England will play their first three-Test series in Sri Lanka in 11 years, but the tour – which also features five ODIs and a T20I – may also clash with the island’s northeast monsoon

Andrew Fidel Fernando15-Mar-2018

England will play their first three-Test series in Sri Lanka in 11 years, but the tour – which also features five ODIs and a T20I – may also clash with the island’s northeast monsoon.England’s tour of Sri Lanka 2018

Oct 10 – First ODI, Dambulla
Oct 13 – Second ODI, Dambulla
Oct 17 – Third ODI, Pallekele
Oct 20 – Fourth ODI, Pallekele
Oct 23 – Fifth ODI, Khettarama (Colombo)
Oct 27 – Only T20I, Khettarama
Nov 6-10 – First Test, Galle
Nov 14-18 – Second Test, Pallekele
Nov 23-27 – Third Test, SSC

The matches will be played in Dambulla, Galle, Kandy and Colombo, with the SSC set to host the only Colombo Test. As it is the Tests – set for November – are more likely to be affected by rain than the limited-overs games, which end by October.SLC generally only hosts sides in November if there is no alternative, and given both teams’ busy 2018 schedule, that does appear to be the case. November Tests were last played in Sri Lanka in 2012, when both matches against New Zealand yielded results. However the previous series that began in November – the 2010 Tests against West Indies – were infamously rain-affected, and all three games ended in draws.The ODI series kicks off the tour on October 10, before the one-off T20I is played on the 27th of that month. There are then nine days before the first Test – time perhaps for England to play at least one warm-up encounter. The Test series begins in Galle on November 6, then moves to Pallekele, before the tour finishes up in Colombo.England last played Tests in Sri Lanka in early 2012, that two-match series finishing 1-1. Their most-recent three-Test tour of the island was in 2007.

With the tournament scheduled to run from August 18 to September 10, SLC is also attempting to lure second-string India players to participate

Andrew Fidel Fernando07-Apr-2018

Russel Arnold, the former Sri Lanka batsman, and commentator, has been appointed tournament director for the Lankan Premier League, to be played in August and September. Having officially signed on several days ago, Arnold’s work begins in earnest in May.”We consider bringing in a person in the caliber of Russel as the Tournament Director of the LPL will help the process of making it a successful tournament, especially considering his experience as a player and also his knowledge in promoting the game,” said Thilanga Sumathipala, the SLC president.Although planning remains in the early stages, Sri Lanka Cricket is also attempting to lure second-string India players to the tournament, with Sumathipala having repeatedly stated that he plans to appeal to the BCCI about the issue. The presence of Indian players – even those of lesser renown – would be a substantial boon, particularly as LPL match times will be ideally suited for Indian viewers. The BCCI has never allowed its players to participate in foreign leagues, although SLC hopes to change that given the recent co-operation between both boards.SLC CEO Ashley de Silva also said that the board would insist that all its players take part in the LPL instead of the Caribbean Premier League, which is set to take place at the same time.SLC has not had a high profile T20 tournament since the SLPL, which had a lukewarm reception on the island in 2012, and was never played again. The LPL is scheduled to run from August 18 to September 10.

Vice-captain sees the absence of key names as an opportunity for new faces to stake their claim

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Jun-20181:37

‘Need to play as much as we can’ – Finch

Aaron Finch says that the inexperience in Australia’s one-day squad could prove to be a blessing in disguise as they finalise their preparations for next week’s first ODI against England at The Oval, and beyond that, next year’s World Cup.Finch made a solid 78 on Thursday night to set up Australia’s hard-earned 57-run win against Sussex at Hove, which was also their first outing in national colours since the end of their seismic Test tour of South Africa in April.The Australia squad was forced to lie low for a few months after returning home from South Africa, as the ball-tampering scandal erupted around them, but Finch said that he could feel an eagerness to get stuck in in the new-look squad, adding that “there’s only so many laps of ovals you can run before you start to go crazy”.Australia ready to ‘cop some banter’

Australia’s match against Sussex on Thursday was their first encounter with English crowds since the ball-tampering scandal broke, and Finch admitted that their jibes were something that the team would have to take in its stride as the tour progressed.
“I think anytime you are touring you’re going to cop some great banter,” he said. “The chants and the songs and the stick that they give us in all in good fun, but you’re going to keep copping it if you don’t interact with them, if you don’t get on board with them and have some fun. It’s a part of playing over here, you expect that, and it’s all in good jest most of the time.”

“There’s a lot of excitement around, any time you bring young guys into the squad for their first or second tour, it brings a lot of energy around the group,” Finch said. “A lot of the guys have had time off over the last couple of months, the guys who weren’t in the IPL, so it’s a great chance to get stuck into cricket.”Australia will begin next week’s contest as rank outsiders against England’s No.1-ranked ODI team, but Finch sees the absence of so many first-choice candidates for next year’s World Cup squad as an opportunity for some new faces to stake a claim. In so doing, they may also lift Australia’s standards in a format in which they have lost each of their last three bilateral series, against New Zealand, India and England, as well as suffering an early elimination in the Champions Trophy.”There’s a few guys here that it’s the first time I’ve toured with,” he added, “and I’ve been around a little while now. But our one-day cricket hadn’t been that great over the last 18 months to two years, so who knows, if we give these young guys a few opportunities, they can do some wonderful things. There are some guys in this squad who are going to be great players.”Finch is Australia’s vice-captain on this tour, and will also captain the T20 team in the absence of David Warner, but he didn’t envisage a sea-change to the role that he has played for Ausralia since cementing his spot in the limited-overs team five years ago.Aaron Finch plays into the leg side•Getty Images

“Being vice-captain you lead by example on and off the field, but I think that, being an opening batter, you have the opportunity to set the tone for the team, so that’s not much of a change,” he said. “But with a young group, there’s not a lot of experience, so it’s about helping them as much as I can, along with Tim [Paine], Glenn Maxwell and other guys who’ve been around for a time.”The tour is also Justin Langer’s first as Australia coach, and Finch admitted that, while Langer’s first press conference had been full of smiles and jokes as he set about reframing the debate over sledging, Finch admitted that the new boss had a steely side that few players would want to encounter.”When we got to Brisbane for our training camp. it was the first time that JL had had a chance to address us all together,” said Finch. “He just laid down what he expected of the Australian cricket team, and how he sees the team going forward. There wasn’t anything that you wouldn’t expect a new coach to do.”But you don’t want to be in his glare!” Finch added. “I’ve been there before, not on this tour, but in the past. There were some easy comments you could make to him when he was coach of Western Australia. It was easy to wind him up.”Finch played most of his Australia career to date under the gaze of Darren Lehmann, who resigned from his post on the eve of the Johannesburg Test in March. “They are both great coaches in their own right. We’ve had a lot of success with [Darren] as an Australian coach, and JL I’ve no doubt will have a lot of success. With Perth, he’s done some wonderful things. And at the end of the day, whoever is coach of the side has the opportunity to mould the culture the way they want it.”

ESPNcricinfo staff08-May-2018Mark Wood has been released by Chennai Super Kings after playing just one match in this season’s IPL, and will return to Durham to prepare for the Test series against Pakistan, which gets underway at Lord’s on May 24.Wood, who was picked up by CSK for GBP166,000 in the IPL auction, made his debut against Mumbai Indians in this year’s tournament opener at the Wankhede Stadium, but didn’t pick up a wicket in conceding 49 runs.He is now set to be made available to Durham in their Specsavers County Championship match against Derbyshire this week, as he looks to cement the Test place that he reclaimed during the recent tour of New Zealand.”The decision has been made for me to return home to England to prepare for the English summer,” Wood wrote in a post on Instagram. “Having worked so hard to get back into the test team, and because I’m not currently not in the CSK side, I am coming home to play for Durham to hopefully put my name in the hat for Test match selection.”Ben Stokes, who is playing for Rajasthan Royals, and the Bangalore Royal Challengers duo of Chris Woakes and Moeen Ali are also set to return to England in the coming days to prepare for the Pakistan Test series.

The bowler revealed his disappointment at Yorkshire’s decision to drop him during the Royal London Cup and will talk to other counties with his deal expiring this year

Melinda Farrell15-Jun-20181:16

England looking for a complete performance – Plunkett

Liam Plunkett has revealed his disappointment at Yorkshire’s decision to drop him during the Royal London Cup, shortly after his return from the IPL, and indicated he is open to moving to another county when his current deal expires. The comments follow on from David Willey’s revelation that Yorkshire threatened to tear up his contract when he signed with the Chennai Super Kings.Plunkett, in the final year of his county contract, made seven IPL appearances for Delhi Daredevils but following his return from India he told he was dropped by Yorkshire’s director of cricket, Martyn Moxon, for the 50-over fixture against Northamptonshire after he took 1 for 76 from eight overs against Lancashire earlier this month. Speaking ahead of England’s second ODI against Australia in Cardiff, Plunkett said he disagreed with Yorkshire’s assessment that he was “undercooked”.”Yes, I was disappointed,” Plunkett said. “I’d played the previous games and felt I went all right. We won the previous game, so I felt in a good place – but I had one bad performance, and if they want to drop me on that … They said I wasn’t ready, that I looked undercooked.”In what might seem an unusual sequence of events, days after being dropped for a domestic fixture Plunkett was selected in England’s playing XI to face Scotland in the same format. Yorkshire and then-coach Jason Gillespie were given credit for helping Plunkett resurrect his international career after leaving Durham in 2012, but he now appears set to move on.”I just felt I was getting back into it,” Plunkett said. “That was the decision they took … I feel I was coming into a good place and I feel I can help win games for Yorkshire so obviously I was disappointed and I let them know on that.”It’s my last year and I went in for a chat with Martyn Moxon, and obviously as you get a little bit older you maybe think about your base salary coming down and you’re playing for incentives and stuff but I didn’t really get offered anything. They just said we’ll look into it in the next month or so but it gives me a right to speak to other counties and it gives me that option and I’m looking to do that.”Plunkett, along with the rest of the England attack, was hammered by Scotland’s batsmen at The Grange, where he took 2 for 85, but after making changes to his run up he felt his rhythm return at The Oval.”I think in the IPL I came a little bit wider and tried to angle the ball in a little bit and skid it on to the batters,” he said. “But I think my strength is to be on top of the ball, use my bounce and bowl that hard length. I think when I came in I was trying to angle it in a little bit and I was bowling a few wides down the leg side.Liam Plunkett could be leaving Yorkshire when his contract expires•Getty Images

“I played against Lancs and struggled coming off it. So I just looked at a bit of video footage and in the last couple of games – especially the last game – I felt a lot better, I felt my timing came back and my lengths were getting better.”Even if Plunkett bowls well for the rest of the summer, he will relinquish his place in the ODI side for at least two of England’s matches in Sri Lanka in October, when he will marry his partner, Emeleah Erb. The couple set the wedding date before England’s tour dates were finalised.”We planned because originally it was a Test series that was there and I didn’t think I’d be around the Test squad,” Plunkett said. “It’s been eleven years, it’s been long enough so I thought I’d better get married.”We did look at schedules and the best time to do it. There were flights booked from America and a lot of guests coming over and everything was booked, so it was so hard to change it then.”I’m really excited to get married but I am going to miss part of that series. All I can do is try and do well for England this summer and be a part of that team and [make them] think well, he might miss a few games, can we get him for the rest of that Sri Lanka series and keep me in mind going forward.””I’m so excited and can’t wait for the day that I’m not going to change and ruin everything for her.”

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola refuses to believe Manchester United will be easy opponents in Sunday's derby at the Etihad Stadium.

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• Guardiola not underestimating United
• 'They have the biggest quality'
• Red Devils reeling after defeat by Fulham

• (C)Getty Images
  

  WHAT HAPPENED?

  United are four places and 15 points behind City in the Premier League and sunk to a disheartening home defeat by Fulham last week. They also are missing key players including Rasmus Hojlund, Luke Shaw, Lisandro Martinez and Harry Maguire. However, the Catalan pointed out that United had previously been unbeaten in the new year and insisted he was expecting City's rivals to be a threat.

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• WHAT GUARDIOLA SAID

  "They went to Luton and beat them, Wolves and beat them, Aston Villa to go and win a few weeks ago. They have the biggest quality," Guardiola told a press conference. "From one action they create something special with set pieces, transitions. Always have been demanding, when they play good, they will win. In 2024 they lost just one game, the consistency is there. [We will] prepare tactically, what we have to do to get three points."

• Getty
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  New United minority shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe has vowed to 'knock City and Liverpool off their perch' and targeted another league title within the next three years. Guardiola refused to comment on Ratcliffe's ambitions but acknowledged how tough it has been for United to reassert themselves at the top since Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement in 2013. "Big clubs, you have to win. Not easy for United, an incredible period with Sir Alex. It's not easy," Guardiola added. "The big clubs used to have more patience, now there is a lot of pressure. I don't know the reason why, I'm not there."

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• DID YOU KNOW?

  Guardiola has won 11 of his 20 Manchester derbies, drawing twice and losing seven times, giving him the best record of any City manager against United. He has also turned the Cityzens into the dominant force in English football.

Notes from India’s training session in Manchester

Nagraj Gollapudi in Manchester01-Jul-20181:09

Watch – Kohli’s bat makes the noise

India arrived at Old Trafford early in the morning on a sunny Sunday in Manchester, for their first competitive training session two days out from the first of the three Twenty20s against England. Training sessions might never be the perfect lens to zoom in on who might make the XI or what the players and team think tank have in mind, but it offers glimpses all the same. Here are some happenings from India’s training session.Kohli’s bat makes a noise
When a batsman is hitting the ball fluently, there are a few things that stand out. His stance is usually upright, he maintains his shape as he strikes the ball, and, then, there is the sound his bat makes when he hits the leather. Virat Kohli might not have made too many runs in the short jaunt to Dublin, but today he struck the ball with intent. The noise resounded in the empty stadium. To the untrained eye, Kohli’ stance seems more upright compared to when he played in England last year during the Champions Trophy. There seemed to be just one instance where Kohli possibly moved a bit slowly today: facing a throwdown from India’s batting coach Sanjay Bangar, he stayed in his crease, trying to tap a length ball, and it took the bottom edge to hit the base of his stumps. Kohli moaned “aah”, disappointed at his mistake.Dhawan boxed by Bhuvi
“Cannon” thundered Ravi Shastri, India’s head coach, as Shikhar Dhawan was beaten by the pace of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and the ball hit him where it matters the most. Done with the local net bowlers, Dhawan had requested Bhuvneshwar to have a bowl at him. That ball aside, though, Dhawan remain unruffled and handled both pace and spin with firm hands and good technique – especially against the short ball.Later, he faced fast volleys, fired at him from a short distance with a tennis racquet by India’s fielding coach R Sridhar. An interesting way to practise playing the pull as well as leaving real fast balls that climb to the throat.Raina fiddles with bats and technique
Suresh Raina has always been a bat lover. He carries several bats in his kit bag. During the second T20 against Ireland, MS Dhoni ran with Raina’s bag, loaded with bats, as the left-hander kept replacing one every over. Today Raina walked in with two bats to take throwdowns, and it came in handy. Having dug out a a fuller-length delivery near his toes, Raina let out a sigh as he looked at the bottom of the bat; he seemed to have cracked it.Reacting to the news, Dhoni, in a matter-of-fact tone, muttered that now Raina could get three or four more new bats. For the moment, though, Raina has a bigger concern: his technique against the ball that comes to his hips. He struggled against the shorter ball in the Ireland T20 series, and even today, against a ball with spongy bounce, he played such deliveries in ungainly fashion. Bangar suggested to Raina that he unlock his back elbow while playing his shot to such balls, which would allow him to play the stroke freely instead of being cramped. Raina might be one of the most experienced players in the India squad, but he still remains a work in progress.PS: Having watched that nets session, here’s our prediction for India’s XI two days out from the match – Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Umesh Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal

ScorecardUntil he turned up in Cardiff last week to be introduced as a Glamorgan player, Usman Khawaja’s knowledge of Wales did not extend much beyond the sitcom Gavin and Stacey. It has become one of his favourite TV shows, so much so that top of the list of places he wants to see while in the principality is not Cardiff Castle or the Snowdonia National Park but Barry Island.It is quite likely Wales will take to him, too, after he marked his Glamorgan debut with a century that has given them a chance of achieving their first Championship win at Edgbaston since 1988, when the sometime England fast bowler Greg Thomas took six wickets and Warwickshire, needing 194 to win on the final afternoon, were bowled out five runs short.In doing so Khawaja emulated his compatriot, Shaun Marsh, whose place in the side he has taken, who also made a hundred on his county debut in April. They will play together in the Vitality T20 Blast later in the summer.For now, Marsh is preparing for Australia’s ODI joust with England, which begins on Wednesday. It was Marsh’s call-up that led Glamorgan to ask Khawaja if he wouldn’t mind playing in two or three Championship matches ahead of the T20, an arrangement he is more than happy with, given there is an Ashes tour looming in 2019.Not that he is unfamiliar with English conditions. Indeed, he has made centuries here before, two for Derbyshire – Glamorgan’s opponents in Swansea next week – and one for Lancashire. But he does not have one in a Test match in England, which is another thing on his to-do list following his 171 against Joe Root’s hapless boys at Sydney in January.His 125 here, spanning almost three-and-a-half hours on a slow, used pitch now effectively four days old, ensured that the good work of openers Nick Selman and Jack Murphy against the new ball on the second evening was not wasted, even after Selman had clipped Keith Barker straight to short midwicket in only the fifth over of the morning.It might have been. Murphy added only eight to his overnight score and both Connor Brown and Owen Morgan went cheaply but Khawaja found an ally at last in Chris Cooke, his captain in this game in the absence of an injured Michael Hogan. They shared a partnership of 115 that ended with his own dismissal, lbw playing back to Jeetan Patel, whose offspin to that point he had countered pretty well.There has not been much turn so far and Josh Poysden, who did so well to take five wickets in the first innings, was wicketless this time. Yet it is a surface that needs to be treated with respect, nonetheless, one on which a batsman can become tentative. Not so Khawaja, who paced his innings evenly, scoring his first fifty off 58 balls with seven fours, his second off 63 with another seven.Once he had gone and Cooke followed, gloving a catch as he tried to withdraw the bat against the impressive 18-year-old quick Henry Brookes, the innings did fall away yet Warwickshire, needing precisely 100 more runs than were required 30 years ago, were left with a tall task to extend their winning run and those padded up in the dressing room will have been pleased to see Will Rhodes and Dom Sibley negotiate 13 overs to stumps unscathed.

Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard has now hailed one of his Gunners teammates for "always" working hard behind-the-scenes.

Latest Arsenal news

Mikel Arteta's men have enjoyed a solid start to the new Premier League season and remain unbeaten following their latest triumph – a 1-0 win away to struggling Everton on Sunday.

Leandro Trossard's strike with just 20 minutes remaining ensures that Arteta and co keep pace with Pep Guardiola's imperious Man City at the top of the table.

Arsenal have tasted victory in four out of their opening five top flight matches, with Fulham being the only side to get a result against them so far. The north Londoners had to dig deep on Merseyside but yet again displayed real grit to come away with all three points.

Arteta, commenting after Arsenal ended their hoodoo of six years without an away win at Everton, praised his side's display.

“Six years without a win here is a long time, so we had to learn some lessons, we had to be better." said Arteta.

"I am delighted for the win but especially the way we won it, the way we played, how dominant we were, the presence that we showed on the pitch. We fully deserved to win the game.

“I think we had many other openings to put the ball in the last line and to put somebody in the box and finalise. Credit to Everton, they defended the box extremely well, and they had some big, big blocks when we opened them up. It’s great to have other ways to score goals, it gives you different resources and be more unpredictable."

In and around the contest, there were question marks as to why goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale was dropped in favour of summer signing David Raya.

The 25-year-old hadn't set a foot wrong before their trip up north, with Arteta even having to defend his decision to the media.

It appears the contest for Arsenal's number one spot is now hotting up, but club captain Odegaard has moved to defend Ramsdale.

Indeed, the Norway international insists he is a player of real quality and is "always" working behind-the-scenes.

"I think he will just keep working hard, like he is always doing," Odegaard said on Ramsdale (via The Standard).

"Today he was there supporting us, cheering for us, helping us. He is a great character and he showed a very good response today by backing the team. It was excellent from him.

"We have two good goalkeepers and big competition. They have different qualities. They are both so good on the ball and in goal as well. So, we are lucky to have two such good goalkeepers and we will see who plays."

How good is Aaron Ramsdale?

Arsenal signed Ramsdale on a long-term deal from Sheffield United in the summer of 2021, for a fee which could rise to £30m including add-ons.

The Englishman has gone on to make 83 appearances in all competitions, all while performing at a high enough level to earn multiple England caps.

The presence of Raya could motivate him to play even better as he attempts to keep his spot as Arsenal's go-to shot-stopper.

Glamorgan’s batting has troubled them all season and Josh Poysden’s career-best ensured there would be no let up

ECB Reporters Network09-Jun-2018
ScorecardA career-best five for 29 from Warwickshire leg-spinner Josh Poysden continued Glamorgan’s batting struggles on the opening day of their Specsavers County Championship match at Edgbaston.The Welsh county chose to bat, aiming to at least double their haul of just three batting points collected from the first four games.But they added just one more as, on a slow pitch, they were bowled out for 220 after Poysden, playing his first championship game of the season, dismantled the lower order.Poysden said: “It has been a really frustrating time for me, not being in the team at the start of this year and for most of last year. I didn’t play as much as I wanted to, especially in the championship last year, and with us getting relegated it hurt not to be able to contribute.”But I went away in the winter and worked hard with Stuart MacGill again and then, after I came back, have worked hard with the coaches here at Edgbaston.”Australia Test star Usman Khawaja made just four on his debut and, though David Lloyd, Owen Morgan and Chris Cooke all got decent starts, no-one built the big innings required.The total looks well under par, although Glamorgan fought back well in the last session, removing both Warwickshire openers to leave the home side on 24 for 2 at the close.After Chris Cooke, captaining Glamorgan for the first time, won the toss, young openers Nick Selman and Jack Murphy added 44 in 14 overs. They were parted by Henry Brookes when Murphy was adjudged lbw by Indian umpire Yeshwant Barde, officiating in the first match of his exchange trip.Connor Brown then edged Chris Wright behind and Selman (30, 74 balls, four fours) bat-padded Jeetan Patel to short leg.Khawaja’s uncomfortable, 47-minute stay was ended by a Keith Barker inswinger and Barker should have immediately also dismissed Cooke, who was dropped on nought by Dominic Sibley at second slip. The captain survived to add 57 in 15 overs with Morgan before misreading Poysden’s first ball and falling lbw.Poysden struck again in each of his first two overs after tea when Morgan was lbw and Andrew Salter clipped to short mid-wicket.Lloyd, having batted forcefully to pass 2,000 first-class runs in his 50th match, then departed deeply unimpressed with the decision that he had edged a ball from Patel on to pad before Tim Ambrose reached forward to catch it.Ruaidhri Smith became the fifth lbw casualty when he missed a sweep at Poysden who bowled Lukas Carey first ball to complete his five-for.Glamorgan hit back hard when the home side replied as Carey rattled Will Rhodes’ stumps with the first ball of the innings and Timm Van der Gugten castled Sibley with the 56th.Both sides are depleted in the seam-bowling department with Warwickshire’s Olly Stone and Ryan Sidebottom ruled out by side strains and Glamorgan missing captain Michael Hogan and Marchant de Lange due to hamstring injuries.