All posts by csb10.top

Gary Ballance, the Yorkshire batter and former team-mate of Azeem Rafiq, has admitted that he was the player whose use of the slur “P**i” was deemed to be “banter” in a report into allegations of institutional racism at the club.In a lengthy and emotional statement issued by Yorkshire on behalf of the player, Ballance said that he “deeply regretted” some of the language he had used in the past, but doubled down on the report’s findings, insisting that Rafiq had been his “closest friend and supporter in cricket”, and adding that he had once invited the player and his bowling coach to stay at his family home in Zimbabwe.The report, which was compiled by a five-person panel in the wake of an investigation into Rafiq’s allegations, was finally passed onto the ECB last week, and included the detail, subsequently reported by ESPNcricinfo, that “P**i” was an equivalent term to “Zimbo”, the nickname that Rafiq was understood to have used for Ballance.”It has been reported that I used a racial slur and, as I told the independent enquiry, I accept that I did so and I regret doing so,” Ballance said. “To be clear – I deeply regret some of the language I used in my younger years.”Ballance, who played 23 Tests for England between 2014 and 2017, claimed that he and Rafiq had “supported each other greatly” through the highs and lows of their respective careers, adding that “I was there for him” when Rafiq was released from his original contract with Yorkshire in 2014, shortly after the tragic death of his infant son – a chain of events that Rafiq said, in an interview with ESPNcricinfo last year, had caused him to “lose faith in humanity”.”On the pitch we supported each other greatly,” Ballance said. “We both captained Yorkshire at various times and we backed each other when we filled these roles.”When he was first released by Yorkshire I was there for him during that tough time and I was delighted when he earned a new contract and a second spell with the club. He was very pleased for me when I was selected for England and I was delighted to receive his supportive messages during my time with England.Related

• Azeem Rafiq: 'Before we move forward, the game needs to listen to a lot of people who have suffered'

• Yorkshire chairman Roger Hutton resigns in racism probe fallout, bemoans ECB 'reluctance to act' earlier

• Michael Vaughan admits involvement in Rafiq report, denies racist comments

• Yorkshire suspended by ECB from hosting international cricket

• Headingley loses Emerald as title sponsor as Yorkshire racism crisis deepens

“Because we were such good friends and spent a lot of time together drinking and on nights out we both said things privately to each other which were not acceptable,” he added.”I do not wish to discredit Rafa by repeating the words and statements that he made about me and others but I have to be clear that this was a situation where best friends said offensive things to each other which, outside of that context, would be considered wholly inappropriate.”I regret that these exchanges took place but at no time did I believe or understand that it had caused Rafa distress. If I had believed that then I would have stopped immediately. He was my best mate in cricket and I cared deeply for him. To my knowledge, it has never been alleged that I reduced Rafa to tears.”On Thursday, Rafiq posted on Twitter, saying that the issue was bigger than “the words of certain individuals”. In a separate interview with the Daily Telegraph, Mesba Ahmed – one of three British Asians on the panel – insisted that he stood by the report’s findings, adding that the issue would become “crystal clear” if Yorkshire could agree to its full publication.Wednesday’s developments came on a dramatic day for Yorkshire cricket, following the severing of ties of two of the club’s foremost sponsors, Emerald and Yorkshire Tea, and with the anticipation of further awkward revelations in the coming weeks, when Rafiq himself is expected to give evidence at a DCMS committee hearing, along with the club chairman Roger Hutton, and two senior executives in Mark Arthur and Martyn Moxon.

The PSL has signed a two-year broadcast deal worth USD 24 million with local sports channels A Sports and PTV Sports.The deal, according to the PCB, represents a 50% increase on the last cycle. That deal was worth USD 36 million over three years, but including international rights as well. This time round, the international broadcast rights for the league were sold separately; the 50% increase represents that difference as well as a weakening rupee against the dollar.In any case, the PCB will be understandably pleased with the result, not least because three local channels were among the leading bids, an upturn in what had for some time looked like a flagging local broadcast scene: the winners of the bid – a consortium of ARY which owns A Sports and the state-owned PTV – and the second-highest bidders, Geo Sports.Related

• PSL franchises accept PCB's offer of new financial model

• PCB seals three-year deal with Sky Sports to broadcast Pakistan matches and PSL

The deal also comes only a couple of months after the PCB and PSL franchises finally agreed on a new financial model. That resolution had been a long time coming and indeed, at various moments, did not look like it would be reached at all, representing an existential threat to the league itself.Incidentally, the owners of A Sports – the ARY group – also own Karachi Kings, one of the six PSL franchises.The deal covers the 2022 and 2023 seasons, respectively the seventh and eighth editions of the league.”The extraordinary interest and increase in the TV broadcast rights of the HBL Pakistan Super League underscores how popular the tournament has become despite being launched just six years ago,” PCB’s acting CEO Salman Naseer said.”I want to thank the consortium of ARY and PTV for valuing the biggest product of Pakistan cricket, which has become a source of inspiration for thousands of young children to take up the sport.”Internationally, the PSL has a three-season deal with broadcasters in the UK, North America, New Zealand, South Africa and the Caribbean.

Blistering knocks from Katene Clarke and Mitchell Santner powered Northern Districts to their highest total of the season, 217, which proved too far beyond Canterbury’s reach in the final of the men’s Super Smash in Hamilton.Opening the batting, Clarke almost single-handedly drove Northern Districts’ early momentum, rushing to 40 off 15 balls to lift them to a powerplay score of 57 for 2. That became 77 for 3 when Colin de Grandhomme fell off the last ball of the eighth over.Santner entered the scene at this point, and the fourth-wicket pair proceeded to add 50 in just 26 balls before Clarke departed in the 14th over for 71 off 34. He had hit eight fours and four sixes.Santner continued to pummel the Canterbury bowling, as Northern Districts pillaged 90 runs from their last seven overs. The allrounder eventually finished unbeaten on 92 off 40 balls, having hit four fours and nine sixes.Fast bowler Henry Shipley provided Canterbury their only bright spark with the ball, picking up 2 for 30 to finish the tournament as its top wicket-taker with 18 at an average of 14.11 and an economy rate of 7.25.Canterbury’s chase never really got to grips with the required rate, as Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi and Joe Walker made regular incisions. Their top scorer was their No. 9 Matt Henry, who hit 44 off 22 balls, but by the time he got going the result was a foregone conclusion. Northern Districts eventually triumphed by 56 runs, bowling out their opponents with seven balls remaining.

Alex Carey had already left his mark on this tour before today. Unfortunately, it was for falling into the hotel swimming pool which went viral on social media courtesy of his captain recording it and giving millions a good laugh.It would be far too easy to therefore make reference to finding out whether he can sink or swim in Test cricket or whether he had been treading water since his debut at the start of the Ashes. So let’s just leave it to the man himself before getting to the serious business.”I’ve always wanted to have signs in the crowd to have my name on them but probably didn’t expect it would be about falling in a pool,” he said. “I still lay there at night time, can’t really describe happened.”While his slip is unlikely to leave him for a while it was a timely day to also be remembered for what really matters: his performances in the middle. He took Australia into a surely impregnable position only to fall seven runs short of a maiden century in the closing moments when he missed a sweep against the part-timers of Babar Azam.”I’m always disappointed when I get out. So close but unfortunately that’s the way it goes,” he said. “Thought I was pretty disciplined and patient throughout the day. To be honest I saw an opportunity to get one over cow [corner]. My head will probably hit the pillow tonight and have a few other shots go through.”These remain early days in a Test career that began rather hastily in early December (thrown in the deep end, perhaps) following the shock resignation of Tim Paine shortly before the Ashes. The succession planning was well in place, and it was little surprise when Carey assumed the position, but his handful of matches had not been without a few uneasy moments.It has been his glovework that has raised more questions after dropped catches against England and another couple put down in the opening Test in Rawalpindi. That side of his game will get a thorough working over in the next three days on a pitch where the ball is turning and uneven bounce could come into play. With Nathan Lyon joined by Mitchell Swepson there will be a lot of time spent up to the stumps. But he will take the gloves having contributed to the match as he carried Australia’s innings through the final session and beyond 500.He had made a maiden Test fifty against England in Adelaide and his slightly underwhelming batting returns in the Ashes needed a few asterisks by them: he offered to open in place of the injured David Warner for the small chase at the Gabba, only to edge behind with four runs needed, and gave his wicket for the cause in the second innings at the SCG the ball before Pat Cummins declared. However, coupled with only passing fifty once in four games for South Australia in the Sheffield Shield, it had left him a little thin on runs.”Guess it was a little bit of reward for some hard work,” he said. “I have full trust in my ability, the summer was really enjoyable…I went away from there with some learnings and take outs. I feel like over the last couple of years I’ve been pretty consistent in red-ball cricket, the last dozen games in first-class haven’t been my strongest but still feel really good out in the middle.”While Australia were not in trouble when he arrived at the crease, they were certainly at risk of falling short of the type of total they wanted. Sajid Khan had trapped Travis Head lbw then produced a superb delivery to end Usman Khawaja’s marathon innings. At 360 for 6 there was even a chance for Pakistan to keep Australia under 400 which would not have applied the scoreboard pressure Cummins wanted.It was not an overly fluent display from Carey – he never flicked the switch into one-day mode – on a surface where timing has become harder work especially against the older ball. But a few strokes did stand out, notably a straight drive followed by a cover drive against Shaheen Shah Afridi with the third new ball and his brace of straight sixes off Sajid. When he lofts spinners (or quick bowlers) down the ground, he has as smooth a swing of the bat as any player while he also swept well, until his dismissal at least, in what is just the second of potentially nine subcontinental Tests over the next 12 months.”Having the ability to sweep spin is probably going to be handy,” he said. “I do that in Australia on reasonably flat wickets and I’ll continue to do that. I probably looked at Usman’s innings to be honest and the way he played was fantastic. He has one gear, basically, throughout and sticks to that.”I stuck to my patience, my dismissal was probably otherwise, but when I came back into the rooms there were eight other blokes saying they would have played the same shot. I want to keep improving my own game but guess it’s a little step in the right direction.”Unlike the one he took into the swimming pool.

Some inspired seam bowling from Western Australia’s Matthew Kelly and Joel Paris produced a stunning New South Wales batting collapse at Bankstown Oval to turn a near-certain draw into a possible Sheffield Shield win for the visitors.With both teams vying for a spot in the final, the middle-session on day three of this rain-affected penultimate-round fixture may prove to be pivotal in the course of the season.Kelly picked up wickets in three successive overs leaving the home side limping their way to tea at 5 for 55, as a hitherto benign pitch seemingly turned into a minefield.Kelly’s swing firstly undid Blues’ skipper Kurtis Patterson without playing a shot before Jack Edwards and Hayden Kerr were also sent packing.At the other end Paris started the rot by picking up the crucial wicket of opener Daniel Hughes caught at second slip.Jason Sangha’s lone knock kept the innings together with the 22-year-old digging in to end the day unbeaten on 66.An injured Moises Henriques, who came in at No. 8, led a brief revival only to tickle a catch down the leg side off the bowling of rookie spinner Corey Rocchiccioli on 23.Chris Tremain swiped three sixes late in the day to reach 41 not out, and lift the home side closer to the follow-on mark of 207 in an unbroken stand of 67 with SanghaThe two sides are among five states with five wins apiece vying for a spot in the March 31 season decider.After the entire day two was lost due to rain, Western Australia resumed at 3 for 231 and continued on comfortably enough before closing their innings half an hour after lunch.Hilton Cartwright looked set for a ton but his watchful 209-ball innings ended on 81 when he was caught hooking a Tremain delivery while seeking to up the scoring rate.Tremain’s second wicket came a day and a half after his first with day two lost due to ongoing showers.Cameron Bancroft had top-scored for WA with 117, before he was dismissed by Tremain late on Tuesday.The hard-hitting D’Arcy Short was the only Western Australia batter who failed to reach double figures when he was caught and bowled by Kerr for 1.Aaron Hardie remained unbeaten on 37, while allrounder Edwards was the pick of the Blues’ attack returning 3 for 58 off 21 overs.

After a month of Australia making Pakistan work for every run, wicket and win, here was the exception to the rule. In a rare lacklustre performance, Australia found themselves blown away by a dominant performance as they were crushed by nine wickets to seal a 2-1 series win.It came courtesy of a fiery fast bowling performance, and an unbeaten 190-run partnership between Babar Azam and Imam-ul-Haq. Pakistan had put Australia in to bat, skittling them out inside 42 overs for 210 before making light work of that target on a featherbed of a surface, with Imam and Babar making an unexperienced Australian bowling attack look particularly toothless. An undefeated 105 by Babar, his second consecutive hundred, and an unbeaten 89 from Imam helped Pakistan canter to a nine-wicket win with 73 balls to spare.Australia knew it was coming, and yet there seemed no way to stop it. A sensational – and yet by now, almost predictable – first over from Shaheen Shah Afridi got rid of Travis Head, dealing Australia a blow that left them groggy throughout the innings, and Haris Rauf removed Aaron Finch before Australia were off the mark.Magicians tend not to perform their tricks too often, but repetition doesn’t make Afridi any less inscrutable. It was a full toss that did for Head first up, but with the moving in the air, there was little the batter could do to prevent it crashing into off stump.Finch has struggled this series, and it showed in the way he tried to tackle Rauf, playing listlessly across the line and finding himself trapped plumb in front. Australia were yet to put a run on the board, and the discipline of Pakistan’s pace bowlers meant they couldn’t get off to the brisk start that characterised their first two innings. Rauf coaxed an edge out of Marnus Labuschagne early, and the normally fluid Ben McDermott got bogged down, managing just 14 in his first 34 balls.Australia looked to be rebuilding with a 53-run stand, but Zahid Mahmood drew a leading edge from Marcus Stoinis as Imam took a sharp catch, before Mohammad Wasim ended McDermott’s innings of attrition. A handy rearguard from Alex Carey and Cameron Green followed, with the batters capitalising on a drop in intensity from the hosts. The field spread out and easy singles are available, and with the frontline fast bowlers out of the attack, Australia were steadily rebuilding as they pushed towards a competitive total. Carey brought up a 55-ball half century two balls after a glorious six over cover drive off Wasim, and for the first time, Pakistan were on the back foot.Babar Azam punches down the ground•PCB

That ended soon after, though, when a bit of reverse swing did for Green as he heaved wildly across the line. It opened the floodgates, and four wickets fell for 18 runs as Rauf and Afridi returned to chip in. But in an entertaining six-over passage of play, Sean Abbott threw caution to the wind, swinging for the fences just about every delivery, riding his luck and further antagonising an increasingly irate Afridi. He managed the strike expertly; Adam Zampa never even got off the mark through the partnership, and by the time he chipped one to short third off Rauf, he’d scored a 40-ball 49. With the target set at 211, Abbott had given himself and his fellow bowlers something to work with.But two days out from a match that saw 348 prove inadequate, any hope Australia harboured of a series win hinged on early wickets, and several of them. It was in that department where Australia’s absences were really felt tonight. Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Ellis and Abbott simply don’t possess the qualities of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, and especially Mitchell Starc to blast out an opposition, not least a top order as settled as Pakistan’s is right now.Fakhar Zaman fell for a brisk 17, but with the asking rate hovering around four, the match situation was primed for the more sedate and assured Babar and Imam. Babar being put down at short midwicket on 1 felt like a significant moment in the game, but Australia’s sloppiness in the early overs meant it didn’t come as much of a surprise. A couple of boundaries in the ninth over composed the Pakistan captain, and once that partnership established a foothold, any Australian optimism quickly fizzled out.What followed was a cavalcade of class from the two highest runscorers this series. They appeared to rotate the strike and find the boundaries at will against spin and seam alike. Imam skipped down the wicket to smash Zampa to cow corner, before Babar caressed boundaries off Green off the next two balls either side of the wicket as the target and asking rate shrunk by the over. At last, it looked like a contest between a full-strength home side and a depleted touring party stretched particularly thin.Babar was the more proactive partner, and got a 16th ODI hundred before the game was won, as the two old friends performed a little jig mid-run to celebrate. Imam, meanwhile, would be denied the chance for a third successive hundred simply because Pakistan ran out of runs to chase, and capped a sensational series by knocking off the winning runs, skipping down the wicket to send Labuschagne down the ground.On a tour where Australia have been blown away by Pakistan’s hospitality, tonight was the night the generosity finally ran out.

England’s Amy Jones left several dents in Edgbaston after her effortless 80 off 49 balls set up Central Sparks’ 24-run victory against Sunrisers in the Charlotte Edwards Cup.Sparks’ performance in the field extinguished any sign of life from Sunrisers. Impressive spells from England legspinner Sarah Glenn, who took 2 for 14 from her four overs, and youngsters Hannah Baker and Grace Potts meant that Sparks chipped away with regular wickets in the chase, defending their 153 with relative ease.Sunrisers, who came in as underdogs, proved to be tougher opponents than Sparks, the early leaders of the group, might have expected.Related

• Levick's five-for not enough as Vipers squeeze past Diamonds

• Beaumont's 59 leads Lightning to first-ever CEC win

• Cranstone, Moore fifties take Stars across the line

With no wins under their belt, Sunrisers limited Sparks to an uncharacteristically slow powerplay, largely thanks to Naomi Dattani who clean bowled pinch-hitter Issy Wong in the second over.With the wealth of experience provided by England wicketkeeper Jones, this angst was only temporary. Jones racked up 80 off 49, keeping the Edgbaston crowd on their toes with six sixes, all through the leg side. Aided by some dropped catches from the Sunrisers, the pair charged ahead as Abbey Freeborn’s entrance injected some much-needed energy into the innings.”It’s great to get the win,” Jones said. “That’s the most important thing. Batting wise, it was quite a tricky start actually. Their bowlers bowled really well, it was quite hard to get them away. Abbey Freeborn came in and just injected a bit of energy. I bounced off that a bit and then just freed up and we did well finding the boundaries towards the back the middle and back end.”