ‘A’ teams] on the England tour”, a source said
“This time around as well, players are likely to be awarded six-month contracts from July to December”, the source added
Meanwhile, on the England trip, the players have been given the tour code of conduct.
In England the Pakistan Cricket team will play four Tests, seven ODI [five vs England, two vs Ireland] and a T20 game on September 7th.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., June 20, 2016 — TransMedia Group (www.transmediagroup.com) said it’s hankering to play cricket with media as it has been selected by the Cricket Council USA (www.cricketcouncilusa.com) to bat publicity and sponsors into the U.S. Open Cricket Tournament in November.
The tournament will be played Nov. 24-27 at Central Regional Park and Stadium, an ICC-approved venue, said TransMedia’s Vice President of public relations, British-born Tim Allen, and an avid cricket fan himself.
“All of us at TransMedia can’t wait to get started directing fans to MAQTV (www.maqtv.com) to get into the cricket groove by watching cricket matches streamed live along with interviews with the world’s top cricket players,” added Allen.
“We’re going to make sure everyone in our region and nationwide knows that this outstanding cricket tournament has become America’s largest, most important cricket event, which awards a cash prize of $100,000 and is expected to draw many thousands of cricket aficionados from throughout the Caribbean and Southeast to South Florida.”
“The big news we’ll be disseminating nationwide is that the world’s governing body regulating cricket, the ICC, has officially sanctioned the 2016 U.S. Open Tournament,” said Allen. “This is a big deal as it positions this tournament as the penultimate cricket event in America.”
“The Cricket Council USA (CCUSA) is a professional sports and entertainment-management organization that has been at the leading edge of the promotion, development and expansion of cricket in the United States and the U.S. Open Cricket Tournament is a great event to share with the world, via South Florida,” said Founder and CEO of US OPEN Cricket, Mahammad Qureshi.
CCUSA was formed in 2001 with a respected management team establishing long-term relationships with sponsors, advertisers, promoters and investors, corporate and individual business leaders. This synergy, injected into such projects as US Cricket Open, Women’s Cricket Open and Regional T20, assures continued growth of the sport. CCUSA provides a platform for expanding cricket in the United States, from the grassroots in schools and community parks, to the intercollegiate level and to the professional-franchise plateau. For information about sponsorship opportunities, contact Tom Madden 561-750-9800 x2210; tmadden@transmediagroup.com. For information about the team registration, contactwww.cricketcouncilusa.com.
WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND – MARCH 01: Kumar Sangakkara of Sri Lanka celebrates his century during the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup match between England and Sri Lanka at Wellington Regional Stadium on March 1, 2015 in Wellington, New Zealand. (Photo by Phil Walter/Getty Images)
Jamaica Tallawahs star batsman Kumar Sangakkara has nothing but positive memories from his previous stint in the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL), but the Sri Lanka superstar is keen to create a new legacy when he links up with the Tallawahs squad for the fourth instalment of CPL.
A legend of the modern game, Sangakkara is one of the most fluent batsmen in recent history across all three formats. An ICC World T20 champion in 2014, where his 52 not out earned him the man of the match award in the final victory over India, the left-handed wicket-keeper batsman scored more than 28,016 international runs at an average of 57.40 (in 134 Tests), 41.98 (in 404 ODI’s) and 31.40 (in 56 T20I’s). He has also claimed 609 catches and a further 139 stumpings in international cricket.
The Tallawahs will start their CPL campaign with an away clash against St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots on Saturday, 2 July and Sangakkara knows that this will be one of the most competitive campaigns to date on all fronts as Chris Gayle’s men bid to wrestle the title back to Jamaican shores.
In an exclusive interview with www.cplt20.com, which is available for free download and editorial use, the Sri Lanka legend reflected on the 2013 campaign, why playing in the CPL is special, on why the CPL’s decision to play matches in USA is a “great thing” and his excitement about returning to the Tallawahs after a three-year hiatus.
On his memories from the 2013 CPL-winning campaign: “I remember going into the Tallawahs knowing that it was a great team with Chris Gayle, Andre Russell and (Chadwick) Walton all in there. We had some great overseas player in Murali (Muttiah Muralidaran) and a few others. And just going to the semis and the finals, and the business end of the tournament. So there’s no pressure on me to go out there and perform! I just remember getting to Trinidad, where the matches were, and just absorbing the atmosphere. It was exactly what you’d expect of a T20 tournament in the West Indies. It was just, you know, a lot of passionate followers, a lot of people having fun and West Indies followers know a lot about cricket. They know their cricket very, very well. And it was just the most exciting atmosphere to play in. It helped that we won the semis and the final. Paul Nixon was coach at that time and it was a great dressing-room, a lot of fun, relaxed cricket but a lot of good cricket. So I’m really looking forward to going back.”
On his decision to return to the CPL: “It’s not really a question of you making a decision of going into CPL. You put your name into the auction and you wait to see whether they’re actually interested in you and getting you over there. There were a lot of different reasons, starting from the fact that the Leagues around the world are quite lucrative. Then of course you have the fact that it’s T20 cricket and everyone loves playing T20 cricket. The fact that when you are a cricketer and you continuously compete, playing in these leagues gives you a lot of exposure, a lot of experience and you also play with a lot of different players in a lot of different set-ups. It also helps you grow as a cricketer and as a person. And the other point is that it’s the West Indies. It’s the Caribbean. It’s calypso cricket and the initial year of any tournament, in a franchise format, is a difficult one. And I think that the West Indies now, over the last three or four years, has built a fantastic brand in the CPL. And to have been involved in the initial stages is great. So there’s always a variety of reasons that you go and play and, for me, it was a mixture of all those reasons. I know the players quite well. Most of the West Indies guys I’ve played with are very easy to get on with. They’re fantastic natural cricketers in their own right, but also very good people. So it was always a ‘win-win’ coming to play in the CPL.”
On the rise of West Indies cricket in recent months: “The West Indies won the ICC World T20 in 2012. We played them in the finals and lost. Then to come back, having gone through some very troubled times, and to lift themselves in that unbelievable final. I was in Sky studios actually doing some work for the finals, and to get to that last over with 19 required. You know, we were all seated around the TV and having a chat about what was about to happen. My comment was, ‘…if that first ball goes for six, it could be an interesting over!’. You know, you can’t write a script for an ending like that. So, on the back of that, to get into the CPL with a lot of hype from the public from the support they have given the players and how it has been repaid with the World Cup, I think it will be another fantastic edition of the CPL.”
On returning to play with the Jamaica Tallawahs: “I’ve very happy to be back at the Tallawahs. I have some great memories, like I said, and one of them was Gerard Butler turning up in the dressing-room, getting a helmet and a pair of gloves on and swinging a bat, having a chat and a laugh with us. That was exciting! It was a bit surreal to see him in a cricket dressing-room rather than on screen. But the entire mixture of that whole glitz and glamour of T20 cricket – when you have a tournament like that, the vindication of all that effort is the quality of cricket on the field. And I think that’s what really stood out at the end of that entire tournament. Everyone had fun, everyone had a lot of non-cricketing stars that came along to watch the cricket, who had a love for the game. And there was a lot of passion from the followers. But the stand-out was the cricket. In any tournament, if the cricket you put on the field is the best you can display, it goes a long way in establishing the tournament as a marquee event.”
On the makeup of the Tallawahs squad: “I think the rest of the squad is very good. You have the ‘Universe Boss’ (Chris Gayle) playing for us so that helps! Andre Russell has been an amazing player in the shortest versions of the game. He’s an unbelievable athlete and I remember in that semi-finals and final, when I did play, he was the defining player of the tournament. He won us those two games, along with Chris in the finals, so you have a great core. You have Chadwick Walton, Shakib Al Hasan and you have Alex Ross from Adelaide coming in and Imad Wasim from Pakistan. So, the squad of local and foreign players is a nice mixture. But in any tournament, the real difference in the squad is made by the majority players who are the local players. So from our left-arm spinners to our all-rounders, to the fast bowlers and to the great West Indians like Chris and Andre, it’s going to be a very good collective effort if you’re going to get to the final and maybe win again. That’s the ambition and I’m sure everyone will have a great time trying to get there.”
On the Chris Gayle / Dale Steyn factor: “I actually think there are two players who will get plenty of attention. One is ‘Bullet’ Dale Steyn. The other is Chris Gayle. And with his book out I think it will be a great stage for Chris to really express himself, not just as a person and I don’t think he’s shy in doing that, but also as a cricketer. And I think Chris is a fantastic ambassador for the game, through the way he plays the game. Sometimes his character is something you have to get used to at times, but having played with Chris over the years I just think that he is who he is. And the way he plays his cricket is very honest. He expresses himself fully and it’s a great joy to watch him on that field. He has a lot of fun playing the game, he’s funny, he’s humorous so it’s wonderful. And Dale Steyn is slightly different to Chris. (He has) An amazing cricketing ability and those abilities between the two of them are very similar, but a lot more quiet. He’s not larger than life, like Chris, but he’s just one of the nicest men I have ever met. Forget cricket, Dale Steyn would be one of my favourite people because he’s just a wonderful human being. I’ve had the privilege of knowing a lot of people, but Dale is a very special person.”
On the CPL’s decision to play fixtures in Lauderhill, Florida in this CPL: “I think it’s great. On the back of what’s happened in the last year and a half in the promotion of cricket in the United States, there’s a great opportunity to actually hammer that point through. I think the message should be a constant one to America as to what cricket is. There’s a huge ex-pat community in America who already knows about the sport that came to watch the (Sachin) Tendulkar and (Shane) Warne series that we played last year. I played in Florida before in 2010 against New Zealand. But just to get more and more people come and watch, to understand the sport and actually try to foster some kind of following and love for cricket will probably afford us the opportunity to break into America and really help cricket establish its strong roots there to be embraced by the general population. Let’s hope that this is another step in that direction.”
On the pressure on Jamaica to perform for a demanding fan-base: “The pressure to perform is the same. It doesn’t matter what label that you have, whether you are the favourites or the underdog, if you don’t perform the results don’t come. And to absorb that pressure is what you really get paid for. So everyone will understand that, will accept it and all they’ll try and do is have a lot of fun expressing themselves on that cricket field because if you get caught up too much on the fact that you have to deliver results, you forget to actually go through the processes of doing a good job; which is to play your best cricket, have a lot of fun doing it, support each other as a team and then, win or lose, to go out there and smile and walk on and off (the field) with your head held high. I don’t expect it to be any different. The pressure won’t be less, the pressure won’t be more.”
*Tickets for all CPL fixtures in the Caribbean and Fort Lauderdale are on sale now from www.cplt20.com.
Jamaica Tallawahs Home Fixtures (all times local):15 July – Guyana Amazon Warriors (8pm), 16 July – St Kitts & Nevis Patriots (6pm), 18 July – Trinbago Knight Riders (8pm), 20 July – Barbados Tridents (8pm).
Jamaica Tallawahs: Chris Gayle, Kumar Sangakkara, Shakib Al Hasan, Andre Russell, Imad Wasim, Dale Steyn, Rovman Powell, Chadwick Walton, Jon-Russ Jaggesar, Andre McCarthy, Jonathan Foo, Alex Ross, Kesrick Williams, Nkrumah Bonner, Garey Mathurin, Timroy Allen, O’shane Thomas
Dubai: One day cricket is set for its biggest overhaul as the International Cricket Council proposes a new league of 13 nations with the top two teams playing off in a final.
The plans, which will be discussed at the ICC’s annual general meeting later this month, will come into force from 2019 and are aimed at finally giving context to bilateral tours.
It is proposed teams will play a three-match series, either home or away, against every other country, amounting to 36 ODIs each over a three-year basis.
The league would be used to determine automatic qualification, and seedings, for the World Cup, and the side finishing bottom will face relegation to the World Cricket League Championship, the second tier of one-day cricket.
Teams would also be free to organise extra ODIs, but these would not count towards the league.
Afghanistan, Ireland and Scotland could be included in the league as the ICC looks to widen the number of elite teams.
Scotland
Scotland are desperate to play a higher number of matches against top-tier teams CREDIT: REX
Senior figures at the ICC believe the proposals will provide one-day cricket with new relevance, which the format lacks outside the World Cup.
This will in turn help generate more interest and revenue from broadcasters in bilateral series, which have lost value in recent years.
It will also help 50 over cricket fight for relevance outside World Cup years and prop up the format in the face of increasing competition from Twenty20.
Chelmsford
It is hoped that the proposals will boost the popularity of 50 over cricket CREDIT: REX
The discussions are all part of the most ambitious restructuring of international cricket by the ICC which is also determined to introduce a two-divisional structure in Test cricket with promotion and relegation every two years.
Both plans will be discussed at the ICC’s annual conference, which begins in Edinburgh at the end of the month, and could be agreed at the start of July.
The reforms are partly dependent upon changes in the ICC revenue model which means voting on the proposals could wait until a board meeting in October.
The AGM is also expected to rubber stamp proposals for a World Twenty20 to be held every two years from 2018.
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