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Hundreds of Australian cricketers will be chasing lucrative Twenty20 contracts over the next month as the Big Bash League teams begin to sign up players

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Jun-2011Hundreds of Australian cricketers will be chasing lucrative Twenty20 contracts over the next month as the Big Bash League teams begin to sign up players. While the Don Argus-led performance review tries to get to the bottom of Australia’s Ashes debacle and slump to fifth on the ICC Test rankings, Cricket Australia’s planning for the expanded Twenty20 tournament is in full swing.The six states are this week finalising their contract lists for first-class and 50-over cricket for next summer, but only 14 to 18 players per state will be given a full contract, down from last year’s number. Meanwhile, the eight city-based teams must each sign up 18 men, a process that will start this Thursday when the contract window begins.The expansion of Twenty20 contracts and the decline in Australia’s Test performance is a combination that has some coaches concerned. The Western Australia coach Mickey Arthur believes the bigger salary cap for Twenty20 sides compared to the state teams is the wrong way around for a country trying to climb the Test rankings, while Michael Clarke’s mentor, Neil D’Costa, is worried that the focus on Twenty20 at junior levels could kill Test cricket in Australia.Each of the eight teams must sign at least 14 players during the first Big Bash League contract window, which runs from June 30 to July 22. By December 9 – a week before the first match – they must have finalised a full roster of 18 players, meaning that 144 Twenty20 contracts will be sealed over the coming months.The scrapping of the traditional state teams for the Twenty20 competition means that every player in the country is up for grabs, although the likelihood is that most players will remain in their home states. Sydney and Melbourne each have two teams that must be filled with talent, and every side can sign two international players, with scope to replace those men if their international commitments clash with the Big Bash League.Cricket Australia has also announced that KFC will be the naming-rights sponsor for the tournament after signing a three-year deal.

Australia are to be denied the chance to have a look at Steven Finn ahead of the Ashes this winter

Cricinfo staff07-Jun-2010Australia are to be denied the chance to have a look at Steven Finn ahead of the Ashes this winter. He will have a break from cricket after playing a leading role with the ball in England’s 2-0 series win over Bangladesh and is set to undertake a strengthening programme similar to that performed by Stuart Broad. As such, he will not take part in domestic cricket or any of the ODIs ahead of England’s Test series against Pakistan.”Steven Finn has had an impressive start to the summer and will now undertake a strengthening programme similar to that recently undertaken by Stuart Broad,” said Geoff Miller, England’s national selector. “This will also rule Steven out of the NatWest Series against Australia and Bangladesh before his preparation for the npower Test series against Pakistan.”However, England coach Andy Flower insisted the move had nothing to do with hiding Finn ahead of the winter’s Ashes tour and preventing Australia make early notes about the tall quick bowler. “It does not have anything to do with Australia, or the Australian [ODI] series,” he said.”I would be very strong in the description that this is definitely not rest,” he added. “He will not be resting; he will be doing a very intensive strengthening programme. He is a young man that needs to develop more physically, and there is a window of opportunity to do that. The reason he is being pulled out of Twenty20 is he needs this in the same way Stuart Broad did.”It is the responsible thing to do for him personally and in the best interests, medium and long term, of the English cricket side.”Andrew Strauss and Graeme Swann are also going to be rested ahead of England’s upcoming one-day internationals against Scotland, Australia and Bangladesh and will be unavailable for any Friends Provident domestic Twenty20 games before their international engagements.Miller explained that while Twenty20 cricket gives the players the chance to switch from a Test to a limited-overs mindset, it is important to be mindful of regulating player workloads.”The coming rounds of the Friend’s Provident t20 matches are an ideal opportunity for several England players to switch their focus from Test cricket to limited-overs cricket as we look ahead to the forthcoming one-day International against Scotland and the NatWest Series against Australia and Bangladesh,” he said.”We must be mindful of the management of the players’ workload and their desire to play in what is a hugely exciting Twenty20 competition. Graeme Swann is in need of a well earned break and as a result won’t play any cricket during this period. We believe the best preparation for Andrew Strauss’s build up to the NatWest series does not involve the Friend’s Provident t20 fixtures and as such he won’t be available for these matches during this period.”James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Paul Collingwood, and Kevin Pietersen will have a week’s rest but will be available to play domestic Twenty20s from June 13. Alastair Cook will receive treatment for an ongoing back injury later this week before returning for Essex on the same date.”I feel for the counties when we make these decisions on players and pull them out of county games,” Flower said. “The directors of cricket and coaches and captains are under their own pressure with results.”When you pull their best players out of competitive matches it is quite a hit for them. I realise it requires a lot of understanding from them, and we very much appreciate it.”Ian Bell, Eoin Morgan, Ajmal Shahzad, Ryan Sidebottom, Matt Prior and Jonathan Trott will be available for all county fixtures until June 15. England play Scotland in Edinburgh on June 19 before five ODIs against Australia, starting on June 22, and three against Bangladesh.

Misson played five Tests for Australia between in 1960-61 and was a pioneer of physical fitness in cricket

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Sep-2024Former Australia and New South Wales fast bowler Frank Misson has passed away at the age of 85.Misson played five Tests across the famous 1960-61 home series against the West Indies and the 1961 Ashes tour to England but his Test career was cut short by an Achilles injury. He took 16 wickets at 38.50 including a career best 4 for 58 against West Indies in Melbourne.He played 71 first-class matches, mostly for New South Wales, and finished with 177 first-class wickets at 31.13 in a short career that spanned from 1958 to 1964.Misson was a stellar athlete in his youth, training with legendary Australian athletics middle distance coach Percy Cerutty who famously coached Australia’s Herb Elliott to Olympic gold and a world record in the 1500m in Rome in 1960.Misson carried that fitness and athletics background into his cricket career, bursting onto the scene to take six wickets as a 20-year-old for NSW on Sheffield Shield debut in the last match of the 1958-59 season. At the end of the 1959-60 Shield season Misson was selected in an Australian second XI that toured New Zealand and he took 17 wickets at 12.47.The following summer he made his Test debut against the West Indies in the second Test in Melbourne that followed the famous tied Test in Brisbane.Misson played two more Tests in the five-match series before being selected on the 1961 Ashes tour. Former Australian captain Ian Chappell wrote about Misson’s incredible fitness regime to prepare for the tour.”The 1961 Australian team travelled to England by boat, but Misson was not to be denied his training regime,” Chappell wrote. “As he ran laps of the deck, some of the less physically minded players sitting in the bar saw Misson flash past the window. Perhaps embarrassed by Misson’s zealous workouts, they decided to complicate his exercise regime by placing deck chairs in his path. When Misson hurdled the first set of obstacles and did the same to yet another layer of chairs, the bar rats relented and left him to train in peace.”Misson played the first two Tests of the Ashes series but an Achilles injury caused him issues for the remainder of the tour and he did not play another Test match.Cricket NSW chief executive Lee Germon paid tribute to Misson following his passing.”We pass on our sincerest condolences to Frank’s family and friends, especially all of those that played with him as part of the NSW Men’s Team and the Australian Men’s Team,” Germon said.”Frank’s career was cut short by injury, which was ironic considering the focus he had on health, diet and fitness in an era where sports science was not very prevalent.”His five Test caps are recognition of his talent and determination and there is little doubt that if it wasn’t for injury he would have played many more times for his state and country.”Misson’s attitude towards cricket fitness would have a lasting legacy on Australian cricket with his son David Misson becoming the fitness advisor for the Australia men’s team between 1998 and 2000 as well as with Cricket New South Wales in the early 2000s.

Nathan Lyon, who will be playing his 100th consecutive Test, is keen to use the slope at Lord’s to his advantage

Andrew McGlashan27-Jun-2023Stuart Broad looked cooked. James Anderson wasn’t given the second new ball and looked grumpy. The opening Test at Edgbaston was decided by very fine margins, but it felt as though England’s pace attack ran out of steam for the final push.There has been a reasonable break ahead of the second Test at Lord’s. But if England go unchanged, there’s an opportunity for Australia to put more miles in their legs and see how two ageing greats can manage, although it’s worth stating their superb records at a ground where Anderson has 117 wickets at 24.58 and Broad 108 at 27.42.Of the fast bowlers on show at Edgbaston, Broad, who had an outstanding match, bowled the most overs with 44, followed by Ollie Robinson on 40.4. Then came Anderson (38) before we reach the first Australian with Pat Cummins on 32.2. Scott Boland and Josh Hazlewood did not get out of their 20s. Cameron Green only bowled eight, while even Ben Stokes, with his bad knee, sent down 14.Related

• James Anderson returns to Lord's with chance to change his Ashes narrative

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• Australia 'pretty under par' despite early success against Bazball

They are largely small differences at the moment, but could soon add up, especially with Lord’s and Headingley being back-to-back Tests separated by only a three-day break. That is where the respective pace-bowling depths, and endurance of those who play on through, will be on show.One byproduct of England’s rapid batting approach is their innings tend not to give the quick bowlers lengthy downtime – they bowled on each day at Edgbaston, albeit only briefly in the first after Stokes’ declaration. By contrast, Australia are happy to bat time, although it is worth noting that 386 runs in 116.1 overs is certainly not slow, even if it doesn’t match up to Bazball and led to Robinson questioning their approach.”Potentially, for sure,” Cummins said about the prospect of wearing down England’s attack. “I’ve played a lot of Tests back-to-back and you certainly feel much fresher when in the first Test match, you’ve had a big gap in between both innings or you only bowled 30 as opposed to 40, 50. Our number one goal when we go out there is to score runs and it doesn’t matter how long it takes.”Nathan Lyon will be playing his 100th consecutive Test at Lord’s•ICC/Getty Images

Australia may have a change to their attack at Lord’s with Mitchell Starc in the running to replace Boland. It would also be a surprise if Michael Neser did not remain with the squad for the rest of the series when the squad is reassessed after this Test.The other key figure Australia have is Nathan Lyon, who will be playing his 100th consecutive Test at Lord’s. Although he finished with an almost identical economy rate to Moeen Ali (4.32 to 4.34) at Edgbaston, Lyon was a regular wicket-taking threat and claimed eight in the game.”It’s a huge privilege captaining him, it’s so easy – just chuck him down one end and he basically just bowls all day,” Cummins said. “In all conditions, being one of the four bowlers that get picked is just hugely impressive. Just the way he’s a man for all conditions, keeps getting better, so reliable.”The Lord’s pitch may not offer him much. There have been 12 wickets to spin in 13 County Championship innings this season, while Jack Leach went at four-and-a-half an over in the second innings against Ireland when the surface flattened out. But it’s a place Lyon has enjoyed bowling on his previous visits in 2015 and 2019, having been omitted in 2013 – the last Test match he did not play – making use of the slope in both directions, even though his six wickets have cost 41.66.”I actually really enjoy bowling here using the slope to our advantage as bowlers,” he said. “I think you can bowl with it and hopefully spin [it] more or you can bowl up and use the angles and hopefully bring in both edges. I don’t think it’s one end got to be the spinners’ end or the fast bowlers’ end. You’ve got to have that ability to adjust and really enjoy that challenge of bowling with it or against type thing. So I think we can use it as a weapon up our sleeves.”[But] we’re not sure what the wicket is going to look like on day one, whether it’s going to be overcast or whatnot. So if the seamers do work and I don’t have to do much and that’s all well and good, but I’m happy to put my hand up in the tough situations and have a crack.”Steven Smith has a look at the Lord’s pitch•Getty Images

Lyon and Cummins were also central in the cat-and-mouse that went on with England’s batters at Edgbaston, particularly in the second innings when the lead was all-important, and they both bowled impressively. Meanwhile, on the opening day, Australia’s largely defensive fields were much scrutinised but Cummins indicated he would remain happy playing the long game even if it meant England could sometimes make the running.”You’ve got a problem solver out there, which is great fun as a captain and as a bowler,” Cummins said. “It’s just maybe a bit more like T20 and one-day game, where the problems that you try to solve are a bit more like that, as opposed to trying to create something from nothing, which sometimes you have to do in a Test match.”I thought we managed to tempos really well last week,” he added. “When we had to attack, we really went for it, but there’s other times where we just had to suck it up and wait.”One win does not mean they have got it all right, but another one at Lord’s this week and it will be hard to question their approach.

Durham left to rue rain earlier in match as Glamorgan recover from top-order wobble

ECB Reporters Network10-Apr-2022Despite a flurry of wickets in the morning session, the final day of the LV=Insurance County Championship match between Glamorgan and Durham in Cardiff finished in a draw after half centuries from Kiran Carlson and Chris Cooke took the home side to safety.The day started with seven Durham wickets falling for 32 runs as Andrew Salter claimed career-best figures. Durham had a first-innings lead of 149 with Alex Lees finishing undefeated on 182.Four early Glamorgan wickets gave Durham some hope of claiming victory but the stand between Cooke and Carlson took the home side to safety with the teams shaking hands with 16 overs un-bowled.Durham will be left ruing the bad weather that took so much time out of this game on the first two days as they were the team best placed to push for a positive result.Durham resumed their first innings 114 runs in front with seven wickets in hand. In a madcap first hour they went from 351 for three to 383 all out. The destroyer-in-chief was Salter who finished with 7 for 45, his first five-wicket haul in the format, as the Durham middle and lower order attempted to press home their advantage with quick runs.Salter dismissed David Bedingham in the second over of the day, well stumped by Cooke with a ball that appeared to swing away from the batter. What followed was a succession of Durham players giving away their wickets with attempted big shots.As his side collapsed around him Lees stood firm, carrying his bat for the second time in his career on his way to his highest first-class score for Durham. While a quick conclusion of the Durham innings may not have been their plan as they started out the final day of this match, it did give them more time to claim the ten Glamorgan wickets they needed for victory.In the 14 overs they bowled before lunch, Durham claimed three Glamorgan wickets with the home side still trailing by 116 at the break. It could have been four wickets before the interval but Paul Coughlin put down a relatively simple chance at third slip that would have dismissed Colin Ingram without scoring.While the morning session was hectic, things settled down after lunch. Durham had Glamorgan 66 for four when Ben Raine had Ingram bowled but a partnership of 90 between Carlson and Cooke took Glamorgan into the lead.It was a breakthrough year for Carlson in 2021 with the Welsh batter scoring 928 first-class runs at an average of 48.84 and he was playing exceptionally before edging one through to the wicket-keeper on 61 off the bowling of Matthew Potts. Glamorgan will be hoping for more eye-catching innings like this one in 2022.Cooke made 59 in the first innings and was 85 not out in the second, those runs combined with the 205 not out he made in the last match of the 2021 season it is an impressing run of scores for the Glamorgan wicket-keeper.Durham take 15 points away from this match while Glamorgan claim 11.

Gunathilaka’s half-century in vain as Galle slip to fourth straight defeat

Madushka Balasuriya03-Dec-2020Jaffna Stallions 174 for 5 (Avishka 84, Bhanuka 40, Asitha 2-30) beat Galle Gladiators 170 for 6 (Gunathilaka 56, Walton 31, Hasaranga 2-29) by five wickets
How the game played out
An all-round display from Wanindu Hasaranga capped off yet another fine display by the Jaffna Stallions, as they won their fourth game on the trot, and subjected the Galle Gladiators to a fourth straight defeat, with an ultimately comfortable five-wicket win.Despite a 44-ball 56 from Danushka Gunathilaka and cameos from Ahsan Ali, Azam Khan and Chadwick Walton, the Gladiators’ batting line-up exhibited familiar failings as they once more faltered in crucial periods of the game. The Stallions, in contrast, showcased their clutch mentality, on numerous occasions, reining in the Gladiators just as they would have been hoping to do some real damage.The chief culprit as far as the Gladiators were concerned would be Hasaranga, who was not only responsible for breaking a threatening 67-run opening stand between Ali and Gunathilaka – completing a extremely tough return catch – but returned later to dismiss Gunathilaka in the 15th over, just as he would have been looking to launch a late assault.That wicket completely snuffed the momentum from the Gladiators’ innings, though Walton’s 14-ball 31 did briefly threaten to reignite it – taking them from 127 for 4 at the end of the 16th over to 152 midway through the 17th. However, after Walton nicked one through to the keeper, the Gladiators just could not recover, taking just 17 runs off the final three overs to limp to a sub-par 170 for 6.In their chase, the Stallions were in control pretty much from the get-go – largely thanks to a mature innings from Avishka Fernando. After Tom Moores fell with the score on 26, Fernando and Minod Bhanuka put on 99 for the second wicket.With less than 50 runs to get, the Gladiators would make a game of it dismissing Thisara Perera, Avishka, and finally Shoaib Malik (in the final over), but Wanindu would prove to be the bane of the Gladiators one final time – his seven-ball 17, inclusive of four boundaries, ensuring there would be no late drama.Stars of the day
While Thisara has rightfully hogged the spotlight over the course of the Stallions’ unbeaten run, Wanindu has arguably been as, if not more, critical to his side’s success. Quietly going about his business with bat, ball, and in the field, Wanindu once again showed what an invaluable asset he his. His control and variations were a constant thorn in the side of the Gladiators on his way to figures of 2 for 29, before his late cameo extinguished any faint hopes the Gladiators might have had of stealing a win.There was something rather ominous about the way Avishka went about his innings; the period of play from the 11th to the 13th over highlighted this perfectly. At the end of the 10th over he was on 35 off 31 deliveries, but realising the scoring rate needed picking up, he took Dhananjaya Lakshan for a six and four. The next over was a tight one from Lakshan Sandakan, but Avishka didn’t panic, calmly turning over the strike – even playing out a dot ball. It was as if he he could up the rate whenever he so chose. Three consecutive sixes in the arc between long-on and midwicket later, these suspicions were confirmed. At 22, this new-found assurance bodes well for the Stallions and Sri Lankan cricket in general.Chadwick Walton smears one away•AFP via Getty Images

Turning point
It’s unusual that an over in which 26 runs were plundered could be a positive for the bowler, but that Usman Shinwari ended the 31-run cameo from Chadwick Walton – 24 of which came in this over – before he could do any more damage, was crucial in limiting the Gladiators’ late charge. Following Walton’s wicket, just 18 runs were conceded by the Stallions over the next three overs – any more and it could have been a much trickier chase.The big miss
In the 18th over of the chase, Avishka flat-batted one hard to long-off. The man in the deep, Shehan Jayasuriya, however, chose to peddle back and stop the boundary instead of coming in for the catch. To compound matters, a misfield would lead to a boundary as well. Two balls later, Avishka would nick one through to the keeper. The umpire had already raised his finger before realising Azam had dropped a sitter behind the stumps. Fortunately for the Gladiators, Avishka would give another opportunity off the final ball of the over, skying a catch to Jayasuriya.Where the teams stand
The Stallions have firmly installed themselves as the team to beat – four wins in four, bowlers performing, batsmen clicking, what more could you ask for? It would take an astounding drop-off in form for them not to make the semi-finals. As for the Gladiators, they don’t really have much margin for error. Though the format of the tournament – where the top four teams go through as opposed to a play-off system – means they can sneak through with a couple of wins, provided other results also go their way.

Shakib Al Hasan credits Afghanistan for the way “they kept us under pressure and under their nose” in the Chattogram Test

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Sep-2019Rashid Khan, not yet 21 and in his first Test as captain, spun Afghanistan to a memorable win, by 224 runs in Chattogram, and picked up the Man-of-the-Match award too, for his 11 wickets and half-century in the first innings. It was a time to celebrate, but also bid farewell to Mohammad Nabi from Test cricket, a job Rashid did in style by dedicating his match award to “the legend”.”He has totally helped me a lot and other spinners a lot as well, since I’ve been in the side, and still he is with us in the ODIs and T20s, but in the longer format that experience was always great,” Rashid said. “I wish him all the best and thanks for all your service for the country. I want to dedicate this Man of the Match to Nabi.”While Nabi played his part with the ball in the Test, the performance from seniors and newcomers alike was heartening for Afghanistan, who have now won two of their three Test matches since becoming a Test-playing country. Asghar Afghan, the former captain, hit twin half-centuries, while Ibrahim Zadran, on debut, scored 21 and 87, and Qais Ahmed and Zahir Khan, both debutant spinners, held their own.”Thanks to the almighty Allah for this performance, under my captaincy we won this game against a big side like Bangladesh. We are new in this format, so the credit goes to the coaching staff [and] the players the way they prepared for this game,” Rashid gushed. “Before coming here, we had a camp in Abu Dhabi, that was one of the hottest games I have ever had. After playing in 46-47 [degrees], when you come in this weather, it is very easy for you.”The plan which was given to the players, each and every one – batting, bowling, fielding – everyone just tried and applied himself. The only thing from my side was to keep going out, keep enjoying yourself, enjoy your batting, enjoy your bowling. Much credit goes to everyone in the batting, and the bowlers, the way we did the job. Especially the youngsters Qais and Zahir, and Yamin [Ahmadzai, the quick bowler], the way he bowled in the first innings. So it was a great team effort and we are really pleased with that.”Rashid credited the Afghanistan Cricket Board for putting in place a four-day system at home, which, he said, has helped the youngsters deal with the demands of the longest format well.”The youngsters who are coming, they are applying themselves really quickly. They are learning from their mistakes. Especially now, we have a good four-day structure back home, we play ten to 12 four-day matches. That is helping the youngsters get used to the longer format and not just the T20s or ODIs,” he said. “Everyone was focusing on his job and trying to give 100%. We are really famous with the shorter format but the challenge was for us, especially with the batsmen, to stay on the wicket and spend as much time as possible. They have done a terrific job.”While Rashid was celebrating, Shakib Al Hasan, the Bangladesh Test and T20I captain, wore a desolate look, after overseeing a below-par performance. They were behind the eight-ball for the longest part but, thanks to the weather, had a good shot at saving the Test on the last day, with four wickets in hand and a minimum of 18.3 overs to bat out, light permitting. They lasted just 15.1.”I think it’s a combination of both – application of our batsmen, and at the same time I think Afghanistan bowled really well, so the credit goes to them for the way they played throughout this Test match,” Shakib said, trying to explain the result. “So we need to do a lot of hard work to become a very good, consistent team. But credit goes to Afghanistan for the way they kept us under pressure and under their nose.”Asked if the build-up was wrong, or that Bangladesh’s lack of Test matches in recent times was a factor, Shakib disagreed: “Well, after playing for 20 years, we can’t say it’s a build-up or something like that. It might be [that] these guys are not playing Test match for a while. It has been a while since we played our last Test match (in March in New Zealand), so that might be the reason.”[But we should] just forget this match as soon as possible and we need to look forward to the T20 series, because Afghanistan is a very good T20 side, and we have to play our best cricket if we want to do well in that tournament. [The T20] World Cup [is] coming up next year and we need to focus on our T20 at this moment.”

Bangladesh also added four new faces – Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Nazmul Islam, Abu Hider and Abu Jayed – to their one-day squad for the three-match series

Mohammad Isam03-Jul-2018Bangladesh added four new faces – Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Nazmul Islam, Abu Hider and Abu Jayed – to their ODI squad for the three-match series against West Indies starting on July 22. Liton Das and Mosaddek Hossain also earned recalls as Mashrafe Mortaza prepares to lead a new-look side in his first assignment since January.

Bangladesh ODI squad

• Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Anamul Haque, Liton Das, Mushfiqur Rahim, Sabbir Rahman, Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain, Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Mehidy Hassan Miraz, Nazmul Islam, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Abu Hider, Abu Jayed

• IN: Liton Das, Mosaddek Hossain, Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Nazmul Islam, Abu Hider, Abu Jayed

• OUT: Nasir Hossain, Mohammad Mithun, Abul Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Sunzamul Islam

Shanto, a left-handed top-order batsman, made his Test debut in New Zealand in 2017 and has been in prolific form in domestic one-day cricket this year while Nazmul, Hider and Jayed have found only limited opportunities in the senior side lately. Liton has also featured in Tests and T20Is in the recent past.The selectors dropped three batsmen – Imrul Kayes, Nasir Hossain, Mohammad Mithun – two allrounders – Abul Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin – and a left-arm spinner – Sunzamul Islam – to bestow greater responsibility on senior batsmen Tamim Iqbal, Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim.Despite failing to put up convincing performances, Anamul Haque emerged the only regular with a middling form from Bangladesh’s previous ODI squad to survive the axe. Nasir Hossain, Mohammad Mithun, Abul Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin and Sunzamul Islam were dropped.Anamul, however, has some recent runs behind him, and so does Sabbir Rahman who earlier lost his place in the Test side but soon bounced back with a 165-run knock against Sri Lanka A last week.

England Lions were put to the sword by an unbroken stand of 303 on another sweltering day in Dambulla

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Feb-2017Sri Lanka A 333 for 3 (Samarawickrama 177*, Karunaratne 140*) trail England Lions 353 (Livingstone 105, Westley 68, Pushpakumara 8-127) by 20 runs
ScorecardDimuth Karunaratne found form ahead of the Test series against Bangladesh•AFP

England Lions were put to the sword by an unbroken stand of 303 on the second day in Dambulla. Test opener Dimuth Karunaratne and 21-year-old Sadeera Samarawickrama gorged themselves during the latter two sessions to put Sri Lanka A in control.The Lions had extended their total to 353 and when Sri Lanka A stumbled to 30 for 3 it looked a formidable score. But that changed dramatically as the day wore on, and it was Samarawickrama who led the way to finish unbeaten on a career-best 177 from 219 deliveries.He was given one life, on 90, when Tom Curran could not hold a leading edge off Jack Leach but otherwise it was a dominant performance. It was an expensive day for Leach, who missed the opening game after feeling uncertain about his remodelled action, as he finished with 0 for 76 from 12 overs.For Karunaratne this series is a chance to find some form ahead of the Test series against Bangladesh. He chipped in against South Africa, with scores of 43, 24 and 50 alongside three single-figure innings, but he had not reached 20 in his previous six completed first-class innings which included two failures in the opening match against the Lions.This time he survived the new ball and began to prosper against a tiring Lions attack. By the end of the day he had struck 15 boundaries in his 216-ball stay.The picture looked very different during the morning session. Tom Curran struck in his second over to have Udara Jayasundera, who carried his bat in the second innings of the previous match, caught behind and Ron Chandraguptha went the same way against Toby Roland-Jones.When Ollie Rayner trapped Sandun Weerakkody lbw sweeping the Lions were buoyant, but that proved the last moment of success on what became a day of toil. They are not the first England side to feel that in Asia this season.

Stephen Cook has moved a step closer to making his Test debut against England at Centurion after Rilee Rossouw was released from South Africa’s squad

Firdose Moonda20-Jan-2016Stephen Cook has moved a step closer to making his Test debut against England in Centurion after Rilee Rossouw was released from South Africa’s squad to play for his franchise, Knights, in the fifth round of the Sunfoil series which starts on Thursday.Stiaan van Zyl, the incumbent opener alongside Dean Elgar, was let go from the squad yesterday after his struggles during the first three Tests where he had a top score of 33 in five innings. The one remaining stumbling block for Cook, a specialist opener who topped the first-class runs charts last season and has scored two centuries and a fifty from three games this summer, would be if South Africa deploy wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock in the opening berth in order to make room for JP Duminy in the middle order.De Kock missed the Wanderers Test with a knee injury picked up walking his dogs but passed a fitness Test on Wednesday afternoon to be available for selection*. South Africa were pondering moving de Kock into the top two in Johannesburg before the injury he suffered on the eve of the game.The desire to include Duminy in the middle-order is two-fold. Not only does he offer a part-time offspin but he is coming off the back of a career-best unbeaten 260 for Cape Cobras, scored the match after he was dropped from the Test XI in Cape Town. Room for Duminy can still be found without moving de Kock up the order if South Africa sacrifice Faf du Plessis, who has been among their misfiring men.Whichever route South Africa take, Elgar will have a new opening partner and is well aware of the qualities Cook would bring.”Cookie has been knocking on the door for a long time. With a lot of domestic performances he’s put in, you cant not notice what he has done in the last two or three seasons. He’s done very well for the Lions. He has put up his hand and put a lot of pressure on the openers,” Elgar said. “We’ve opened for the A side. It’s an exciting time for Stephen and I know he is looking forward to it. A lot has been written in the media about he never gave up hope of playing for South Africa.”Elgar remained supportive of the axed van Zyl, a regular No. 3 and still believes he has an international future. “It’s unfortunate that Stiaan is the guy thats been left out. I feel for him because he was asked to do a job that was foreign for him,” Elgar said. “I feel it was a position Stiaan was very capable of doing. I. I feel for him because I know what it’s like being in bad form. I don’t really have much to say on him opening him opening the batting, but I do sympathise with him.”Hardus Viljoen, the fast bowler who made his debut at the Wanderers and struck with his first ball in Test cricket when he had Alastair Cook caught down the leg side, has also been released from the squad. It now appears likely that the decision over the bowling combination is two from Chris Morris, Kyle Abbott and offspinner Dane Piedt. The inclusion of Piedt would aid in maintaining the four players of colour if Duminy was not recalled.*January 20, 3.10pmGMT: This story was updated with news of Quinton de Kock’s fitness test