Wright blitz leaves Middx behind

Sussex 202 for 3 (Wright 81, Hamilton-Brown 47, Nash 45) beat Middlesex 178 for 8 (Malan 61, Yardy 3-30) by 31 runs
Scorecard

Luke Wright smashed 81 off 49 balls as Sussex posted an impressive 202 for 3 on their way to a 24-run victory over Middlesex in the Friends Life t20 South Group clash at Lord's.

Dawid Malan hit back with 61 in 43 deliveries but even before he fell, heaving across the line in the 14th over, Middlesex had begun to lose their way. Neil Dexter blasted 27 off just 10 balls but it was too little too late for the hosts who finished on 178 for 8 - which included six penalty runs for Sussex's slow over rate - with Michael Yardy taking 3 for 30.

After winning the toss, Chris Nash got the visitors up and running with a swept six off Tim Murtagh in the third over. Murtagh suffered further punishment a couple of overs later when Wright hit four successive boundaries including a straight six.

Sussex were pegged back briefly when Nash, who made 45 off 30 balls, dragged an attempted drive off Adam Voges on to his stumps to make it 84 for 1 in the 10th. But two overs later Rory Hamilton-Brown brought the hundred up for the Sharks with a sweetly timed four through extra cover off Voges.

Wright then posted a 37-ball half-century in almost identical manner, off the bowling of Dexter, before flat-batting Josh Davey back over his head for six. Wright, whose impressive month had already brought him a first-class best 187 against the same opposition here at Lord's, a YB40 century against Kent and a half-century in a Twenty20 international, was eventually caught at long-on off Murtagh for 81 but Hamilton-Brown, supported by Dwayne Smith, ensured there was no let-up.

Hamilton-Brown scored 47 in 29 deliveries, including a straight six off Gareth Berg, before giving a steepling return catch to Kyle Mills in the final over. Smith, who had swatted the 34-year-old New Zealander over square leg for a maximum, finished with an unbeaten 21 off 12 balls to leave Middlesex needing to better the second-highest total at Lord's in domestic Twenty20 cricket.

Paul Stirling got the hosts off to a decent start by cover driving Chris Liddle for six in the third over of the Panthers' reply and the Irishman was given a life on 28, when he was dropped at extra cover off the bowling of Yardy. Yardy had his revenge when Stirling (33) was caught a wide long-on and Joe Gatting then pulled off a superb one-handed catch, low to his right, off Will Beer to account for Joe Denly.

Malan celebrated a 37-ball fifty by lifting Beer over long-on for a maximum but the pressure of needing to score at 10 an over eventually told and he was bowled by Nash for 61 before Voges reverse-swept Yardy to short third man. Adam Rossington fell to another good catch, this time by Chris Jordan running in from the midwicket boundary, though not before Dexter had lifted Yardy for a maximum.

The Middlesex captain followed it up with two successive sixes off Liddle in the 17th over to leave his side needing an improbable 56 off 18 deliveries. The departure of Dexter, caught in the deep off Jordan, ended the Panthers' hopes.

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Gooch refuses to excuse poor batting

Graham Gooch, the England batting coach, made no excuses for an underwhelming performance by England's top-order in the Ashes warm-up match against Essex at Chelmsford.

None of the England top seven were able to register a half-century as three Essex bowlers with only eight wickets between them this season reduced England to 212 for 7. An eighth-wicket stand of 116 between Tim Bresnan and Graeme Swann rescued them but Gooch bluntly asserted that England "had to do better" if they were to win the Ashes.

However, he refuted any suggestion that England might be struggling to adapt to long-form, red-ball cricket after several weeks of limited-overs games or that the low-key nature of this match - albeit played in front of a full-house crowd of 6,500 at Chelmsford - might have contributed to any lack of intensity in the performance.

"Modern-day players have to switch between three formats now," Gooch said. "I wouldn't make excuses for that: it is something you have to handle. Players have to make the adjustments. I don't make any excuses for them and I don't think any of our players would want to use that as an excuse. Our guys got in and they got out. They won't be happy with that and next time they get a chance they have got to do a better job.

"It is an important game. The pre-Test games in Australia last time round served us well. They got us into the right frame of mind and the right attitude to win the Ashes. It's not just another game; it's not just a warm-up game: it's the only game that matters. And tomorrow morning, it will be the only game that matters, too.

"We would have liked the top-order to spend more time at the crease and to capitalise on their starts. You want your main batsmen to get into a bit of rhythm and to get their games in order. We're building to peak next week and we would have liked a bit more from some of those guys.

"You have to bat long. There's no secret to it. Once you get in you have to capitalise on that and, come the Test series, we have to put big totals on the board if we get starts. The job of the batters is to build a platform and create an opportunity for the bowlers to win the match. That's their job and they know that it is their job.

"Today wasn't a disaster, but some of the guys would have wanted to spend more time out there."

Gooch did reserve warm praise for Joe Root, however. Root looks set to open in the first Investec Test of the Ashes series after England omitted Nick Compton and, in the eyes of Gooch, there is no reason why Root should not prove a success.

"Joe is a natural opener," Gooch said. "The selectors want to look at Joe and give themselves an option. Personally I don't see any reason why Joe won't make a success if he bats at the top of the order or in the middle-order. He is a consummate player as a young man already. He has things to work on and he has to improve - like every player - but he started out his career opening the batting and he has had a lot of success there this season with Yorkshire.

"I can't see any reason he won't make a success if he is given the opportunity of opening in the first Test at Trent Bridge. It's not a case of making an adjustment; he's an opener anyway."

If few of the England players will look back at the day with fond memories, it was a much better day for Tom Craddock. The 23-year-old legspinner went into the game without a first-class wicket this season and, in his first spell was confronted by Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen on a surface his captain, Ravi Bopara, described as "the best for a few years" at Chelmsford.

But Craddock, who broke into first-class cricket through the MCCU scheme and the Unicorns programme, responded by dismissing both of them and then adding the wicket of Matt Prior.

"When Ravi threw me the ball, Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell were standing there," he said. "I just wanted to land a few and maybe join a few dots together, but taking three is surreal.

"I've watched Kevin for a long time and I know full well he will happily take down spinners. I thought I'd bowl my areas and, if he took me down a couple of times, I'd put the men back accordingly, but happily enough he gave me a caught-and-bowled chance. It's the best day of my career; no doubts."

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Durham enjoy festive victory

Durham 147 for 6 (Mustard 59, Muchall 44*, Brooks 2-13) beat Yorkshire 178 for 8 (Pringle 2-13) by four wickets
Scorecard

Phil Mustard and Gordon Muchall combined to guide Durham to a penultimate-ball victory over Yorkshire at North Marine Road on a day that had the feel of festival about it. It was a tight game for 38 overs, but the 39th eased Durham's nerves as their recently departed colleague, Liam Plunkett, conceded 16 runs and left them needing just nine off Ryan Sidebottom's over to finish the job. Michael Richardson saw to it with a boundary and a single off the two balls he faced.

There can be few finer ways to spend a summer's afternoon than at the cricket at Scarborough. It is a proper cricket ground, a club ground that is more than fit to host top-flight county games. The eastern terrace is a miniature replica of its elder brother on the western side of Headingley. The backs of the three-storey houses facing Trafalgar Square are somewhat shabby, paint jobs needed, but oddly this adds to rather than detracts from the ground's character.

Similarly, the guest houses on North Marine Road hug the ground and contribute to the sense that we are in a sporting arena that is significant but intimate. The little tea room at the Trafalgar Road End has a black roof and, painted in white, TEA ROOM, just in case anyone were in any doubt.

It's very rare to have a day at Scarborough without at least a breeze blowing in off the North Sea, which is just a good strong arm away from the main gates. Today it was gentle and benignly warm.

This was a day for families and groups of friends: 4,200 good-natured people turned up, at least a fifth of them children. Dads and uncles bowled soft balls to boys and girls on the outfield, and they were able to get up close and watch the players practising before play started. Boundary fielders signed autographs willingly.

The queue for the bar on the eastern side ten minutes before play began was 45 yards. Yet, for all the beer that might have been swilled, there was never a hint of anything other than communal enjoyment of a cracking cricket match. Yorkshire, though, have started their Twenty20 campaign with two straight defeats so their own mood might be tenser than they had hoped.

Yorkshire's innings, after Paul Collingwood put them in, was an odd thing. It started brilliantly, ended impressively, and in between was like a souffle going wrong in the oven. Andrew Gayle and Adam Lyth, the local lad, the only Whitby man to play for the county, raced to 51 off six-and-a-half overs, but young offspinner Ryan Pringle got rid of both of them in short order.

Gary Ballance and Adil Rashid chipped in usefully, then Plunkett scored 30 before being remarkably run out by a direct hit from long on by Richardson. Richardson is a wicketkeeper. Moreover, he was making his T20 debut.

Durham's reply was built on Phil Mustard's 59 off 52 balls. When he was joined by Muchall the game appeared to be going away from Durham, but the 30-year-old Geordie sorted it out. He scored 44 without ever looking in trouble, and won the Man of the Match award.

Plunkett's last over was disastrous. He went for three fours, two of them off leg side full tosses, and after that the game was up for Yorkshire.

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Machan's all-round show leads Scotland to victory

Scotland 242 for 4 (Machan 114, Mommsen 63, Odhiambo 3-48) beat Kenya 230 (Mishra 61, Ouma 57, Wardlaw 4-45, Machan 3-31) by 12 runs
Scorecard

Matt Machan's all-round performance of a hundred and three wickets gave Scotland a narrow 12-run win against Kenya to move to third place in the ICC World Cricket League Championship in Aberdeen. After scoring his maiden ODI ton, Machan took three wickets in seven overs to help wrap-up Kenya for 230.

Put in to bat, Scotland were given a stable start by Kyle Coetzer, who scored 37 and was joined by Machan in the 10th over. But Nelson Odhiambo, who had taken the first wicket, dismissed Coetzer and No. 4 Calum MacLeod in successive overs to leave Scotland at 68 for 3 in the 18th over. Machan and Preston Mommsen scored briskly from there, putting together 162 runs in 30.1 overs to take them past 200. Machan, who hit nine fours and three sixes, was dismissed for a 111-ball 114 and Mommsen was unbeaten on 63 when Scotland finished at 242 for 4.

Kenya lost their first wicket in the second over to Iain Wardlaw and Irfan Karim (30) and Morris Ouma (57) took their score to 90 before Karim was caught behind off Machan. They lost two more wickets within the next 13 runs but were revived by a 84-run partnership between Rakep Patel and Tanmay Mishra as both struck fifties. But once Patel was caught behind off Machan's offbreak, the next five batsmen managed only 20 runs together. Mishra kept Kenya in the hunt till the end as they needed 37 from the last five overs but he ran out of partners and was the last wicket to fall in the last over off which they required 13 to win. Wardlaw took three more wickets in the end to finish with 4 for 45 a day after turning 28.

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Further delay in ACSU report

The much talked-about ICC Anti-Corruption and Security Unit report on BPL corruption has been delayed further. This time the wait could be till the first week of August, according to BCB president Nazmul Hassan. Mohammad Ashraful, the only one interviewed by the ACSU to have publicly confessed of wrongdoings, will remain temporarily suspended.

If the Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League, the country's domestic one-day competition, begins in July, which is the off-season in Bangladesh, Ashraful will miss the tournament. However, Hassan's anxiety regarding other players' names cropping up in the ACSU report seems to have abated for now.

"They haven't completed the report," Hassan said. "They are yet to complete interviews outside Bangladesh. As a result, they have asked for more time. From what I have understood after talking to them, I think we will most probably get the report in the first week of August.

"Because Ashraful is already temporarily suspended and the report is still not submitted, we don't know what sort of decision we should take against him. He won't play in this tournament, the rest can play."

Hassan also discussed the possibility of further investigation and the formation of a 10-member tribunal, procedures he had ruled out when he first spoke publicly about the BPL corruption investigation.

"They have a few more steps remaining. Firstly, they will present their report. We have to see whether the evidence they have gathered against a certain player is enough, based on which we can take a decision against a player or anyone else.

"We could also have to do further investigation or form a tribunal, which is within the rules. The tribunal will take time, and since this is a lengthy procedure, it is not wise to hasten such a matter. We will start the league very soon."

The league has been delayed three times already. It was first supposed to held in March and has changed dates twice in July.

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Test Championship to replace Champions Trophy

The Champions Trophy is now officially history with the ICC confirming a World Test Championship from 2017 onwards in line with its goal of having one pinnacle tournament for each of the three formats over a four-year period. This also means that the World Twenty20 will he held once every four years starting 2016 instead of the current two-year interval.

In another decision taken to "ensure an optimum balance between the three formats of the game", teams will now have to play a minimum of 16 Tests in each four-year cycle with the ICC board accepting the recommendation of its cricket committee. There have been a number of recent examples of Test series being postponed due to conflicting demands, either from one-day cricket or the proliferation of Twenty20 leagues. Countries might still be able to give preference to limited-overs cricket, though, with the requirement being set as low as 16 Tests.

The success of the recent edition of the Champions Trophy had given rise to talk that the tournament might live on after all but the ICC has stuck to its stated intent of moving on. "The ICC Champions Trophy in England and Wales was highly acclaimed and appreciated by all," David Richardson, the ICC chief executive, said. "However, the principle of one pinnacle global event for each of the three formats over a four-year cycle is a good one and, as such, the ICC Board has agreed to replace the Champions Trophy with the ICC World Test Championship. Now that the ICC World Test Championship has been confirmed, we'll work on the playing conditions and qualification criteria, and will submit these to the ICC Board for approval in due course."

England and India were announced as venues for the first two editions of the World Test Championship in June-July 2017 and February-March 2021 as also for the 2019 and 2023 World Cups respectively. India will also host the 2016 World Twenty20 with the 2020 one going to Australia.

The Women's World Twenty20 2014 has been expanded to ten teams, with the top three teams from the qualifiers to join the current seven, but going forward, the event has been delinked from the men's tournament. The 2010 and 2012 women's editions were held concurrently with the men's to increase visibility for the former but after 2014, the next Women's World Twenty20 will be separately held in 2018 in the West Indies.

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Umpires given power to curb ball tampering

Umpires have been empowered by the ICC to take action on ball tampering even if they only have suspicion that the condition of the ball has been changed and have no eye witness evidence.

The decision, taken by the ICC Board at their annual conference in London, comes in the wake of controversy in the Champions Trophy when England faced allegations of ball tampering.

The former England captain, Bob Willis, had said that umpire Aleem Dar was 'on England's case' and 'that one individual is scratching the ball for England' when the ball was changed during their tie against Sri Lanka at The Oval.

The ICC has now formally asserted that umpires are free to act on any unproven suspicions of ball tampering. They have approved a two-step on-field process, including penalising the fielding team on the second offence and reporting the fielding captain. The rule will come into effect on October 1.

According to the new regulation, if the umpire believes the condition of the ball has been "changed" but there is no witness to identify which player was behind it, the umpire will replace the ball and issue a first and final warning to the fielding captain.

If umpires suspects a second offence, they can award a five-run penalty to the batting team, replace the ball again and report the fielding captain under the ICC code of conduct.

England gained substantially more reverse-swing in their opening match against Australia and have responded to veiled expressions of suspicion by countering that the skill of their bowlers and superior ball management is at the heart of their success.

But the umpires - Aleem Dar and Billy Bowden - changed the ball during their second match against Sri Lanka. England's captain Alastair Cook was visibly agitated by the change of ball, which he felt contributed unfairly to England's defeat.

The official word from the ICC at the time was that the ball was changed because it was misshapen.

Although no ICC official or member confirmed if that incident was discussed at the meeting, it is understood that it did play a part in the rule change.

While the five-run penalty for ball tampering is not new, the process for the on-field umpires to follow is a new development. It was mooted by the ICC's cricket committee and chief executives committee, and ratified by the ICC Board.

It is understood the main reason behind making amendments were to remove the "grey areas" within Law 42.3, which deals with the condition of the ball.

Currently, umpires - if they feel that the condition of the ball has changed beyond the permitted allowance - can inform the fielding captain that they are replacing the ball in addition to awarding five penalty runs.

Umpires, though, have been wary to take such an action for fear of potential consequences.

The ICC Board sanctioned two other changes to the playing conditions as well, also to be implemented from October 1. Firstly, the on-field umpire will be able to ask the television umpire to check if a delivery that claims a wicket is a no-ball on height, if he has doubts.

And zing wickets - the stumps and bails that have LED lights that flash when they are struck - will come into use in ODI and Twenty20 cricket.

These stumps were used in Australia's Big Bash League T20 tournament, and the ICC had commissioned an independent assessment of the technology before adopting it.

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August deadline for deciding on World T20 venues

The ICC has given Bangladesh an August deadline to achieve satisfactory standards for its stadiums for next year's World Twenty20 tournament.

Having reviewed the reports by its venue consultant who visited the stadiums in June, the ICC's International Development (IDI) board has pencilled in another inspection for August following which a final decision will be taken on the venues for the tournament that will be played between March 16 and April 6 next year.

The BCB's president Nazmul Hassan admitted his concern ahead of the ICC annual conference in London that the ICC might lose patience over development at two of the four proposed venues, in Sylhet and Cox's Bazar.

Those concerns have now been expressed by the ICC. "The IDI board reviewed an inspection report by the ICC venue consultant … and expressed its concern regarding the progress of construction and improvements to playing facilities in Cox's Bazar and Sylhet," an ICC statement said. "The board noted that a further inspection and report is scheduled for August after which a final decision will be taken."

According to the ICC rules, the venues need to be ready six months ahead of the tournament, including adequately meeting the accommodation requirements for the teams.

After two visits this year, the ICC venue inspection team found construction work at both Sylhet and Cox's Bazar, which is scheduled to host the women's leg of the World T20, was well behind schedule for different reasons. Also, it was worried by a lack of lodging options in Dhaka.

After the first inspection, which took place in May, the ICC team found construction work at Cox's Bazaar had not begun at all, while work on the pavilion in Sylhet - at the ground which was developed last year - had not started either.

In the report the inspectors noted that the stadiums would not be ready before December; the six-month cut off as specified in the rules would be September. The team then returned to do a follow-up inspection on June 10, and the doubts over whether the work would reach its completion at both venues before end of September remained.

However, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has stated that it remains confident that all the ICC deadlines will be met.

"There is absolutely no doubt the work would be completed in due time," Hassan said. "The government had started work late in Sylhet stadium but now it is in full swing. I have seen the work plan and I am convinced that it would be finished," he said. "As for Cox's Bazar, the major issue was the land. Now that we have land we are confident we will meet all the requirements."

Should alternative venues be required, Hassan assured the board members that Bangladesh has enough and there was no need to look outside the country. He listed Fatullah and BKSP (Bangladesh Sports Institute) in Savar, a northwest suburb of Dhaka, as alternatives in case Sylhet and Cox's Bazar failed to meet the requirements once again in August.

"We already have two other venues. For Sylhet we have Fatullah, a full-fledged and world-class stadium which has hosted international matches already. As for Cox's Bazar, we can host the women's matches in BKSP where we have prepared two grounds according to ICC guidelines."

ESPNricinfo learned last weekthat Sri Lanka and South Africa were open to hosting the tournament if required.

However Mustafa Kamal, the ICC vice-president and former BCB president, said the ICC board had not discussed any such plans as yet. He echoed Hassan's confidence in relation to Bangladesh meeting the hosting requirements:

"We have just delivered 2011 World Cup successfully. This is not a bigger event compared to that. We had prepared five grounds for the World Cup. We also had the 2014 World Twenty20. In 2016 we have the Under-19 World Cup followed by the World Cup Qualifiers in 2018. We are going to host so many events because we have the infrastructure."

The doubts over lack of accommodation for all teams in Dhaka came after the Bangladesh government voiced a plan to break down the Sheraton hotel in the capital and rebuild it. But Hassan said the government had now assured the BCB that it would put off the reconstruction till the World T20 was over.

"We have the Sheraton, which was supposed to be renovated. The prime minister has assured us that the hotel would be available during the tournament, so we have an additional 200 rooms," Hassan said. "That solves the lodging problem."

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White rights Northants' poor home record

Northamptonshire 124 for 4 (Coetzer 39, Wakely 36*) beat Gloucestershire 83 for 9 (White 4-14, Azharullah 3-23) by 41 runs
Scorecard

Graeme White took four wickets as Northamptonshire saw off Gloucestershire to claim their first home win in the Friends Life t20 in almost three years.

After the weather saw the match reduced to 12 overs-a-side, Northants batted well in making 124 for 4 with Scotland captain Kyle Coetzer top-scoring by smashing 39 off 25 balls.

Gloucestershire never looked like reaching their target as they collapsed to 83 for 9 with Nottinghamshire loanee Graeme White taking a brilliant 4 for 14 from three overs with Muhammad Azharullah claiming 2 for 23.

This was the hosts' first victory in this competition at Wantage Road since they defeated Lancashire in July 2010 and it gets this year's campaign off to a flyer.

Several rain delays meant proceedings eventually began at 8:10pm after the visitors won the toss and chose to field. Dan Christian then dismissed Richard Levi for 2 in the second over when he chased a wide delivery and was taken by wicketkeeper Gareth Roderick.

Coetzer departed when he chipped Benny Howell to Gloucester captain Michael Klinger at extra cover before the same bowler castled Cameron White after he had clubbed 28 off 20 balls. Alex Wakely bludgeoned 36 off only 19 deliveries before smashing David Payne to Ian Cockbain at long-off with the last ball of the innings.

Chasing 125, Gloucestershire lost Hamish Marshall from the second ball when he got a leading edge from David Willey to Cameron White at midwicket before Chris Dent dragged Azharullah on to his stumps. The visitors then lost two wickets in consecutive balls in the eighth over, bowled by Graeme White, when Christian picked out Willey at long on. Klinger was taken at long-off by Matthew Spriegel after plundering 27 as the game slipped away from the Gladiators.

Five wickets then tumbled for just three runs as Howell was superbly run out by Willey at long-on before White caught and bowled Alex Gidman with the very next ball. White then bowled James Fuller before Azharullah repeated the dose to Cockbain and Gareth Roderick in the penultimate over to compound the visitors' misery.

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Dernbach, Mahmood steal win

Surrey 157 for 6 (Roy 42, Wilson 31) beat Sussex 147 for 7 (Yardy 44, Dernbach 3-15) by 10 runs
Scorecard

Surrey bounced back from defeat in their opening Friends Life t20 match as some sensational death bowling from Jade Dernbach helped them to beat Sussex by 10 runs at Hove.

Jason Roy made 42 from 33 balls as Surrey were restricted to 157 for 6 thanks to some fine bowling by Dwayne Smith, with 2 for 11, and Chris Liddle, 2 for 19.

Sussex looked on course for victory with Rory Hamilton-Brown (34), Scott Styris (35) and Mike Yardy (44) guiding them to 139 for 5 with two overs remaining. But Sussex then collapsed under pressure to finish on 147 for 7, with Azhar Mahmood conceding just four runs from the penultimate over and Dernbach the same from a brilliant last over to finish with 3 for 15.

Roy got Surrey's innings off to a decent start but their scoring rate dipped as Vikram Solanki (20) and Steven Davies (17) failed to find the boundaries. Roy hit a six and three fours as he tried to up the tempo but then edged behind swiping at a ball from Chris Liddle.

Things got worse for Surrey two balls later when Liddle added the wicket of Glenn Maxwell for just 6 to leave the visitors on 88 for 4 in the 13th over. Smith kept things tight and added the wicket of Zafar Ansari (13) to the earlier scalp of Solanki as he finished with figures of 2 for 11 from three overs.

Only a late onslaught from Mahmood (23 off 13 balls) and Gary Wilson (31 off 20) got Surrey up past the 150 mark, with 40 coming off the final three overs. Chris Jordan was on the receiving end with his final two overs going for 32 to finish with expensive figures of 2 for 48.

Despite a poor finish Sussex will have been happy to restrict Surrey to under 160 but they lost Chris Nash (12) in only the second over of their reply. Dernbach then got rid of England team-mate Luke Wright and fellow big-hitter Smith in his first over to put Sussex under pressure.

Hamilton-Brown responded by hitting Gareth Batty for a six and two fours in his opening over as he raced to 34 from 24 balls before being bowled by Zander de Bruyn.

The experienced duo of Yardy and Styris guided Sussex to within 21 runs of victory with a 56-run partnership of contrasting styles. Yardy played the anchor role while Styris smashed three huge sixes in his 35 off 19 balls before holing out off the bowling of Zander de Bruyn in the 18th over. That seemed to derail Sussex completely and Mahmood and Dernbach ensured Surrey a comfortable win.

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