Month: October 2019

“The strike follows increasing criticism from players that the Bangladesh Cricket Board is not sharing its wealth. ©AFP” /> Dhaka (AFP) – Cricket’s global players’ representative group has lent its support to Bangladesh players in their unprecedented strike over pay and benefits. The walk-off began on Monday and includes several members of the national squad, casting doubt on Bangladesh’s tour of India due to start in early November. The Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations praised the players “for taking a stand together in order to secure fair conditions,” the body’s…

“Saber Hossain Chowdhury with the Bangladesh Cricket Board logo when he was president of the body in 2000. ©AFP” /> Dhaka (AFP) – A former Bangladesh cricket chief said Tuesday that match fixing was widespread in the country, deepening a crisis sparked by a strike by top players over wages. Former Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Saber Hossain Chowdhury, a British-educated lawyer, businessman and now member of parliament, said corruption was deep-rooted at the governing body. “@BCBtigers is only national sporting body in the world that promotes institutionalised #matchfixing, #corruption,”…

“Gary Kirsten missed out on the England coaching job. ©AFP” /> London (AFP) – Gary Kirsten says family circumstances could have played a role in his failure to beat Chris Silverwood in the race to become England’s new cricket coach. Silverwood was hired as Trevor Bayliss’ successor earlier this month and will lead England for the first time on their forthcoming tour of New Zealand. Kirsten was believed to be in strong contention for the job before Silverwood pipped him. His successful stints in charge of India and his native…

“Pakistan had reached number one in the Twenty20 rankings under Sarfaraz, winning 11 series along the way. ©AFP” /> Lahore (Pakistan) (AFP) – Pakistan sacked Sarfaraz Ahmed from his post as Twenty20 and Test skipper on Friday, a week after he led the side to a shocking 3-0 home defeat against an inexperienced Sri Lanka. The showdown in Lahore gave the visitors their first Twenty20 series win against Pakistan in seven attempts while missing 10 of their top players — including regular T20 skipper Lasith Malinga, who refused to tour…

“England’s Jos Buttler runs out New Zealand’s Martin Guptill to win 2019 Cricket World Cup final following a Super Over. ©AFP” /> London (AFP) – Cricket chiefs have announced changes to the Super Over regulations, ending the use of boundary countback to decide knockout games following England’s victory over New Zealand in the men’s World Cup final.   England won the World Cup for the first time in July after an unprecedented finish to the final at Lord’s.The hosts triumphed by virtue of hitting more boundaries after the scores were…

“UAE’s Mohammed Naveed in action at the 2015 World Cup. ©AFP” /> Dubai (AFP) – United Arab Emirates captain Mohammed Naveed was on Wednesday charged with corruption ahead of the World Twenty 20 qualifiers and admitted: “I have let everybody down”. Naveed was one of three UAE cricketers charged by the International Cricket Council (ICC). Batsman Shaiman Anwar and right-arm pace bowler Qadeer Ahmed have also been charged by the ICC, the three players facing a total of 12 counts of breaching the governing body’s anti-corruption rules. All three have…

“Shane Watson said both his Twitter and Instagram pages had been hacked. ©AFP” /> Sydney (AFP) – Australian cricketer Shane Watson has apologised to fans after his social media accounts were flooded with “illicit” photographs of half-naked women and racist comments, seemingly the work of hackers. The all-rounder, who plays for Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League, said in social media posts late Tuesday that both his Twitter and Instagram pages had been hacked in recent days. Screenshots published by British tabloid The Sun showed revealing images of…

“England captain Eoin Morgan carries the World Cup trophy. ©AFP” /> London (AFP) – England’s new head coach Chris Silverwood says Eoin Morgan and James Anderson have earned the right to decide when to retire from the international stage. Anderson missed the majority of the recent Ashes series against Australia because of a calf injury. The 37-year-old bowler will still be sidelined for England’s tour of New Zealand next month in Silverwood’s first assignment since being promoted from bowling coach to succeed Trevor Bayliss. But in a bid to prove…

PHILIPSBURG/ ST. MAARTEN: Another team has been bought for the Maq Cricket59 tournament that is taking place in the St. Maarten in early November. Businessman Aqeel Ahmed Khan has decided to invest in the Simpson Bay Pelican team as he wants to help build cricket on the Island. Khan is an investor coming all the way from South Africa. He brings a wealth of experience in the business and management field as he has investments not only in South Africa but China as well. Hailing from Durban in South Africa,…