“Once you’re back in, you start looking at what’s on the horizon and it’d be amazing to play in a home T20 World Cup”

Valkerie Baynes26-Jun-2025Two teams, many changes, all to play for. That’s the scenario for India Women’s tour of England, where the hosts of the next two World Cups will face each other, not just for the immediate spoils but with an inevitable big-tournament focus.England have been buoyed by twin 3-0 sweeps of their white-ball series against West Indies after their 16-0 Ashes drubbing but expect a sterner test from an India side featuring a mix of stars, comebacks and inexperience.England have also shaken things up under the new leadership of head coach Charlotte Edwards, captain Nat Sciver-Brunt and national selector Lydia Greenway.Related

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Sophie Ecclestone returns for her first international appearances since January, joining fellow left-arm spinner Linsey Smith, who shone on ODI debut against West Indies, as did seamer Em Arlott.Tammy Beaumont, who has been on the fringes of the T20I side since the 2022 Ashes, is in the squad after a hugely successful ODI campaign, reprising her opening partnership with Amy Jones.Against West Indies, the pair amassed 464 runs between them, including 424 in tandem, in two ODIs. With T20I opener Danni Wyatt-Hodge scoring just 17 runs in three innings, Beaumont offers a batting option, especially with former captain Heather Knight sidelined after tearing her hamstring tendon from the bone during that series.Knight says she is on track to be fit for the 50-over World Cup in India later this year, while Beaumont – who has played just five T20Is in three years and was part of the squad but didn’t play against West Indies – hasn’t given up on making it to a home T20 World Cup in the English summer of 2026.Amy Jones and Tammy Beaumont were prolific in the ODIs against West Indies•PA Photos/Getty Images”The previous couple of years, I hadn’t overly thought about that Lord’s final and that World Cup here next year,” Beaumont told ESPNcricinfo. “It was something that would be nice to happen, but I can’t get too caught up in it. Getting that call-up for the West Indies T20 series was a little bit of a surprise, but a really nice surprise.”This India series, I’m just trying to really enjoy my T20 cricket and try to contribute in any way I can. Once you’re back in, you start looking at what’s on the horizon and it’d be amazing to play in a home T20 World Cup. For me, it’s just about enjoying every opportunity I get these days.”It’s been proven that if you perform at county level, you’ll get a go and then you’ve just got to perform where you get the chance. That’s something that tends to work pretty well in my brain, play what you see in front of you and, so far, so good.”Rewarding players for performing at domestic level has been a tenet of Edwards’ time in charge since replacing Jon Lewis in April and the India series represents the next step in her task of rebuilding a team which, like India were humbled at the T20 World Cup 2024.

“She’s almost superhuman at times, just to be able to be a mother and a new England captain and perform at the level that she always has done”Tammy Beaumont is in awe of Nat Sciver-Brunt’s all-round game

“It will be a really tough tour and series for us, but a really good test and a really good time for that,” Beaumont said. “They keep finding more and more talent. There’s a lot of names that I haven’t played against before in this squad and that normally throws out some unexpected challenges.”With the WPL, they’re just getting so much talent coming through that’s ready to go. It’s going to be a tough challenge, but really exciting. There’s always a bit of drama with the England-India series, so I’m sure there’ll be some drama coming forward.”This is India’s first visit to England since 2022, a tour which ended in high drama when Charlie Dean was run-out backing up by Deepti Sharma in the third ODI at Lord’s and which seems a long time ago in the context of two T20 World Cups in which both sides have fallen short.The T20I leg which kicks off this tour with five matches from Saturday represents a chance for both sides to stamp their authority before moving their attention to the three ODIs with eyes on the 2025 ODI World Cup.The coach-captain combo of Charlotte Edwards and Nat Sciver-Brunt could face a stern test against India•Getty ImagesWhile Jones and Beaumont made the bulk of England’s runs in the ODIs, Sciver-Brunt still managed to score fifties in the first and third games, the latter while Beaumont was rested and Jones dropped down the order to give others a chance to bat. Sciver-Brunt also struck an unbeaten 55 in the second T20I in Hove, her first series as captain and a new mum after wife Katherine gave birth to their son, Theo, in March with the family travelling together through the West Indies series.”She’s always been great with kids and being with her own son is absolutely no different,” Beaumont said of her skipper. “A lot of us are getting a bit broody watching how good she is with Theo.”Katherine is doing brilliantly as well, making sure Nat can do everything she needs to do and look after the baby and then enjoy that time together and the way that Nat’s handled it, is so typical Nat.”She’s almost superhuman at times, just to be able to be a mother and a new England captain and perform at the level that she always has done. It’s just a testament to her character that she can just always take anything and everything in her stride.”

The New Zealand allrounder is closing in on 20 years of international cricket, but is yet to represent her country in the longest format

Vishal Dikshit04-Sep-20251:33

Bates: Will be ‘over the moon’ to play a Test match

Closing in on 20 years in international cricket, New Zealand allrounder Suzie Bates is still keeping her dreams alive of playing a Test match before she retires. Bates has represented New Zealand in 171 ODIs and 177 T20Is, captained them full-time from 2012 to 2018, has featured in nine T20 World Cups and is ready to play her fifth ODI World Cup starting later this month.But she remains without a Test cap as New Zealand last played one 21 years ago, against England at Scarborough. Bates made her international debut 19 months later and has gone on to become the top run-scorer in T20Is and sits third on the list in ODIs, behind Mithali Raj and Charlotte Edwards.New Zealand are not scheduled to play a women’s Test as per the current FTP that runs until April 2029, but Bates keeps her hopes alive while watching the other women’s teams play Test cricket, as was the case even 10 years ago, when she had said she “felt cheated”.Related

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“The feeling [of not having played a Test] is just like I’m envious,” Bates told ESPNcricinfo. “Like I think I’ve said this in another interview when I watch the [women’s] Ashes and even when I watch men’s Test cricket and they talk about it being the toughest game, it tests your skills, it tests you mentally, it tests you physically as an athlete and a sportsperson I want to be tested. So you sort of watch when there are women’s Test matches on and you’re like, ‘oh I wonder what I’d do in this situation or how I’d go about it’, and to not have that opportunity when others are playing it, you do want to experience it.”But I understand the decisions and the politics of it at times but just as a player I’m like, ‘I’d love to have a taste of how I would handle that mentally and physically’. If it happens and I’m still playing I will be over the moon. I do just think for the future of the game – I think Virat Kohli’s talked about it saying that is still where you learn the most about the game and where you are tested and if young players, if a young New Zealand player gets to go over and play a four or five-day Test match in India in those conditions with the ball turning, the amount of learning that you do and that compared to a 20-over game is you just can’t compare. So yeah, I think there’s space for it, but those decisions aren’t up to me.”171 ODIs, 177 T20Is, and nearly 20 years of international cricket, but Suzie Bates is yet to play a Test•ICC/Getty ImagesEven if Test matches aren’t scheduled for New Zealand Women in the current FTP, extra bilateral matches can be added to the schedule if there is an agreement between two boards. Bates will be 38 later this month before the World Cup starts, but was willing to work further on her fitness, tempted by the possibility of playing a Test match, if the chance came in the next year or so.”Yes, it would motivate me but there is a long time between now and then and I am just focused on contributing at this 50-over World Cup and then we will see what happens after that.”New Zealand begin their World Cup campaign against defending champions Australia on October 2 in Indore before taking on South Africa (October 6, Indore) and Bangladesh (October 10, Guwahati). They will then fly to Colombo to face Sri Lanka (October 14) and Pakistan (October 18), before returning to India for their final two league games in Navi Mumbai, against India on October 23 and England on October 26.

And who took England’s first wicket in ODIs?

Steven Lynch18-Nov-2025Have England ever won a Test in Perth? asked Nicky Harrison from England
England have a pretty poor record in Test matches in Perth, where the Ashes series starts later this week. They haven’t yet played at the new Perth Stadium – Australia won the first four Tests played there before coming a cropper against India last November – but at the traditionally bouncy pitch at the former Test ground, the WACA, England played 14 matches and won only one. That was in 1978-79, when Australia had a weakened team thanks to defections to Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket.Of the others, Australia won ten, with England escaping with draws in 1970 (the inaugural Test at the WACA), 1982 and 1986. Australia have won the last eight Ashes Tests in Perth, mostly by wide margins.Sam Nogajski gave an lbw decision off the fourth ball of his first Test – was this the earliest decision a debutant umpire has had to make? asked Lachie from Australia
Umpire Sam Nogajski from Tasmania, who was standing in his first Test, gave Ireland’s captain Andy Balbirnie out to the fourth ball of the match against Bangladesh in Sylhet a few days ago.It’s quite early in a Test career to be giving a decision – but it’s not a record: another Aussie, Bill Alley, gave Sunil Gavaskar out caught behind from his very first ball as an umpire in a Test, at Edgbaston in 1974. Alley recalled: “Geoff Arnold thundered in and cut back his first delivery, which Gavaskar tried to avoid but could not. The ball appeared to run along the bat and Alan Knott held the catch about six feet down the leg side. I was still nervously fumbling the coins in my pocket, which I used to count the number of deliveries bowled in each over. There was an appeal and I was lifting my hand from my pocket to give him out, like a gun from a holster, but Gavaskar had decided to take the law into his own hands… he put his bat under his arm and was on his way to the pavilion.” I suppose it’s therefore debatable whether Alley actually had to give a decision!In Brisbane in 1936, England’s Stan Worthington was caught behind trying to hook the first ball of an Ashes series. According to the watching Bruce Harris, “It was the first Test in which Jack Scott, the old South Australian fast bowler, umpired, and he had to make a decision first ball!”And in 1974 again, umpire Har Prasad Sharma gave India’s Sudhir Naik out caught behind from the first ball of the match against West Indies in Calcutta.We don’t have full details of many early Tests, so it’s often not known at which end an umpire was officiating, or whether a decision was even required. Herbert Sutcliffe of England was caught behind against New Zealand in Christchurch in 1933: both umpires, Thomas Burgess and Richard Torrance, were standing in their first Test. In the following cases it seems unlikely a decision was required (and we don’t know at which end the umpires were standing). The West Indian opener Conrad Hunte was caught in the field off the first ball in Port-of-Spain in 1958: George Williams was standing in his first (and only) Test. Keith Stackpole was caught at slip off the first ball in Auckland in 1974: umpire Ralph Gardiner was in his first Test. And South Africa’s Jimmy Cook was caught at third slip to the first ball of the match against India in Durban in 1992: umpire Karl Liebenberg was in his first Test (as was Cook).Bangladesh’s Hannan Sarkar was lbw first ball against West Indies in St Lucia in 2004: Jeremy Lloyds was making his debut as umpire, but was at the other end (Sarkar was lbw to the first ball of the next Test too, and that time Lloyds did give the decision). Chris Gayle of West Indies was lbw to the first ball of the match against Sri Lanka in Pallekele in 2010, but debutant umpire Bruce Oxenford was at the other end. Here’s the full list of those out to the first ball of a Test.Is Jordan Neill the first teenager to play a Test for Ireland? asked Kevin Finucane from Ireland
The Ireland allrounder Jordan Neill was 19 years 245 days old when he made his Test debut last week, against Bangladesh in Sylhet. He was their first Test-playing teenager: their previous-youngest player was Neill’s team-mate Matthew Humphreys, who was 20 years 208 days old when he made his debut, against Sri Lanka in Galle in 2023. Humphreys and Neill were also both making their first-class debuts, joining this list of players who made their first-class debuts in Tests.Neill made his one-day international debut last May, against West Indies at Malahide, aged 19 years 83 days. George Dockrell and Paul Stirling were both 17 when they played their first ODIs for Ireland. Their youngest T20 international is Josh Little, who was only 16 when he played against Hong Kong in Bready in 2016.Ireland have had younger women players, though: Lucy O’Reilly, Elena Tice and Josh Little’s sister Louise were all 13 when they played their first ODIs, while Gaby Lewis was even younger when she made her T20 international debut – 13 years 166 days against South Africa in Solihull in September 2014.Nineteen-year-old Jordan Neil is the first male cricketer to debut as a teenager for Ireland, though among women Gaby Lewis debuted at age 13•ICC/Getty ImagesStan Squires of Surrey once scored 236 out of a team total of 345. Is this the highest percentage at first-class level that includes a double-hundred? asked Phil Carter from Norway
Stan Squires had a long career for Surrey, scoring over 19,000 runs between 1928 and 1949 despite usually wearing glasses. In his last season he made 1785 runs, his second-highest annual return, but sadly died a few months later from what Wisden called “a virus of the blood”. Surrey team-mates Alec and Eric Bedser paid tribute in their book Following On: “His death was a sad blow to us all. Stan had many virtues and no major faults. He was a fine allround cricketer – his ability to play slow bowling was a byword in the game – and his sunny temperament often cheered up the team when depression threatened the dressing-room.”The innings you’re referring to came against Lancashire at The Oval in 1933. Squires’ 236 represented 68.40% of the total of 345 – but, surprisingly perhaps, there have been several higher percentages than that. The highest of all in a completed first-class innings by a double-centurion is 81.56%, by Namibia’s Gerrie Snyman against Kenya in the Intercontinental Cup in Sharjah in 2008: Snyman hit 230 of Namibia’s total of 282, with the next-highest contribution being 13.The only higher percentage in any completed first-class innings is 83.43%, by Glenn Turner, with 141 of Worcestershire’s 169 against Glamorgan in Swansea in 1977, when the next-highest contribution was 7, by Norman Gifford. The Test record was set in the very first match of all, in Melbourne in 1877, when Charles Bannerman’s 165 represented 67.34% of Australia’s first innings of 245. The Test record involving an individual score of more than 200 was set by Seymour Nurse, with 258 out of 417 (61.87%) for West Indies vs New Zealand in Christchurch in Match 1969.Who took England’s first wicket in one-day internationals? asked David Cooper from England
What has become recognised as the first one-day international of all was played between Australia and England in Melbourne in January 1971, after the scheduled third Test of the Ashes series was washed out. To the organisers’ surprise, over 46,000 spectators turned up, and a new format was born.England batted first: the first man out was Geoff Boycott, caught by Australia’s captain Bill Lawry off the bowling of Alan “Froggy” Thomson. When Australia batted, needing a modest 191 to win in 40 eight-ball overs, their first casualty was Keith Stackpole, who gave a sharp return catch to the Lancashire fast bowler Ken Shuttleworth, who was playing in what turned out to be his only ODI. You can see this wicket at about 17 minutes in this video clip.Shiva Jayaraman of ESPNcricinfo’s stats team helped with some of the above answers.Use our feedback form, or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

“Young Lhu reminds me a little bit of my young self,” de Kock says of his opening partner

Firdose Moonda07-Nov-2025When Quinton de Kock, in his role as international comeback sensation, glances towards the other end of the pitch these days, it’s almost like looking in a mirror.”Young Lhu [Lhuan-dre Pretorius] reminds me a little bit of my young self,” de Kock said after South Africa’s second ODI against Pakistan in Faisalabad in which he scored his 22nd century. “He’s batting really nicely at the moment. He looks nice and free, and he’s just playing everything on merit. He’s doing really well for a 19-year-old. It looks like he didn’t have the pressure I felt at 19.”Consider the bare bones biographical details, and it’s easy to see the similarities. Both de Kock and Pretorius are left-handers and strong strikers of the ball, and both were South Africa’s leading run-scorers at Under-19 World Cups, 13 years apart. De Kock scored a hundred and two fifties in the 2012 edition in Australia; Pretorius hit three fifties in 2024 in South Africa. Both of those performances led to international debuts laced with big expectations shortly after the age-group World Cup. Did we mention that they’re both also wicketkeepers?Related

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The major difference is that while de Kock came on to the scene as an “enigma”, as described by coach Shukri Conrad, Pretorius came in having modelled himself on de Kock. The pair first met when de Kock’s career had just started, and Pretorius was about seven years old. Since then, all Pretorius has wanted to do is play alongside de Kock, even when he felt it might never happen.”I never thought I would play with him,” Pretorius had said after the first ODI against Pakistan on Tuesday. “When he retired [from ODIs after the 2023 World Cup], I was really upset because it was always a dream to play with Quinny. Then, when he came back, I didn’t think I was going to play with him. It’s truly a dream come true. I didn’t know him off the field when I started liking him as a role model. Now I got to know him, and he is really calm and composed, and that’s really what I like, and that’s how I want to play my cricket.”And it shows that Pretorius is trying to emulate his hero. On all three occasions that Pretorius and de Kock have batted together, Pretorius has taken the early lead. In the T20I in Namibia, which Pretorius says “didn’t count because Quinny got out quite early”, Pretorius outscored de Kock, who was dismissed for 1. In the first ODI against Pakistan, Pretorius scored 35 off 36 balls in the first eight overs, while de Kock was only on 8 from 12 deliveries. In the second, Pretorius was on 18 off 18 in the first four overs, and de Kock just 4 from six. While Pretorius said he “felt a bit bad” for taking so much of the strike early on, de Kock preferred it that way.”The kid is highly, highly talented” – de Kock on Lhuan-dre Pretorius•Associated Press”Lhu made it very easy because he was playing really well, and so the easy thing was just to try and get him back on strike,” de Kock said, clearly impressed by what Pretorius can do. “I’ve only seen glimpses of him through our SA20 league. And now coming out here and playing with the youngster – the kid is highly, highly talented.”What that means for South Africa’s plans for tournaments like next year’s T20 World Cup, which will be played in the subcontinent, or the 2027 ODI World Cup at home, is yet to be seen. For now, they are awash with options. In the opening berth, Ryan Rickelton, another left-hand batter, is not on this tour as part of a rotation policy that will keep him fresh for Tests against India next week. So is Aiden Markram, the second half of the regular opening pair.The question facing South Africa is whether they continue with Rickelton and Markram, or opt for more explosiveness and perhaps more risk in de Kock and Pretorius. South Africa also have several candidates putting their hands up for the No. 3 spot, including Tony de Zorzi, who has enjoyed good returns in Pakistan, and shared in a match-winning stand of 153 with de Kock in the second ODI.De Kock has previously indicated that the drawcard of a major tournament remains attractive to him, though he understands he is not “guaranteed” a spot, and will have to earn one through runs. But to ignore de Kock’s body of work when the stakes are high would seem a miss. De Kock was South Africa’s leading run-scorer at the 2023 ODI World Cup, and third overall with four hundreds, and their top batter at the T20 World Cup in 2024. And he is hungry to go again.”I want to be back, and I missed playing with the guys” – Quinton de Kock•Getty Images”I’ve come back, and I’ve found an energy that I think I lost playing so much international cricket all the time – I played for close to 12 years,” de Kock said. “I was just lucky enough that I retired early enough so I can still make a comeback. I’m very happy to be back. I want to be back, and I missed playing with the guys. But my break, I think, did me really well.”Those are words Pretorius should hear too, especially as he walks a similar path to de Kock. His international career could be long if he is managed correctly and given enough time away from the game to avoid burnout. And it will likely be a little more challenging because Pretorius’ emergence has come at the same time as the league circuit is at its peak. But like de Kock, Pretorius might find the pull of international cricket too hard to resist.”At the beginning of the year, when I was in India for the IPL, guys were asking me if I wanted to come back. At that moment, I just thought a straight no,” de Kock said. “Then I don’t know exactly, but it just started happening. That thought process started coming back. That hunger was coming back again.”De Kock is only available for white-ball cricket for South Africa, while Pretorius plays across all formats, and already has a Test hundred to his name. South Africa have yet to announce their white-ball squads to India, but both are expected to be included.

The rule will first be applied at the Duleep Trophy in the event of major injuries to players mid-match

Shashank Kishore16-Aug-20252:14

Should injury substitutions be allowed in Test cricket?

The BCCI has introduced a “serious injury replacement substitute” rule for in domestic cricket to prevent injured players from risking themselves further in the match. This applies to games that take place over multiple days and will come into effect from the Duleep Trophy, which opens the 2025-26 season on August 28. It will be active in the Ranji trophy as well, India’s premier first-class cricket competition.This replacement can be any non-playing member of the squad, should be like-for-like, and will need an approval from the match referee after teams are able to medically produce a report that underlines the seriousness of the injury of the concerned player. The injury has to have happened during the game and needs to be external (like taking a blow resulting in a deep cut or fracture) rather than internal (like a hamstring strain).This addition was debated within the BCCI circles in the aftermath of Rishabh Pant batting with a broken foot against England in Manchester, and has been swiftly incorporated into the playing regulations.The regulation states, “under all circumstances, the serious injury replacement player shall be from nominated substitutes at the time of toss.”Only in the case where the wicketkeeper is seriously injured and needs a replacement then the match referee may allow a wicketkeeper from a player outside the nominated substitutes if there is no wicketkeeper in the nominated substitutes.”Both the player being replaced and the replaced player shall be considered to have played in the match for records and statistical purposes.At present, international cricket only allows substitutions in the event of a player suffering concussion or contracting the Covid-19 virus.During India’s tour of England earlier this year, Pant (foot) and Chris Woakes (shoulder) suffered dislocations, which left their respective teams in a 10 vs 11 battle. Both players braved further injury to come out and help their team’s cause, which added to the debate about whether there needs to be place in the rules for substitutions in case of serious injury.India coach Gautam Gambhir was for it. England captain Ben Stokes was less so, arguing that the system could be gamed.The ICC, in reviewing its own playing conditions earlier this year, was open to the idea of its member nations trialling injury substitutes in domestic cricket.BCCI adopts ICC’s ball change rule

The BCCI has also adopted ICC’s new rule change in ODIs that phased out two balls in the format after 34 overs. The rule will be in effect from the Vijay Hazare Trophy, BCCI’s 50-over competition for senior men.”Each fielding team shall have two new balls for its innings to be used in alternate overs, i.e. one from each end for overs 1 to 34,” the new guideline states.”At the end of over 34, the fielding team will choose one of the two balls from the innings to be used for all the remaining overs of the innings. The other ball will be added to the stock of replacement balls for the innings.”

Stats highlights from the second day’s play of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne

Sampath Bandarupalli27-Dec-202410 Steven Smith’s centuries in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, the most for any batter, surpassing Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli.11 Test hundreds for Smith against India – the most by any batter, overtaking Joe Root’s ten centuries against India.201 Number of innings Smith took to score his 34th Test hundred. Only Sachin Tendulkar (192 innings) and Ricky Ponting (193 innings) were quicker among the 11 batters with 34 Test centuries.ESPNcricinfo Ltd99 Runs conceded by Jasprit Bumrah in Australia’s first innings, the most he has conceded in a Test innings .The 84 innings by Bumrah are the most for any bowler without conceding 100-plus runs in an innings (Among specialists and bowling all-rounders). Former England fast bowler Mike Hendrick is second with 54 innings.11.07 Rohit Sharma’s batting average in Tests in the 2024-25 season – the second lowest for an Indian batter in a season (minimum of ten innings in the top six). The lowest is 10.00 by Chandu Sarwate in 1947-48.ESPNcricinfo Ltd2 Number of 100-plus partnerships for India in their first innings in nine Tests in the 2024-25 season. Ravindra Jadeja and R Ashwin had a 199-run stand against Bangladesh in Chennai, while Yashasvi Jaiswal added 102 with Virat Kohli in Melbourne.4 Four-wicket hauls for Bumrah in Australia’s first innings in four Tests this series – the first time a bowler has achieved this since Shane Warne in the 2005 Ashes.