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Australian allrounder Heather Graham took 4 for 10 on her debut for The Blaze as the East Midlands side continued to sweep aside all-comers in the Charlotte Edwards Cup, beating Western Storm by seven wickets at the Uptonsteel County Ground in Leicester.Graham, who has replaced South Africa’s Nadine de Klerk in the Blaze line-up with the latter on international duty, led an impressive bowling display from the home side, backed up by offspinner Lucy Higham (2 for 18) and left-arm strike bowler Grace Ballinger (1 for 17) as Storm were dismissed for 99, England skipper Heather Knight top-scoring with 20 on her first appearance in this season’s competition.The Blaze knocked off their 100-run target with 35 balls to spare thanks in the main to Scottish internationals Kathryn Bryce and sister Sarah, with Graham capping her afternoon by hitting the winning boundary.Led by Kirstie Gordon, The Blaze, whose only defeat in last season’s competition was against Southern Vipers in the final, now have six wins from six in the expanded 2024 edition and top the points table ahead of South East Stars, keeping them firmly on track for a return to finals day at Derby on 22 June.Storm skipper Sophie Luff opted to bat first on winning the toss but lost two wickets for 29 in the powerplay overs. Ballinger knocked out Nat Wraith’s off stump in a wicket-maiden before Graham, capped four times by her country in T20 internationals, struck with the third ball of her Blaze debut as Fran Wilson fell victim to an excellent stumping.Knight made a positive start and hit back-to-back boundaries off Gordon’s left-arm spin but the Blaze skipper’s retort was to bowl her with a superb delivery that straightened off the pitch. Legspinner Josie Groves had Amanda-Jade Wellington leg before stepping across the stumps and Storm were 58 for 4 after 10 overs.Higham bowled Alex Griffiths and had Luff caught at mid-off in the space of two tight overs, Issy Wong was run out at the bowler’s end after being sent back by Sophia Smale, Graham returning to take three wickets in the space of six deliveries as Smale was stumped off a wide, Chloe Skelton holed out to long-on and Ellie Anderson yorked, the last two coming off consecutive balls.Wong removed England’s Tammy Beaumont with the last ball of the opening over of the home side’s chase and The Blaze were 13 for 2 after 13 balls when Teresa Graves slapped Anderson straight to backward point but Storm could make no further inroads until Lauren Filer bowled Kathryn Bryce to end a third-wicket stand of 67 in the 12th over.By then, the result was not in doubt, Graham lofting a straight drive over the head of legspinner Wellington to finish the job off the first ball of the 15th over.

Essex 170 for 2 (Elgar 60*, Pepper 44, Cox 41*) beat Hampshire 166 for 7 (Weatherley 48, Fuller 39*, Allison 3-39) by eight wickets Dean Elgar showed off all his variations with his third fifty of the Vitality Blast to give Essex a comfortable fourth victory of the competition.South African Elgar never looked fussed in chasing 167, as his 60 not out made in conjunction with the swashbuckling of Adam Rossington’s quick-fire 18, Michael Pepper’s swaggering 44 off 24 and Jordan Cox’s slow-burning unbeaten 41.Hampshire had been dragged a middling score by a late James Fuller flurry of 39 off 16, after Joe Weatherley had stoically struck 48, but as was the case in last year’s rain-affected semi-final, it wasn’t enough.After losing James Vince and Ben McDermott within three balls of each other in identical swings to deep square, the Hawks seemed to tempo their innings towards a 160 total having been stuck in.Weatherley and T20 debutant Fletcha Middleton ticked the runs along but never appeared in too much rush during a 47-run alliance.One reason for Hampshire’s tardiness either side of the powerplay was the dead-eye accurate spell from Simon Harmer – who on his 100th T20 appearance for Essex didn’t concede a boundary in his four overs.The regular wicket-taking came from others though, with Paul Walter strangling Middleton down the legside to end that partnership, and Matt Critchley stopping Toby Albert and Benny Howell from getting going.Weatherley only scored four boundaries in his 48 but never looked bogged down. He was only denied a half-century when a straight drive smashed the non-striker’s stumps and he was lbw to Ben Allison next ball – Allison ended up with three for 44.At 117 for six with 20 balls to go, it looked like Hampshire had undercooked their scoring – but Fuller entered to blast some crucial death over runs.He played the biggest hand in the final three overs going for 14, 13 and 17 runs – with five six included and the total now looking closer to par.Hampshire had an all-pace attack – with Liam Dawson ill and missing a Hawks T20 after 43 straight appearances – and learned the lesson of the faster you bowl, the further it goes.Adam Rossington started to prove that theory by pumping Michael Neser for six, six, four before the Australian took the pace off and found Rossington chipping to mid-off.Elgar had already swatted Chris Wood straight back over his head for six and took the quick run-scoring lead with his elegant risk-free hitting.His fifty off 34 balls relied more on the meaty middle of his bat than extravagant or inventive shots, with Pepper more than matching his rate.Pepper strode past 250 runs in this season’s Blast – surviving a drop on three – before his 80-run stand, off 47 balls, with Elgar was ended when he swished to long on.Cox showed no interest in the six-hitting of his predecessors to make sure no collapse was forthcoming to put on an unbroken 59 with the ever-nonplussed Elgar.He did open up with the winning post in sight with a couple of sixes off John Turner, as victory was secured with 20 balls to spare – with Cox classically driving to the boundary for an eight-wicket win.

Mark Wood says he is feeling the excitement of bowling once again, after coming through a “boring” six months of rehab following knee surgery, and is ready to be as “fresh as I can be” come the first Test of the Ashes at Optus Stadium in Perth in a fortnight’s time.Wood, England’s fastest bowler, played in four of the five Tests on England’s last Ashes tour in 2021-22, claiming 17 wickets including a career-best 6 for 37 in the final Test in Hobart.However, on that occasion, he missed out on the chance to play in Perth, traditionally the venue for the fastest pitches in Australia, because of Western Australia’s strict Covid policy. Instead, his only experience of the pace and bounce on offer came during England’s victorious T20 World Cup campaign in 2022.”It was rapid,” Wood recalled, having claimed five wickets in two wins against Australia (in a pre-tournament bilateral match) and Afghanistan. “I’m not sure my back is looking forward to it, but my bowling is definitely looking forward to it.”Related

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Wood’s ability to touch speeds in the mid-to-high 90mphs (155kph) is a central plank of England’s strategy as they seek to end a run of three deeply one-sided Ashes tours, dating back to their last win in the country in 2010-11.Asked if England had a back-up plan, if their policy of all-out pace proves to be the wrong one, Wood joked: “Don’t try as hard and bowl 130[kph]? We’ll be giving everything we’ve got. The type of bowlers that we are, I’m not quite sure that it’s in us to not give 100%. Whether it’s good enough, I don’t know, but we’ll wait and see. Australia are obviously the favourites going into the series, but I think there’s a quiet confidence within our group that we can do well here.”As Wood has shown in his previous comebacks from injury, however, he’s unlikely to hit full throttle until he’s out in the middle, with England’s warm-up fixture against England Lions looming next week as his one opportunity to test his match fitness.”I wouldn’t say I’m at 100%,” he said. “I think it’s very hard to train 100% all of the time. I’ve been off my full run-up and stuff, and I’ve been trying to just up the intensity as I go along. I’m sure in the practice game coming up, I can try and up it a little bit more again and gradually get ready for that first game.”England have attracted some criticism for their lack of meaningful warm-up games – a stark contrast from the intense preparations that went into their 2010-11 win. Wood, however, said he was unconcerned, and cited the team’s unlikely first-Test win over India in Hyderabad two winters ago as proof of what they can achieve in the series opener.Wood has been rehabbing after knee surgery•Getty Images

“The schedule is the schedule, I’m happy with what we’ve done,” he said. “In India recently, we didn’t have many games there, and we went straight into that and managed to win that first game.”We’re going to have been here, what, two or three weeks as a group. That’s a good enough build-up to that first game in my eyes. I suppose everybody’s different, and some people might want more but, for myself, I want to feel fresh going in that first game, having done a little bit, but not too much. I want to be mint for that game, and as fresh as I can be. We’ve got a good depth of bowlers, and if one misses out, he’ll be prepared for the next game.”Either way, Wood said that England’s outdoor training sessions at Lilac Hill had been a significant improvement from the “damp and cold” back home, where much of his preparation was undertaken in a heated tent on the outfield in a bid to replicate the humid conditions in Australia.”It was boring to start with, bowling by myself, but to now bowl in front of the batters, it’s exciting,” Wood said. “It’s now feeling like the start of the tour, and I’m feeling that excitement building to the first game.”When I was running on the treadmill at home, I was visualising the stadium and my run-up, and using the experience of playing here before. It certainly helped the motivation, when I was running in a cool, dark garage at home. Gearing up for being here, I’m so much more aligned to it now.”It was never just a straight trajectory,” he said, recalling the ups and downs of his return to action from knee ligament surgery. “There were some bits where I wasn’t doing as well, and then I had to build it up again. So finally, it’s nice to be outside in some nice weather, and ramping it up.”England’s arrival in Perth has already generated a glut of headlines, not least in the West Australia newspaper which described their captain, Ben Stokes, as “England’s Cocky Captain Complainer”. Wood, however, said the squad had taken the pre-series excitement in their stride.”It’s been great,” Wood said. “That’s all part of it. I haven’t taken much notice of newspapers and things, but the reception we’ve had in general from Australians has been great.”Out and about in the hotel and around Perth, everyone’s been very friendly, and everyone’s excited for the series. It’s a big build-up, and there’s obviously huge amounts of press around it which makes it more exciting. There’s a lot of English coming … back home, I walked down the street and it seemed like every man from England’s coming across. So I think the Barmy Army will be in full voice and right behind us.”

Michael Neser and Xavier Bartlett bowled with trademark accuracy on a day where Australia’s fringe quicks were in the spotlight. But wickets were hard to produce on a relatively sedate WACA surface as Cameron Green batted fluently to keep Western Australia afloat against Queensland.On a dramatic day in Australian cricket, Sean Abbott was withdrawn from the Ashes squad after scans on his left hamstring confirmed a moderate grade strain. If a replacement for Abbott is needed for the first Test squad, Neser would likely head the queue while Bartlett might also come under consideration.Neser probed away outside the off stump and was finally rewarded when he had Hilton Cartwright plumb lbw for 37. He finished with 1 for 37 from 15 overs. Even though he was wicketless, Bartlett similarly nagged away in his Shield season debut having played in the white-ball series against India.”You can’t look at those things too much,” Bartlett said about a potential Ashes squad call-up. “Hopefully perform for Queensland over the next couple of days and that’s all you can really do.”Related

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WA were held together by opener Cameron Bancroft’s 76 and then Green, who finished 49 not out, until losing three late wickets.Josh Inglis, the reserve wicketkeeper in the Ashes squad, fell for 4 just before stumps after edging quick Gurinder Sandhu to second slip in a reckless dismissal having slashed hard at a delivery well outside off stump. It was a disappointment for Inglis in his first red-ball match since the West Indies Test series.Queensland’s late rally has them slightly in the ascendancy in a match that has see-sawed over two days.After a hard-fought opening day, Queensland resumed on 323 for 6 and faced a WA attack without the services of Green, who bowled two four-over spells on day one in his return to bowling following a side injury that ruled him out of the India ODI series.With a target of bowling 15-20 overs across the match, Green kept the powder dry until Queensland’s second innings but he was in the action after holding on to a stinging blow from Bartlett at midwicket.It was a relief for Green, who had uncharacteristically dropped a relatively straightforward chance in the gully late on day one. It was a desperately needed wicket for WA after Bartlett and Lachlan Hearne counterattacked to great effect to lift Queensland to a solid first-innings total.A cavalier Hearne appeared to be powering to a second century in as many Shield matches until being the last batter to fall for 87 off 134 balls.Michael Neser trapped Hilton Cartwright lbw for 37•Getty Images

Bancroft and skipper Sam Whiteman had to survive a testing period before lunch as Neser and Bartlett bowled an unnerving length outside the off stump. A confidence-boosting century against South Australia in the last match has rejuvenated Bancroft, who was again proactive and cleverly rotated the strike with quick singles.The openers were again under pressure after lunch, but Neser and Bartlett were left frustrated and could not create any clear cut opportunities as Whiteman and Bancroft notched a half-century stand.Skipper Marnus Labuschagne needed a spark and he turned to emerging quick Tom Whitney, playing in his fourth first-class match, who responded by trapping Whiteman for 26.Whitney on the next delivery had a big lbw shout against Cartwright turned down, but Bancroft steadied WA with calm batting punctuated by the occasional sweet drive through the off side.Bancroft had started the season slowly with just 21 runs from his first four innings, falling out of the Ashes selection race. But he has turned back the clock since and soon lifted his bat after notching a classy half-century.Neser’s luck changed after tea when he dismissed Cartwright before Bancroft uncharacteristically threw his wicket away after smashing a full toss from legspinner Mitchell Swepson straight to a jubilant Labuschagne at midwicket.But Green rattled along at swift pace. He was ruthless against Swepson, smashing a rank long hop that landed on the vacant grassbanks.Disaster struck for WA late in the day when Cooper Connolly was run-out at the bowler’s end after a mix-up with Green. Connolly had turned for the second run only to be sent back as a hustling Labuschagne fired a quick throw to Sandhu who effected the run-out.

Are Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli still part of India’s plans for the 2027 World Cup? The ODI captaincy has passed from Rohit to Shubman Gill, and both Rohit and Kohli are now in their mid-30s and retired from Tests and T20Is. What does their selection for the ODI series in Australia later this month say about their future?India head coach Gautam Gambhir isn’t looking that far ahead.”Look, 50-over World Cup is still two-and-a-half years away, and I think it is very important to stay in the present,” he said in a press conference after India beat West Indies 2-0 in their Test series. “That is very important. Obviously, they are quality players, they are coming back, their experience is going to be a handful in Australia as well. Hopefully, those two guys will have a successful tour, and more importantly, as a team, we will have a successful series.”Related

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As Test and ODI captain and T20I vice-captain, Gill can expect a packed schedule with little scope for taking breaks between series. Gambhir felt he was in a good space to do this.”First and foremost, I need one,” Gambhir joked when asked if Gill could benefit from having a mental-conditioning coach. “I think he is scoring runs, so he does not need any bit of it. So probably I think he is in a good space. I think all of us are in a good space.”I think when you get the results, you are always in a good space. But if you don’t get the results, I think it is my responsibility to keep him and the entire group in a good space. That is my job. Sometimes it is not only about skills, but it is also about the mental aspect of the game as well. Especially guys who are playing all the three formats. It is not only about Shubman, it is about everyone in that dressing room. I have equal responsibility towards everyone.”Kris Srikkanth had alleged that Harshit Rana is in the national team because he is close to Gautam Gambhir•AFP/Getty Images

Gambhir calls Harshit Rana criticism’ shameful’

One of the selections for the Australia tour that has attracted comment from ex-players in the media is that of Harshit Rana, with the fast bowler part of both the ODI and T20I squads. Among those who have commented on the selection is former India captain and chairman of selectors Kris Srikkanth, who alleged in his YouTube channel that Rana was only part of the squad because he was Gambhir’s yes-man.”Look, it’s a bit shameful. And I will be very honest with you. If you do not spare even a 23-year-old boy to run your YouTube channel, it’s unfair,” Gambhir said. “Because ultimately [Rana’s] father is not an ex-chairman [of selectors] or an ex-cricketer or an NRI. He plays cricket on his own merit. And he will continue to play on his own merit.”Targeting someone individually is not fair. You can target people’s performance. And there are coaches and selectors who target people’s performance. But if you say such things to a 23-year-old kid, then social media amplifies it more, and in social media, you are told things in such a way, imagine [what it does to] the mindset [of the player]. In the future, your child can also play cricket, anyone’s child can play cricket.”At least you can realise that he is a 23-year-old kid. He is not 33. Criticise me, I can still handle it. But a 23-year-old boy is a 23-year-old boy. I think that is why we need to be careful. What you say is only to run your YouTube channel. Every one of us has moral responsibility towards Indian cricket. Indian cricket doesn’t belong to me, it doesn’t belong to people sitting in the dressing room, it belongs to all of you as well. It belongs to every Indian who genuinely wants Indian cricket to do well. Criticise, but do it on performance. Don’t do it because you want to target an individual.”

Muhammad Waseem will lead UAE’s 17-member squad at the 2025 Asia Cup.Right-arm quick Matiullah Khan and left-arm spinner Simranjeet Singh are the two additions to UAE’s side from the ongoing T20I tri-series against Pakistan and Afghanistan, with the rest of the players retaining their places.Matiullah, 32, has played one ODI and five T20Is so far. The last of those T20Is came against Nigeria in the Pearl of Africa Series in July. Thirty-five-year-old Simranjeet has played five ODIs and 11 T20Is. He last represented UAE at the Gulf T20I Championship last December.UAE previous Asia Cup appearance was in 2016 in Bangladesh, when the tournament was played in the T20 format as well.Related

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UAE are part of Group A in this year’s Asia Cup, which starts on September 9, and will be held in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The other three teams in their group are India, Pakistan and Oman. UAE start their campaign on September 10, when they face India in Dubai. While they are yet to beat India or Pakistan in any format, they have beaten Oman in five T20Is.The top two teams from the group will progress to the Super Fours stage.

UAE squad for Asia Cup

Muhammad Waseem (capt), Alishan Sharafu, Aryansh Sharma (wk), Asif Khan, Dhruv Parashar, Ethan D’Souza, Haider Ali, Harshit Kaushik, Junaid Siddique, Matiullah Khan, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Zohaib, Rahul Chopra (wk), Rohid Khan, Simranjeet Singh and Saghir Khan

Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson has told the franchise he wants to be released ahead of the upcoming auction for IPL 2026. ESPNcricinfo learned that Samson informed the RR management of his intention immediately after IPL 2025 ended.RR, which had its 2025 season review meetings in June, has not yet given Samson a definitive answer and the option of convincing him to stay with the team is still open. The franchise’s lead owner Manoj Badale offered no comment when asked about the development. The final decision will be taken by him in coordination with RR head coach Rahul Dravid.If RR decide to release Samson, they could either trade him to another franchise or send him into the auction. As per the IPL contract, the final say in such cases lies with the franchise. As far as a trade is concerned, it could be a player swap or an all-cash deal.Samson, 30, first played for RR for three seasons from IPL 2013 to 2015, and then rejoined them in 2018 after two years at Delhi Daredevils. He was appointed captain in 2021 and, in 2022, led RR to the IPL final for the first time since they won the inaugural edition in 2008. However, two of their key players – Jos Buttler and Yuzvendra Chahal, who won the Orange and Purple caps in 2022 – were released ahead of the 2025 mega auction.Related

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Samson was one of six players retained by RR ahead of last year’s mega auction; his price was INR 18 crore ($2.14 million approx. then). The other players retained were Yashasvi Jaiswal, Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Sandeep Sharma and Shimron Hetmyer. Samson played only nine of RR’s 14 matches in IPL 2025 due to a side strain, with Riyan Parag standing in as captain.They finished ninth with just four wins.ESPNcricinfo learned that Samson is currently at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru for a routine training programme designed for a targeted pool of players shortlisted by the national selectors. He will likely be picked for the Asia Cup which starts in the UAE from September 9. Before that Samson will play a few matches in the Kerala Cricket League where he was recently picked by Kochi Blue Tigers for INR 26.8 lakh, making him the most expensive player in the tournament.RR have another two months to make a decision on Samson before the IPL’s retention deadline in November.

Sean Williams has been released from the Zimbabwe squad that is currently playing the Men’s T20 World Cup Africa Region Final. The 39-year-old batter was released for personal reasons and Zimbabwe called up Clive Madande as his replacement.Related

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Zimbabwe, who are hosting the tournament, played their opening match on Friday, beating Uganda by five wickets. Blessing Muzarabani and Brad Evans took three wickets each and Brian Bennett scored a 44-ball 72 in their chase of 153, which they completed with 15 balls remaining. Williams did not feature in the match.Eight teams – Botswana, Kenya, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe – are taking part in the tournament, from which the top two teams will qualify for the T20 World Cup that will be played in India and Sri Lanka in February-March 2026.

Zimbabwe squad for T20 World Cup Africa Region Final

Sikandar Raza (capt), Brian Bennett, Ryan Burl, Brad Evans, Trevor Gwandu, Clive Madande, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza, Tashinga Musekiwa, Tinotenda Maposa, Tony Munyonga, Dion Myers, Blessing Muzarabani, Richard Ngarava, Brendan Taylor.