CA’s current model has been in place for a considerable time but it may need to evolve to keep pace with a changing landscape

Alex Malcolm30-Sep-2025Marcus Stoinis was all smiles when he fronted the media at Bay Oval in Tauranga on Monday, proudly back in Australia colours for the first time since last November.His return to the Australian squad, without a national or state contract and having missed the previous two Australia T20I series to play in the Hundred, shines a light on an issue that has been bubbling away within Australian cricket for some time.There is a growing consensus across many of those involved in the game spoken to by ESPNcricinfo that Cricket Australia’s (CA) current men’s contracting system is no longer fit for purpose.Related

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It is a thought that has been discussed at length at various CA meetings around the country over the past 12 months with the current contracting system that was inked in 2023 set to remain in place between CA and the Australian Cricketers Association (ACA) until 2028.Stoinis and Tim David, another who will feature this week in the three-match series, are two key examples that have highlighted the limitations of Australia’s current men’s contracting system and why change is being discussed.Stoinis’ absence from the five-match T20I tour of the West Indies in July and the three-match T20I home series against South Africa was notable. He wasn’t injured and there was never any official statement that he had been dropped. All of which was a curiosity given he was one of Australia’s most sought-after players at the IPL auction last year and remains in high demand as a franchise player around the world.Instead, it was later revealed that an agreement had been struck with Australia’s coach Andrew McDonald and chairman of selectors George Bailey to allow him to fulfil a lucrative AUD$409,000 contract to play in the Hundred, despite in Bailey’s words still being “firmly in the mix” for next year’s T20 World Cup.It is not unusual for high profile Australian players to miss white-ball series throughout any calendar year. But it is always three-format players who are given time to rest ahead of Test series that are seen as a higher priority.But for the single format or white-ball only players, the series against West Indies and South Africa were key parts of Australia’s build towards the T20 World Cup as they attempt to bed a new playing style following the retirements of David Warner and Matthew Wade last year.Stoinis’ case is rare in that he is an uncontracted one-format player who does not play domestic state cricket, however he does play in the BBL.The selectors are keen to have Tim David in their ODI set-up towards the 2027 World Cup•Getty ImagesWhile New Zealand Cricket (NZC) has been a global leader in managing casual playing contracts with senior players to allow them to miss international series to take up franchise opportunities, CA is only now starting to dip its toes into a rapidly rising tide.CA contracted 23 male players this financial year, as they did last year. Australia’s men played nine Test matches, 13 ODIs and eight T20Is in the 2024-25 contract period and used 34 players across all formats.The 2025-26 contract list was heavily weighted towards Test-only players but Australia play only seven Tests in the financial year, with two against West Indies (the first of the series came under the previous year) and five against England. They will only play nine ODIs but are currently scheduled to play 19 T20Is plus the T20 World Cup.Stoinis and David were not centrally or state contracted either last financial year or this one. However, both played the minimum number of white-ball internationals – six – to qualify for a CA upgraded contract which in 2024-25 was AUD$346,641 (not including match payments) and in 2025-26 is AUD$353,574. David has already played six matches this financial year. If Stoinis plays in six of the next eight T20Is against New Zealand and India, or by June 30, 2026, he will qualify again.The upgrade system has been CA’s longstanding way of rewarding those from outside the initial list after they earned selection to play for their country. But it may be past its use-by date for several reasons.Firstly, players can now earn more than the CA minimum contract by playing for one month in a franchise league overseas as Stoinis did in the Hundred. But that requires an NOC from CA, or the players’ state if they are contracted, and as was the case with Adam Zampa recently ahead of the T20 Blast finals in England, contracted players can be denied NOCs for franchise leagues because of domestic cricket commitments in Australia.The MOU only allows a maximum of 24 to be contracted initially but there are no limits on the number of upgrades.Seven players including Stoinis, David, Cooper Connolly, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Spencer Johnson, Nathan McSweeney and Beau Webster all qualified for an upgrade through playing enough games in the 2024-25 cycle. Three Tests, six white-ball matches or a combination of the two are enough to trigger an upgrade. Eight players were upgraded in 2023-24 which was a white-ball World Cup year.If a state contracted player gets upgraded, which five of last year’s seven were, they only get a pro rata pay increase from their original state deal for the remainder of the contract period.The likes of Mitchell Owen won’t be short of franchise offers•MLCThe maximum state deal for this year was AUD$205,153, excluding match payments, although that is usually only given to a player who played both Sheffield Shield and one-day domestic cricket. BBL deals are signed separately outside of both CA and state contracts, but again the maximum BBL deal for an Australian players is only around AUD$200,000 and most are well under that while some overseas players are earning more than twice that much.Stoinis and David have not pursued state deals in recent years. Stepping away from that system comes at a cost in terms of not having access to coaches and training facilities and full-time medical and strength conditioning support. Superannuation and insurance are other serious considerations for those leaving the system.But it also means a player doesn’t have to train on a state team’s schedule and potentially be restricted from playing in overseas franchise leagues either during the pre-season or during the domestic season.Those two players have bet on themselves and there should be no criticism of them for that. They have a set of skills which are highly valued in the franchise open market. But integrating them into longer-term plans for Australia now comes with allowing them to play franchise cricket elsewhere to maximise their income. That is where the limitations of the upgrade model are exposed.There is a desire for David to be part of Australia’s ODI build towards the 2027 World Cup in the finishing role vacated by the retired Glenn Maxwell. But the contracting system doesn’t incentivize David to play domestic one-day cricket or even make himself available for the recent ODI series against South Africa, at the cost of playing in the CPL which banks him more than a state contract or ODI match payments ever would for one month’s work.Lance Morris has remained centrally contracted through injury problems•Getty ImagesIt also doesn’t incentivize him to rest for key white-ball series to get his body right, as he needed to do after the IPL this year. CA uses contracts to pay fast bowlers like Lance Morris and Jhye Richardson as long-term investments despite both having perennial injury issues. But not having a higher number of initial contracts means long-term management can’t apply to someone like Johnson, who is currently sidelined and missed last year’s white-ball tour the UK because he got injured in the lead in while pursuing franchise opportunities.The reality is that even for a board with CA’s wealth, there may come to a point sooner rather than later where they can’t afford to pay all their top players what the market says they are worth. New Zealand has already found this out. Kane Williamson, one of their all-time greats, missed the recent T20 tri-series and Test tour in Zimbabwe to play for Middlesex and the London Spirit instead. He will also miss this series against Australia to rest after a winter in England.There has been a bullishness in Australian cricket down the years that players will always commit to playing for the country above all else and there is still a widely held belief that dynamic won’t shift any time soon.Perhaps the recent example of Quinton de Kock returning to the South Africa fold is a sign that the franchise life isn’t always fulfilling enough, although at the same time they won’t have Heinrich Klaasen for next year’s World Cup after he retired from international cricket to become a full-time freelancer.Australia’s domestic players have always been well looked after by global standards, but they did not miss the eye-watering sums offered in the recent SA20 draft. The timing of the current discussions around privatizing the BBL isn’t a coincidence.More contracts, higher retainers, more flexibility, and different structures are all being discussed. But the money has to come from somewhere. And if it doesn’t, there is a chance, albeit a very small one at the moment, that Australia will join those nations battling to keep their players for international duty.

Will India go with spin-heavy, seam-heavy or find a middle ground?

Karthik Krishnaswamy30-Sep-20252:05

Chopra: A chance for Rahul to ‘right the wrongs’

Barring last-minute injury or illness, this is almost certainly how India will line up in the first Test against West Indies: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, B Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill, Dhruv Jurel, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, X, Y, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj.Who X and Y are will mostly come down to conditions. Two days before the Test match, the Ahmedabad pitch wore a healthy cover of grass; while some of it may be shaved off by day one, this is still likely to be a surface with some help for the quicks, which would be a significant departure from the sharp turners that have by and large defined India’s home Tests over the last four years or so.This makes India’s selection tricky, because recent history may have to go out of the window. To make things more complicated, the presence of four allrounders in their squad – of whom Jadeja, Washington and Axar Patel bowl spin and Nitish Kumar Reddy seam – allows them to choose from a mindboggling number of combinations, most of which make cricketing sense in one way or another.Related

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Kuldeep, Axar or neither?The luxury of having a plethora of spin-bowling allrounders has allowed India to play three spinners almost by default in their home Tests. A surface tilted towards seam could prompt a shift to two spinners, who are likely to be Jadeja and Washington, who can both bat in the top seven and turn their stock ball in opposite directions.This would mean India playing neither Kuldeep Yadav nor Axar.If India do go with three spinners, Kuldeep is likely to get the nod, given the variety he adds to the attack with his left-arm wristspin – Axar and Jadeja both bowl left-arm orthodox – and the fact that he needs less help from the surface to be able to test both edges of the bat consistently. He showed this in Dharamsala last year, picking up a day-one five-for against England when India’s fingerspinners found little assistance from the surface, after their seamers had beaten the bat frequently but lucklessly with the new ball.With India already likely to bat solidly down to No. 8, Kuldeep’s wicket-taking ability should outweigh any extra runs Axar may score.Axar, though, cannot be discounted for two reasons. One, Ahmedabad is his hometown, and the scene of three of his five Test-match five-fors (though they came on square turners in his debut series against England in 2021). Two, he has shown even in white-ball cricket that he is becoming a more rounded bowler, delivering with more overspin and pace variation than he used to in the past.Prasidh, Reddy, or both?Bumrah – unless India rest him, which they aren’t likely to in seam-friendly conditions – and Siraj are almost certain to play. Depending on how much grass remains at toss time, there’s a chance that India’s attack includes a third frontline quick in Prasidh Krishna.On Tuesday, Prasidh beat the bat consistently at the nets while getting through a solid bowling workload alongside Siraj and Reddy – Bumrah, Axar and Kuldeep, who have only just landed in India after the Asia Cup, did not bowl in the nets, though Gill, who also played that tournament, batted with the rest of the top order.Prasidh enjoys bowling at the Narendra Modi Stadium, particularly when India and his IPL franchise Gujarat Titans play on its red-soil pitches, which provide plenty of bounce. The pitch for the Test match is a red-soil strip. While Prasidh is yet to play a home Test, and has only played one first-class match at Motera, his white-ball record at the venue makes him a tempting option.He has nine wickets in three ODIs here – all against West Indies, for what it’s worth – at an average of 7.55, and more T20 wickets here (20 at an economy of 7.89) than anywhere else.The other seam option is the Reddy. The flexibility that Jadeja and Washington offer allows India to use Reddy in two ways. As X, his role would lean more towards batting, with either Prasidh or a third spinner taking the Y slot. As Y, he would be expected to shoulder the third seamer’s workload, with India picking a specialist batter in Devdutt Padikkal – or a fourth allrounder in Axar, which you cannot rule out in a team coached by Gautam Gambhir – as X.

Chelsea legend and former England star John Terry revealed why he turned down a big-money move to the Blues' Premier League title rivals during his playing days. A bona fide Stamford Bridge legend, Terry was associated with the Blues for 19 years from his academy days in 1998 up until 2017. In his senior professional career, Terry has won multiple honours, including five Premier League titles.

Terry had the opportunity to join Chelsea's title rivals

It was back in 2009 when Chelsea went three consecutive seasons without the Premier League title after winning it in 2004-05 and 2005-06 back-to-back campaigns. They finished among the top three teams in each of those seasons but were struggling to get over the line.

At that point, another mid-table Premier League side, who were slowly growing in stature, were Manchester City after their high-profile takeover. City were signing big names like Robinho to strengthen and were reportedly also keen on bringing Terry to Etihad Stadium. However, the ex-England defender turned down their offer to prove his loyalty to the Blues. 

AdvertisementGetty'Committed rest of my career to Chelsea'

Speaking to , Terry said: "I know Man City made a 29 million pound bid for me back in 2009/10 when Ancelotti was the manager. And as soon as Chelsea spoke to me about it, I was like, 'I don’t want to leave. I do not want to leave this football club. And if you want to sell me, then we have to have a different discussion because I don’t want to be here if you don’t want me.'

"And Roman was like, 'We want you. We want you to stay.' And I was like, ‘Well, 100% I want to stay, so let’s do a new contract.' And I signed a new contract, committed the rest of my career really to Chelsea and signed a five-year contract at the age of 29, which was the best decision ever."

Terry giving up on his dream to manager Chelsea

Quoted by the , Terry recently revealed his dream is to manage Chelsea, but he accepted that he may well have to admit defeat on that fantasy. He said: "I'm not sure it ever happens, to be honest. It's my one last dream I have at the football club. I've done everything at Chelsea. And for me now, the one thing that is missing is being the manager of the football club. That's why I went into coaching when I finished playing. My idea and dream was to learn my trade a bit. As a player, you retire after 22 years… Listen, 100 per cent, you learn enough to go into management. The level I played at and the managers I played under. But it doesn't give you the right you go into management at a certain level. You still have to learn and understand what it takes. 

"There's a lot more that goes into the coaching side of it. So I went away and learnt my trade, I had some unbelievable times at Villa, I left Villa to be a number one, I thought I was ready. I think I'd be a really good number one, I enjoyed the coaching side of it. I want people around me that are better coaches than me. Then I could lead the dressing room and the team like I did [as a player]. That's what I did for 22 years at the club. I know I'd be good at it. Will I ever get the chance? I'm not sure, without doing the other bits. But when people tell you you've not got the experience, it's difficult to fathom."

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Getty Images SportTerry planning to take up League One job

Terry further claimed in the interaction that he could consider taking charge of a third-tier club in England as he added: "When I went into Villa I got great experience under Dean Smith and we got promotion, which was incredible. As an assistant coach in the Premier League and the experience I've had as a player and an individual captain in both Chelsea and England, I thought that would be enough to get me a job. I'm not saying a job in the Premier League or the Championship – but a job at League One level."

MatériaMais Notícias

O lateral-esquerdo Ayrton Lucas, do Flamengo, deixou o gramado do Maracanã lesionado. O atleta, convocado por Dorival Júnior para a Seleção Brasileira, reclamou de um incômodo no joelho direito e foi substituído por Matias Viña.

continua após a publicidadeRelacionadasFora de CampoÀs vésperas de Flamengo e Fluminense, jornalistas analisam Tite e Diniz e definem o melhorFora de Campo09/03/2024DicasFluminense x Flamengo: odds, estatísticas e informações para apostar na semifinal do CariocaDicas09/03/2024NotíciasCarioca: como foram os últimos jogos entre Fluminense e Flamengo?Notícias09/03/2024

Os médicos do Flamengo irão avaliar a situação de Ayrton Lucas, que já começou o tratamento no banco de reservas.

➡️ Siga o Lance! no WhatsApp e acompanhe em tempo real as principais notícias do esporte

Estatísticas de Fluminense e Flamengo

O clássico Fla-Flu já aconteceu em 379 oportunidades e, apesar dos números equilibrados, o Flamengo leva uma certa vantagem sobre o Fluminense. O Rubro-Negro venceu, até aqui, 138 vezes, empatou 122 e perdeu 119 jogos para o Tricolor. Na última vez que os rivais se enfrentaram, no Estadual deste ano, o Fla venceu por 2 a 0.

O Fla terminou a primeira fase na liderança do Carioca, com 27 pontos, sendo oito vitórias, três empates e nenhuma derrota, enquanto o Flu foi o quarto colocado na tabela de classificação, com 21 pontos, sendo seis vitórias, três empates e duas derrotas.

continua após a publicidade

Além disso, enquanto o Flamengo balançou as redes 23 vezes e sofreu apenas um gol, o Fluminense marcou 17 e teve sua rede vazada 11 vezes.

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FlamengoFluminenseSeleção Brasileira

Michael Bracewell has been named replacement for the injured Glenn Phillips for New Zealand’s first Test against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo.Bracewell, initially unavailable for the series due to his commitments with The Hundred, was already in Zimbabwe as part of New Zealand’s T20I squad for the tri-series. With his schedule allowing him to feature in the opening Test, head coach Rob Walter said the decision to include him was a straightforward one.Phillips had been ruled out of the Tests due to a groin injury. He had suffered the injury while playing for Washington Freedom in the Major League Cricket (MLC) final on July 13.”Glenn’s injury provided a gap in the Test squad and Michael is the closest like-for-like replacement,” Walter said. “His experience and skillset will be a great asset and allows us to keep the same balance of the team.”Bracewell will return to the UK to link up with Southern Brave after the first Test. A decision on a replacement for the second Test will be made in due course, according to an NZC release.The two-match series begins in Bulawayo later this week, marking New Zealand’s first Test tour of Zimbabwe since 2016.

Opener’s career best helps Middlesex reel in 388 target – the highest successful List A run chase in England as Alex Lees, David Bedingham tons go in vain

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay13-Aug-2025Opener Sam Robson’s stunning career best 169 not out off 139 balls helped Middlesex chase 388 – the highest ever successful List A run chase in England – to beat Durham by five wickets in a thrilling Metro Bank One Day Cup clash at the Banks Homes Riverside.Durham pair Alex Lees and David Bedingham hit contrasting centuries in their imposing 387 for 4. Having been inserted, it was the county’s highest ever home total in this format.Captain and opener Lees batted through for 138 not out off 132 balls and South African Bedingham blazed 107 off 67 with eight sixes. But it wasn’t enough to prevent a second defeat in four Group B matches.Robson, like Lees, batted with controlled aggression and was the cornerstone of a remarkable chase in perfect batting conditions, achieved in 48 overs. Middlesex won their second game in three to boost hopes of a top-three finish.A handful of counties have posted higher second-innings totals in List A matches, but no one had bettered Worcestershire’s successful pursuit of 377 to beat Leicestershire at New Road in 2018. Until today.Both teams lost a wicket in their first over.New-ball seamer Toby Roland-Jones bowled Emilio Gay for a golden duck with a beauty two balls into a sun-soaked contest. He was the day’s standout bowler with 1 for 43 from 10 overs.Much to the bemusement of representatives from both counties, India opener Yashasvi Jaiswal sat in Durham’s fan zone prior to the game.Leg-side dominant, Lees hit his two sixes over midwicket and wide long-on and shared 141 for the second wicket with in-form Will Rhodes from 1 for 1 in the opening over. Rhodes contributed a well-paced 63.While Lees became the first Durham player to score centuries in the County Championship, T20 Blast and One Day Cup in the same season, Bedingham was much more aggressive – vicious on the pull and down the ground.Lees was on 71 when Bedingham came to the crease, and there was a brief moment when the South African could have reached his hundred first. However, Lees got there off 106 balls, followed by Bedingham’s off 65.Luke Hollman took a superb catch at long-on to help teenaged seamer Jamie Feldman remove Bedingham at 289 for 3 in the 42nd over, though both sides were loose in the field.Colin Ackermann crashed 53 off 27 balls to give Durham the advantage at halfway.However, Middlesex responded in kind en-route to their highest List A total.Joe Cracknell was caught behind down leg pulling at Ben Raine.But, from 2 for 1, Robson and Josh De Caires advanced in dynamic fashion by sharing 120 inside 16 overs. The latter had contributed 63 off 48 balls when he was caught behind reverse sweeping against George Drissell’s off-spin.Middlesex reached 200 for 3 after 28 overs, by which time Durham’s new fast-bowling signing Archie Bailey had uprooted the middle stump of captain Ben Geddes for 24.Former England Test opener Robson, aged 36, was strong on both sides of the wicket without hitting a six until his side neared 300.The right-hander reached his fourth career century off 89 balls, by which time Middlesex were 237 for 3 in the 33rd over. Robson was in the midst of a 114 partnership with Jack Davies. Bailey bowled Davies for 61 off 42, at 280 for 4 in the 37th over, but Robson ploughed on.With 10 overs left, Middlesex needed 78, with Hollman now a helping hand. He contributed 47 to a near match-sealing partnership of 103 with Robson, who hit 19 fours and two sixes to record his county’s second-highest List A individual score.

Mary Earps is preparing for a hostile reception on her return to former club Manchester United in the Women's Champions League this week, having turned down a new contract with the Red Devils in 2024 and departed on a free transfer. Her Paris Saint-Germain side visit Old Trafford, which also comes on the tail of the storm whipped up by revelations in her autobiography.

Earps ready for jeers at Old Trafford

When Earps left United on the expiry of her contract, off the back of a historic FA Cup triumph but also the club’s worst WSL season to date, she suggested that a period of expected transition did not "align" with where she was in her own career. Arsenal were credited with interest at one stage, but she opted for PSG instead. With Manchester United and PSG both qualifying for the league phase of the Champions League this season, Earps told in the build-up to Wednesday's clash it would be considered "written in the stars".

She added: "I knew it from the moment [United] qualified. Sometimes you just feel it. Maybe I manifested it, I don't know, Going back to Old Trafford, which is a special place, with so many amazing memories. I'm looking forward to the game."

Earps was a first-hand witness to the hostile reception that Alessia Russo, who left on a free transfer to join Arsenal in the summer of 2023, received from United fans at Leigh Sports Village in her first game against her former club just a couple of weeks into the 2023-24 campaign. The former England goalkeeper isn’t ruling out the possibility of at least "a little bit" of heckling.

"I'm probably expecting a little booing," she continued. "I hope it's a little bit, but it might be a lot. A few of the fans have come out to support me at PSG, but Manchester United is their number one team. I understand that."

AdvertisementAFPHostile Earps reception far from guaranteed

A few factors might prevent the reaction to Earps from being that bad. That the game is at Old Trafford, rather than the much more intimate Leigh Sports Village (recently renamed the Progress With Unity Stadium) where every voice can be heard, might serve to dilute any hostility. The larger venue for this game and the nature of the occasion is also likely to attract more casual fans, who are less vocal.

That Earps made controversial comments about Hannah Hampton in her book is more a prickly subject for Chelsea supporters, and in an international context, while the fact that she left for PSG rather than a direct rival – differing from Russo switching allegiance to Arsenal – may also influence how she is perceived by United supporters. On top of that, where Russo's exit left the club somewhat high and dry without a clear starting No.9, the club had arguably already prepared for a future without Earps when Phallon Tullis-Joyce was signed a year prior. The American has flourished since taking over the gloves and is among the nominees for the 2025 Best FIFA Women's Goalkeeper award.

Skinner: Earps is 'welcome' back

United boss Marc Skinner, who had previously also briefly worked with Earps at Leicester City when she was a teenager, said on Tuesday he will "say nothing but good things" about her.

"Me and Mary have always had a good relationship," he explained. "I've not read the book. I don't know anything about it… I'm hearing snippets, of course I am. I'm always one of those [who thinks] you have to be careful what you say but Mary believes in it. So that's her truth, she has to speak it.

"From our perspective, we'll welcome her as somebody that is on the opponents' team in this game. But also always pay tribute to what she has done when she was at Manchester United. I know Mary is a good person, so I look forward to the challenge of trying to beat her and her team on this Wednesday night."

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Getty Images SportWhat comes next for Earps?

While Manchester United are looking to make it three wins from three in the Champions League proper this season after back-to-back victories over Valerenga and Atletico Madrid so far, PSG are yet to register a point after losing to Wolfsburg and Real Madrid. It’s all to play for at Old Trafford under the lights on Wednesday night.

We knew he could strike the ball 100m relentlessly. What we hadn’t seen was the prodding before the power

Cameron Ponsonby03-Nov-2024Liam Livingstone asked for more responsibility. Got it. And delivered.Six weeks ago, Livingstone got a call saying he was dropped. The conversation was 30 seconds long, but preceded a chat with managing director Rob Key where cards were laid on the table. Livingstone understood why he had been left out. His returns over the past two years, by his own admission, weren’t good enough.But something rankled. His one complaint was that he felt that time that he hadn’t been given the chance to dictate games. He had been the bit-part player England called when they wanted him, but never when they needed him. In 30 ODIs, he had batted above No. 6 twice, and bowled his full allocation only twice as well.Related

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One Jos Buttler calf setback later, though, and he got another call saying they wanted him back for the Australia series, and they needed him back for the West Indies series. As captain.”It’s a bit like a relationship,” Livingstone had joked before the first ODI against West Indies.Across his last five ODI innings, Livingstone averages 133.50 with a strike rate of 145. A dramatic surge in form that he dates back to a single ball he faced in the Hundred against Luke Wood. Facing a hat-trick ball, Livingstone told himself to relax and just react to whatever comes. The ball is bowled into his ribs, and he tucks it away for one. Watching it back, it is entirely unremarkable.”Jesus,” Livingstone remembers recalling to himself at the time. “I think I’m back here.”Livingstone further said after the second ODI against West Indies, “It’s really weird because it’s one ball in the middle of the summer,” when he smashed an unbeaten 124 off just 85 balls in a successful chase of 329. “But I spent two years trying so hard to work it all out.”Livingstone is one of few players on this tour playing with real jeopardy. Interim head coach Marcus Trescothick had said after the first ODI that the message being framed to the group was to enjoy their “free-hit” opportunity with a mountain of players to come back in. But Livingstone isn’t in that boat. His ultimatum with Key had been agreed, and these matches were his opportunity “to not only say what I thought, but [also] for me to show people I mean what I say”.When he arrived at the crease in the second ODI, England needed another 222 runs in 29.5 overs. A required run rate of 7.50 that climbed all the way to ten an over the moment the 39th over came to an end. England required exactly 100 runs off the final 60 balls. They did it in 45.Of Livingstone’s nine sixes, eight came in the final 25 balls of his innings. His second 50 arrived in just 17 deliveries. He hit consecutive sixes on three occasions, and took two overs for north of 20.Combining the clubspeed of Byson DeChambeau with the biceps of Mike Tyson, Livingstone peppered all sides of the ground. Gudakesh Motie was bludgeoned out to the leg side, Jayden Seales was slapped over extra cover, and Shamar Joseph was lucky to survive when a straight drive flew back past his face.”I see my ability as being able to hit more than a couple of sixes”•Getty ImagesIt wasn’t a one-man effort, with all of Phil Salt, Jacob Bethell and Sam Curran contributing with half-centuries of their own, but it was a one-man show. After the 35th over, every England boundary was off the bat of Livingstone.Counterintuitively, despite the fireworks that got England over the line. The first 50 of his runs arguably proved the point Livingstone was trying to make more than the final 74.We knew he could strike the ball 100m relentlessly. He hit the ball over the football stand at Headingley, which was the type of shot that you only hear about from the 1800s when Sir.What’sHisChops apparently cleared the pavilion at Lord’s using a toothpick. That is to say, when people are lying. But Livingstone actually did it. We saw it.What we hadn’t seen was the prodding that came before the power. His 50 off 60 balls took the game deep, and put it on his shoulders. He had struck only three boundaries. England’s team selection, swapping Jamie Overton for Saqib Mahmood, meant that the tail was long, and Adil Rashid was at No. 8, just two wickets away.”People see me as this guy who can go in and smack a few sixes in a T20 innings,” Livingstone said. “But I see my ability as being able to hit more than a couple of sixes – being able to do things like I’ve done today.”Liam Livingstone reaches a maiden ODI century•Getty ImagesIt was a remarkable innings that more than saved what had otherwise threatened to be an ordinary day for the new captain. For the second time in history, England used nine bowlers across an ODI innings, with the only time before coming in 1987 when all of Bill Athey, Allan Lamb and Chris Broad bowled the only over of their ODI careers in a dead run chase.It encapsulated the other end of Livingstone’s desperation to do well on this tour. Muddled thinking in the guise of proactiveness, that resulted in Jofra Archer having an over left in the tank when Will Jacks, Dan Mousley and Bethell had sent down seven between them.”No,” Livingstone said. “It wasn’t the plan.”But where clarity was absent in the field, it was present in abundance with the bat. Livingstone admitted himself that despite his showing, “I don’t think I’m ever going to bat [at No.] 5 for England when we’ve got a full squad”.But regardless of the tangible long-term results of his performance, the intangible can matter just as much. He had proved to himself, and others, that he was capable of something he had always believed he could do, but until Saturday never had.”It’s amazing,” he concluded. “The last time I was here, I lost my grandad. I’m looking forward to speaking to some family back home. He’ll be looking down pretty proud.”

Jos Buttler’s unbeaten 64 sets up hosts before three wickets apiece for Sonny Baker, Josh Tongue take Superchargers down

ECB Media17-Aug-2025

Originals are right back in the shake-up of the Hundred men’s competition after an ultimately emphatic victory against in-form Northern Superchargers.Jos Buttler’s rich vein of form continued, registering his seventh fifty in the history of tournament to go top of this year’s run-scorers chart.He was ably supported by the classy New Zealander Rachin Ravindra, playing his first match for this year’s edition and striking 31 from just 14 balls, and then Heinrich Klaasen, who roared back into nick with a savage 25-ball 50.Only Matthew Potts offered much counter-thrust, picking up two wickets; but even he was helpless to halt the carnage at the death as Buttler and Klaasen combined for 27 runs from the final 11 balls. In all the Superchargers gave up nine sixes.Much then hinged on the Superchargers getting off to a flyer. Zak Crawley clattered two cover drives from the first set bowled by Sonny Baker, and then smashed a six off his England team-mate Josh Tongue. But a sharp catch at backward point from Matty Hurst saw Crawley depart for a nine-ball 16, and thereafter their chase flatlined.The key moment was the dismissal of Harry Brook, who top-edged an attempted sweep for 11 to give Ravindra his first wicket of this year’s competition.Originals have an enviably varied attack, with Tongue, Scott Currie and the effervescent Baker – last week called into England’s white-ball squads – providing the cutting edge and the Afghan mystery spinner Noor Ahmad offering the sparkle.Tongue and Baker shared three wickets apiece – Baker taking a hat-trick after bowling Dawid Malan for 19 off the 50th ball before returning to claim the final two dismissals, Tom Lawes caught by Lewis Gregory at deep midwicket and yorking Jacob Duffy next ball to wrap up victory.Tongue is now top of the wicket-takers’ list with nine, one ahead of his teammate Currie – while Ahmad was irresistible, taking two wickets and conceding less than a run a ball. Ravindra, with his left-arm spin, offered further control in the middle sets.For the Superchargers it was an afternoon to forget. Only David Miller, with 38, managed to make it past 19. They nonetheless remain in the mix, in a three-way tie at the top, ahead of a crucial week in this intriguing tournament.Meerkat Match Hero Buttler said: “It was hard work but I tried not to get frustrated. We built some partnerships and having guys set was crucial. We’ve played a couple of games here, and seen how the wicket can be. We tried to keep it simple and not to put pressure on our bowlers.”There’s nice variety in our attack, Josh and Sonny complement each other, and adding someone like Noor is a trump card. To put together a performance like that with bat and ball is very exciting.”Phil Salt, Originals skipper, was thrilled with the performance. “It’s been a chasing competition so far, so we’re really pleased with what the top order did today, batting first. Bowling-wise we’ve been pretty strong, with Sonny [Baker] and Scottie [Currie] and the rest doing really well.”Sonny’s brilliant as always, mad as a box of frogs. You just wind him up and let him go! In the last couple of weeks, he’s executed more often than not. It’s now about picking up momentum.”

Rockets still in with an outside chance of a top three finish after convincing victory over Welsh Fire

ECB Media24-Aug-2025Trent Rockets 145 for 6 (Sciver-Brunt 39, Davies 3-26) beat Welsh Fire 122 for 9 (Dunkley 26, King 3-17) by 23 runs Trent Rockets produced a clinical all-round performance to overcome Welsh Fire by 23 runs at Sophia Gardens and keep themselves in the mix for progression to the Eliminator.Aussie all-rounder Ash Gardner starred with bat and ball, hitting 36 from 26 and taking 2 for 28 with her off-breaks, as the Rockets claimed a victory which leaves them four points behind third-placed Manchester Originals with one game still to play. They will need to win their final group match against Birmingham Phoenix on Wednesday and hope other results go their way to secure a top-three finish.Bryony Smith (38 from 27) laid the foundations for the Rockets’ 145 for 6, the opener hitting Freya Davies for three boundaries in the second set and then finding the ropes from three consecutive Jess Jonassen deliveries in the fifth.Hayley Matthews was next in Smith’s sights, the Bajan off-spinner dispatched over mid-off for four and then swatted for six, but Davies (3-26) ended her entertaining knock when a top edge flew to Georgia Elwiss at short third.A third-wicket stand of 67 from 45 balls between Nat Sciver-Brunt (38 from 26) and Gardner built on Smith’s good work, the England skipper stroking five fours while Gardner showed off her powerful strokeplay with three maximums.Jonassen broke the partnership when she trapped Sciver-Brunt lbw and Gardner fell six balls later, nicking off to a surprise bouncer from Matthews, but a bright cameo from Heather Graham, who hit two boundaries in her unbeaten 13, took the visitors to a competitive total.In reply, Tammy Beaumont’s lean trot continued when she was bowled by Alexa Stonehouse for 5 before Sophia Dunkley (26 from 23) and Matthews (18 from 12) moved the Fire on to 57 for 1. But when Gardner took the key wicket of Matthews, bowled by a nicely flighted delivery, the hosts lost their momentum.Aussie leg-spinner Alana King turned the screw, returning figures of 3 for 17, while Gardner made another telling intervention when she had the dangerous Dunkley caught and bowled.The Fire eventually subsided to 122 for 9 from their 100 deliveries, their sixth defeat of a disappointing season.Gardner, the Meerkat Match Hero, said: “I think that was probably our first well-rounded performance. I think we did all three disciplines really well. Obviously we need to keep winning and for others results to go our way but we’re just trying to control what we can, and that’s winning games of cricket.”I was happy with parts of my innings. There were a few dot balls in there where I was trying to hit it too hard but the wicket was quite tricky at times when the bowlers took pace off the ball, and when the quicks bashed a length it was tough to find the boundary. But if I had a ball in my zone, I tried to clear the fence.”