All posts by n8rngtd.top

They have played only one Full Member team so far in the World Cup, but captain Ishan Kishan and coach Rahul Dravid are hopeful of India taking on any challenge

Vishal Dikshit in Fatullah06-Feb-2016Rishabh Pant was making his way to the dressing room from the dugout having been dismissed for 111 off 96 balls. He threw his pads around, took off all the guards and grabbed a bottle of water to head towards the dressing room. But the Namibia players’ celebrations distracted him. Armaan Jaffer had pushed his first ball for a quick single and the cover fielder displayed quick reflexes to attempt a run-out, but Sarfaraz Khan had made it just in time. And Pant went on with his business, unperturbed.That was probably the only scare Namibia’s bowlers and fielders gave the India batsmen throughout the innings.Namibia’s journey into the quarter-finals of the Under-19 World Cup was built on their bowling. They had dismissed Scotland for 159 and then restricted South Africa to 136 for 9 to set up the biggest upset of the tournament. But against India they were unthreatening and sloppy. Their spinners offered juicy full tosses, pacers bowled benevolent lines and the India batsmen cashed in to make 349 for 6.To add to that, Namibia dropped a few catches, suffered several misfields and gave away some overthrows too. The dip in performance, their captain Zane Green said, was the result of a few nerves.”It’s the first time we have made it to the quarter-finals. I think there were a few nerves in the dressing room,” Green said. “This was the first time we were playing on TV and to beat a side like India everything has to be perfect.”I think India batted well and our fielding didn’t back up our bowling. I think the bowling wasn’t that bad…a few bad balls. India is a very good team so they are going to put that away.”The one batsman who reaped the biggest benefit was centurion Pant. He was given a large supply of deliveries outside off with no movement on offer. Setting the foundation for a huge score became rather matter-of-fact and Namibia’s concerns shifted from wicket-taking to containing runs. Neither plan had much success.What did work for Namibia, briefly, was the start to their chase. Openers SJ Loftie-Eaton and Niko Davin unsettled Avesh Khan and Khaleel Ahmed and forced the India captain to make early bowling changes. While India got to 57 for 1 after ten overs, Namibia pushed marginally ahead to 60 for 1, before the batting line-up crumbled.”I think we just came out and played positive cricket,” Green said. “We had a great start unluckily we couldn’t build on that.”The inexperienced Namibia side will still take back more plaudits than criticism and the feat of reaching the knockouts will only help them get better for the next World Cup. “I think cricket can only get better from now for Namibia,” Green said, keeping it short after the heavy defeat. “It has been a great learning curve this World Cup. What we can take out of it is experience and we still have five guys who can play in the next Under-19 World Cup.”A more content Green will now go to South Africa for his studies with an experience that goes beyond just winning and losing.

Irish batter available under updated Covid protocols following negative test

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Feb-2022Paul Stirling is set to become Islamabad United’s second high-profile surprise return in two days, this time for Friday’s eliminator against Lahore Qalandars. If Islamabad win tonight, they will have brought back the opening pair that lit up the opening stages of the season, for the PSL final on Sunday. Multan Sultans will be awaiting the winner of tonight’s game.A tweak in the PCB’s Covid-19 policy for the tournament that allowed Alex Hales to return for Thursday’s win over Peshawar Zalmi will see Stirling immediately eligible to compete. The franchise confirmed in a tweet on Friday that he had returned a negative PCR test. Before the amendment to the protocols, agreed upon by all franchises, anyone arriving from outside Pakistan would have had to quarantine for three days before being allowed to play.Stirling played the first five games of the PSL for United before leaving for international duty with Ireland. He took part in a T20 quadrangular series in Oman and then in the T20 World Cup qualifiers in which, though Ireland lost in the final to the UAE, they qualified for the World Cup in Australia. Stirling’s performances in Oman were not spectacular – he averaged just over 23 with a strike rate of 111 across five games. In the five games he did play for Islamabad, however, he was averaging 37.40 with a strike rate of 181.55. With Hales in tow, the pair were the most destructive opening pair during that first leg, especially in the Powerplay.Hales had also departed the season early, though in his case he cited the mental fatigue of bio-bubbles as his reason for doing so. But he returned for Thursday’s eliminator against Peshawar, with his 49-ball 62 – his third fifty of the season – helping set up United’s successful chase. The innings earned him the player of the match award.As with Hales, Stirling is expected to follow the same distancing protocols and will be kept apart from the team as much as possible, including not having access to the team’s dressing room, staying in a separate area of the hotel and traveling in a separate car to the stadium.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board has announced an ambitious domestic schedule for the 2013-14 season, which includes two Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League tournaments

Mohammad Isam05-Aug-2013The Bangladesh Cricket Board has announced an ambitious domestic schedule for the 2013-14 season, which includes two Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League tournaments. The first of the two leagues is from the 2012-13 season that had to be rescheduled five times since March this year.There will be five major domestic tournaments in addition to Bangladesh’s international series at home against New Zealand in October and Sri Lanka in January 2014. The Asia Cup and the ICC World Twenty20s are also scheduled in this period, making it the busiest cricket season in the country’s history.The BCB has, over the years (including the past season), struggled to hold matches as per the initial domestic schedule, but this time they cannot afford to tinker because of the lack of space between the tournaments.The pending edition of the Dhaka Premier League, the domestic one-day competition, will kick off the 2013-14 season in early September. It will run for nearly three months, during which time New Zealand will tour Bangladesh to play a full series.The first-class competition, the National Cricket League, will take place over two months in November (after the Dhaka Premier League) and December. It will be followed by the BPL Twenty20 tournament, scheduled for the end of the year, but it is likely to be a much shorter affair given all the trouble it has had with defaulting franchises.There will be a three-month break for the domestic cricketers as the national side will take on Sri Lanka in Tests and ODIs in January, play the Asia Cup in late February and the ICC World Twenty20s from mid-March.The 2013-14 Dhaka Premier League will then be held in April; the other first-class tournament, the Bangladesh Cricket League that was inaugurated last year with four zonal teams, will be held in June, following which India will tour to play three ODIs in June.The major concern about such a long and tight schedule is whether the Dhaka Premier League clubs are able to take part in two competitions in the same season. The clubs have had financial problems, and they approached the BCB for monetary support this season, so it will be hard for them to play two seasons of the league in the space of eight-nine monthsThe second area of concern is whether the BCL, the country’s second first-class tournament, will get marginalised due to the heavy scheduling. It was a promising tournament with the best first-class performers from the NCL, but the BCB has pushed it to June, a month when cricketers usually stay indoors due to the start of the monsoons.On the plus side, the BCB now has additional cricket grounds in Dhaka and around the country to host the various tournaments, including the lower tiers of the Dhaka league system, the district-level and age-group competitions. The two new grounds at Bangladesh’s sport institute, BSKP, will be used alongside the outer ground at Fatullah.The other advantage is for the players, who will have additional opportunities to play. However, a number of players remain sceptical of the schedule, especially in a season in which four international engagements are to take place.

On Thursday, Test captain Pat Cummins confirmed most players were comfortable with the series going ahead

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Feb-2022Australia’s first visit to Pakistan since 1998 has received a final all-clear. The tour, which comprises three Tests, three ODIs and a T20I, has been on the cards since November 2021. Both boards have been making steady progress towards the series going ahead, and now after a final pre-trip security briefing Cricket Australia has given its full endorsement.”I would like to thank the PCB and both the Pakistan and Australian Governments for ensuring the tour will proceed for the first time in 24 years,” CA chief executive Nick Hockley said. “This is a historic occasion and important for the global growth and health of the game.Schedule of Australia’s tour of Pakistan 2022•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“I would also like to thank the Australian Cricketers’ Association and the players, coaches, support teams, staff and security experts for their collaboration in the planning for the tour. We are looking forward to an exciting series between two world-class teams.”On Thursday, Test captain Pat Cummins confirmed most players were comfortable with the tour going ahead, while understanding and accepting a few may not make the trip.”I think we’ll get close to a full-strength squad,” Cummins said. “There is still a little bit of work to do. We have received a lot of information and it has been great. All the pre-tour security and biosecurity work has been done and it’s been fantastic.”Australia are expected to name their squad early next week. It will be their first overseas Test series since the 2019 Ashes. With matches going on until April 5, some of their players may not be available for the first few days of the IPL due to begin on March 27.

According to the terms agreed to between the two boards, the senior batter can’t enter the Dhaka bio-bubble now

Mohammad Isam29-Jul-2021Bangladesh are unhappy with Mushfiqur Rahim’s enforced absence from the Bangladesh squad for the upcoming T20Is at home against Australia, a direct result of the Covid-19 protocols demanded by Cricket Australia. The word “unfair” is floating around in some private conversations among players and BCB officials, and the general feeling is that CA has asked for too much, and the BCB has gone a bit too far in accepting the demands.The two boards had agreed to include their respective bio-bubbles in Zimbabwe and the West Indies as part of the mandatory pre-series ten-day quarantine in Dhaka. But Rahim had to leave Harare for home after both his parents contracted Covid-19. As a result, he can’t be in the Dhaka bio-bubble now. What has upset the Bangladesh team even more is that while Rahim has not been allowed to re-enter the bubble, the players who have returned from Zimbabwe have had to do so after going through four airports – Harare, Johannesburg, Doha and Dhaka – with potentially greater exposure to the virus, but there have been no objections there.”It is unfair what happened with Mushfiq,” a member of Bangladesh’s tour party to Zimbabwe, told ESPNcricinfo. “We came in a commercial flight passing through three airports so I don’t know if it makes much sense to keep Mushfiq out of the series. He went back home from the middle of a tour for a family problem. So to not allow him to enter the quarantine after just two or three days, is not right.”Related

• Mahmudullah 'very disappointed' at Covid-19 protocols ruling Mushfiqur Rahim out

• Bangladesh look to hurt Australia in rare T20I meeting

• 'We want to play on good wickets since that's what we'll face at T20 World Cup' – Russell Domingo

• Liton Das ruled out of Australia series

• Mushfiqur Rahim out of Australia T20Is after missing quarantine deadline

Rahim had himself planned to be available for the Australia T20Is. He had initially taken leave from the Zimbabwe T20Is with an eye on being available for the Australia series. The leave was granted, but once the BCB-CA agreement on the bio-secure bubbles came in, he was asked to stay with the squad in Zimbabwe, even for the T20Is. His parents’ ill-health forced a change in plans. And when the home series quarantine was brought forward from July 22 to July 20, Rahim had to miss out.The BCB says it did ask CA to reconsider the stance on Rahim, but to no avail.”The agreement between CA and BCB says that there is no chance for allowing anyone from outside into the bio-bubble,” a BCB official said. “We have to hold the series with only those inside the bio-bubble. There will be challenges but this is the new normal. I think the selectors have picked the players who are best available during this scenario. There are no alternatives but to take our best available options.”Liton Das and Tamim Iqbal will also miss the Australia T20Is•BCB

To add to Bangladesh’s troubles, Tamim Iqbal is out because of a knee injury, and earlier this week, Liton Das, too, was ruled out following a family emergency. Currently, Bangladesh’s first-choice 20-member squad has been reduced to 17 players, and there are injury worries there too, including with Shakib Al Hasan.The quarantine rules could also have an impact on the use of DRS during the series. DRS technicians sit in the same room generally with match officials but the latter have been in a ten-day quarantine period and anyone coming in from the outside – such as a DRS technician – will not be able to sit in the same room according to protocols.”We have fulfilled the requirements for the production team. We are ready,” a BCB official said. “If the technician can work from a remote location, we will have DRS. There still remain some challenges but the technical person still has time (to be involved in the series).”He has to comply with a three-day quarantine (according to local health directorate), but CA has a condition that whoever isn’t part of the ten-day quarantine, they can’t get into close contact with anyone who was in the quarantine. If this person can manage to do the work remotely, then we can have DRS in the playing conditions.”The issues highlight the challenges the BCB faced for this series, in setting up two separate quarantines for match officials, hotel staff, and logistics, liaison and ground staff; the BCB has also made sure that the Australians can go to the team hotel from the airport tarmac directly. Their immigration will be processed separately, and their passports returned only after being sanitised for three days. The hotel will also be off-limits to anyone but the touring party till August 10.The BCB had earlier agreed to hold all the five matches at the Shere Bangla National Stadium instead of at two venues.”It is not just about CA giving us conditions and us accepting those conditions,” a board official said. “The Australia team is traveling here on a chartered flight from West Indies. It shows how serious they are about the health and welfare of players. We are only fulfilling some of their additional requirements.”Despite all that, concern will remain. Bangladesh is currently experiencing a fresh Covid-19 wave, and the country has been in a strict lockdown. There were 258 deaths and 14,925 new cases the day before Australia’s arrival in Dhaka on Thursday. Pulling off the series without incident will be important for the BCB’s home season ahead, given New Zealand are expected to arrive in early September to play five T20Is before England travel for three T20Is and the same number of ODIs.

One-sided contest as bowlers combine to roll Lightning aside for 81

ECB Reporters Network10-Jul-2021Central Sparks 84 for 4 (G Davies 31) beat Lightning 81 (G Davis 4-12, Jones 3-14) by six wicketsCentral Sparks broke their duck at the third attempt in the Charlotte Edwards Cup, winning a low-scoring contest by six wickets with one over to spare as Lightning suffered a third defeat.Gwen Davies made 31, Eve Jones an unbeaten 27 and Thea Brookes 21 off 14 balls after Lightning had been bowled out for 81 in 19.1 overs.Off-spinner Georgia Davis, with 4 for 12, and all-rounder Jones, who took 3 for 14 with her left-arm seamers, each posted T20 career-bests with the ball.More than half of Lightning’s total runs were scored by their last-wicket pair as Shachi Pai and 19-year-old Sophie Munro put on 41 in 33 balls, Pai scoring 18 from 21, Munro unbeaten on 20 from 16 deliveries, including two nicely-executed offside boundaries.Munro then took 2 for 10 with her right-arm seamers in a Lightning attack that battled hard to contain the Sparks but ultimately had too little to defend.The 10th-wicket pair apart, only one other Lightning batter made it into double figures, albeit on a slow pitch that made it difficult to time the ball.Davis’s four dismissals were almost carbon copies as Abbey Freeborn, Teresa Graves, Sonia Odedra and Lucy Higham took it in turn to be out leg before, attempting to sweep.Jones profited from leading edges as Kathryn Bryce and Michaela Kirk found fielders on the off side, picking up her third success when Kirstie Gordon chipped back a return catch.Earlier, Issy Wong took a wicket with her second ball and another with her eighth as Beth Harmer and Sarah Bryce were bowled.With Lightning 40 for 9, Sparks might have envisaged a very early finish but it looked a more even contest once Davis and Jones had completed their stints. Pai eventually fell when she went aerial to Stephanie Butler’s off-spin but failed to clear mid-off.Sparks found it hard to get going and were six behind Lightning at nine for two from their Powerplay, having lost Marie Kelly and Milly Home in a double-wicket maiden from Munro.Davies and Jones were patient in adding 46 off 12 overs but when Higham had Davies stumped for 31, a requirement of 30 in as many balls could have been tricky.However, Brookes launched Gordon through midwicket for four and hit Odedra for six and four to change the picture as the 17th over went for 14 runs. Brookes swung and missed one from Bryce but with eight needed off 16 balls a couple of boundaries from Jones finished the job.

A strong top-order performance, along with Asad Ali’s incisive bowling spell, helped SNGPL to a 32-run victory over WAPDA in the President’s Cup One-Day tournament final

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Apr-2013
ScorecardA strong performance from the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited top order, combined with Asad Ali’s incisive bowling, helped SNGPL take the President’s Cup One-Day tournament against Water and Power Development Authority with a 32-run victory in Karachi.SNGPL were put in to bat and the openers put on a commanding 125-run stand. Once Mohammad Hafeez fell for 58, Azhar Ali came on to score 33 in a 40-run partnership with Taufeeq Umar. Umar Akmal failed again, finishing a dismal tournament where he scored only 79 runs in 6 innings. Further contributions from the captain Misbah ul-Haq (34) and Khurram Shehzad (42) helped SNGPL to an imposing 283 for 8 at the end of their fifty overs. This finished Misbah’s glorious run in the tournament, where he averaged 64 and a strike-rate touching 120. WAPDA’s Nasir Malik was the most effective of the bowlers, taking 3 for 45.WAPDA struggled initially in their reply, losing two wickets with just 8 on the board. Rafatullah Mohmand, who had starred in the tournament with three centuries on the trot and an unbeaten 91, was only able to make 7, as WAPDA were on the back foot early on. Sohaib Maqsood (57) and Ali Azmat (39) put on a 100-run stand to help steady the innings. Mohammad Ayub’s unbeaten 66 helped keep the team afloat, but wickets continued to tumble around him. Ultimately the required rate got out of hand as they faced 10-11 an over going into the final ten.Asad Ali took 4 for 37, all of which were bowled, to keep WAPDA under check. WAPDA ended their innings on 251 for 9, giving SNGPL a 32-run victory. Asad Ali finished as the highest wicket-takers list, with 14 wickets in 6 matches at 17.07.This title marks the third for Misbah ul-Haq this season, where he has also won the Faysal Bank Super Eight T20 and President’s Trophy.

West Indies captain wants his batters to ‘be clear about whether you’re playing forward or back’

Andrew Fidel Fernando28-Nov-2021Defend a lot. Be clear on whether you’re playing back or forward. And stick around for a couple of sessions. This is West Indies’ batting game-plan for the second Test according to captain Kraigg Brathwaite.With the surface for the second Test expected to be even more spin-friendly than the first, West Indies’ batters technique and application seems set for another major examination.”The plan is to be clear in what you want to do. Believe that you can do it, and do it for long periods,” Brathwaite said. “We’ve got to have the discipline and the fight to do it for 50 overs – more than two sessions, or three sessions.”We had a lot of discussions. One important thing is that you’ve got to defend a lot of balls. Having a straight bat is one thing we discussed.  That’s very important. And sweeping as well – especially the offspinner. It’s just about being clear and confident about whether you’re playing forward or back.”West Indies’ only half-centurions in the first Test were Nkrumah Bonner and Joshua da Silva, who put up a 100-run stand in the second innings, rescuing the side from 18 for 6. Brathwaite said the remainder of the batters had drawn inspiration from that partnership.”Bonner and Josh showed that when you have a solid defence, if you put the effort and energy in, you’ll be successful. Sometimes when doubt comes in, you can slip up a bit. Just trust that defence. When the bad balls come you get runs. It’s important to have that clarity, as to what you want to do here.”In terms of how they were able to manoeuvre different balls, they were a very good example for us. As a batting group, it was good to see, and something to learn from.”West Indies have had a mixed 2021. They began with an excellent 2-0 victory in Bangladesh, before drawing two Tests at home against Sri Lanka. Their worst series was the 2-0 defeat at South Africa’s hands at home, before drawing a home series against Pakistan 1-1. Brathwaite outlined the importance of the next match: if they beat Sri Lanka, they would have won more matches in 2021 than they’ve lost.”To be honest we showed good progress in 2021. It was not a good series against South Africa, but we bounced back decent against Pakistan. In Bangladesh we won that series 2-0. Winning this game will be very crucial from a points perspective for the Test Championship. As a team we’ve made some strides. Once the group stays together and keeps building, that’s crucial.”

England Women are heavily reliant on their premier quick bowler Katherine Brunt and do not possess a strong bowling unit, says Mithali Raj

Abhishek Purohit02-Feb-2013England Women are heavily reliant on their premier quick bowler Katherine Brunt and do not possess a strong bowling unit, says Mithali Raj, the India Women captain. The hosts will take on the defending champions in the biggest clash in Group A of the Women’s World Cup at Mumbai’s Brabourne Stadium, whose batting-friendly pitches have opened up the tournament, Raj believes.England were shocked by unfancied Sri Lanka a day ago at the same ground, going down by one wicket in a last-ball finish. Their batsmen recovered from a poor start to post 238, but their bowlers could not contain Sri Lanka, especially the rampaging Eshani Kaushalya, something that has encouraged Raj and India. “I think England have got a very good batting line-up but I don’t think they are very strong in their bowling attack other than Katherine Brunt,” Raj said. “They heavily depend on her for the breakthroughs.”We have played England last year as well and most of our batsmen are very comfortable playing their bowlers but then again, I would say tomorrow is a different day. We are expecting all kinds of situations and we are prepared for anything.” England have won seven and lost 17 ODIs to India in India.Raj praised the Brabourne groundsmen for preparing a flat, “concrete-like” wicket, saying it had narrowed the gap between a top side such as England and a weak side such as Sri Lanka, whose successful chase of 238 was the highest ever in the Women’s World Cup. “I did tell you the other day that the tournament was open because each and every team is scoring heavily, more than 200-plus, and they are able to chase, so definitely the tournament is open after yesterday’s upset,” Raj said.”I give a lot of credit to the groundsmen for preparing a very batting-friendly wicket. It really doesn’t give the bowlers much but the batters have a lot to score on and unless you make a mistake you can’t get out on such a track. It is hard and like a concrete wicket.”Now teams like Sri Lanka, Pakistan or South Africa seem a lot confident because they keep playing many games among themselves and when they come into the World Cup, getting a track like this gives them a lot of confidence.”While India’s opening win against West Indies came under lights, their match against England will be a day game, starting at 9 am local time. The early start would not make too much difference, Raj felt. “I don’t think there is a lot to get adjusted to because this part of the country is humid. It’s not real winter like what we get to see up north where there is the dew factor or the moisture is heavily in the air. But having said that, because the matches start at 9 am there will be a little bit of assistance for the bowlers which I saw in yesterday’s game. Other than that I think the wicket is behaving beautifully in both the innings.Raj said the morning start would not change the approach of the India batsmen given the nature of the pitch. “I would definitely tell my girls to be very positive and very confident. I think playing a day game will not affect us much because what we saw yesterday was that the ball was not doing much, [except] maybe the initial four-five overs, but other than that I think it was the same throughout the day.”There was a lot of support for the hosts against West Indies from the small, but noisy, crowd. Poonam Raut, the India opener who hails from Mumbai and made a half-century that day, was a favourite, with her family and friends cheering every run she scored. “You feel good when there is a match on your home ground,” Raut said. “There is a bit of pressure but it feels good that there are supporters for you. I am glad they came to see the match. And they had good wishes for me and had expectations which I fulfilled. I hope that I can play the tournament like that for them and the country.”

Priority is to reunite the IPL returnees with families as they come out of quarantine on Monday, CA CEO says

Andrew McGlashan31-May-2021Cricket Australia has yet to start discussions over whether players will be able to head back to the IPL when the tournament resumes in the UAE later this year as those who had returned from the suspended competition completed their quarantine in Sydney on Monday.The cohort of Australians – players, commentators, coaches and match officials – endured a long journey home when the tournament was halted earlier this month, having to travel via a stay in the Maldives due to Australia’s border being closed to arrivals from India, before a BCCI-chartered flight brought them back when restrictions were partly lifted.While Australia do not have any international commitments when the IPL is due to resume it is unlikely that all the players will resume their deals. The tournament is now set to run almost straight into the T20 World Cup – which still seems likely to be moved to the UAE, although the BCCI has asked the ICC for more time to see if the showpiece event can be held as scheduled in India – meaning another lengthy stint in various biosecure bubbles for those involved in both. It will also clash with the start of the Australian domestic season, although last year players with IPL deals did skip state cricket.”Once we get back together as a group that [the IPL] is something we’ll obviously need to discuss,” Nick Hockley, Cricket Australia’s chief executive, said on the day he was confirmed in the role full-time. “Our players returning from the IPL have only today come out of quarantine, so our first priority is to make sure they are reunited with their families…we [then] have a tour to prepare for in the West Indies.”Following the T20 World Cup, players will need to do a further two weeks quarantine in Australia then those in the Test squad will go straight into the opening match of the men’s season against Afghanistan in Hobart before the Ashes in December.Australia have named a preliminary squad of 23 for the West Indies tour in July, which includes five T20Is and three ODIs, with that expected to be trimmed to around 18. They are then due to go straight from the West Indies to Bangladesh for five T20Is although those dates have yet to be rubberstamped.Related

• Nick Hockley named permanent CA chief executive

• West Indies to host SA, Australia, Pakistan in home season

• Australia's Test drought poses possible Ashes problems

• BCCI mulls moving T20 World Cup to UAE

• Australia to tour Bangladesh for five T20Is in August

The group coming out of quarantine on Monday included nine players who are part of the enlarged squad while Kane Richardson, Andrew Tye and Adam Zampa – who left the IPL shortly before Australia’s borders closed to arrivals from India – are also included.There have been reports that David Warner and Pat Cummins may not be included in the final squad so they are able to spend more time with their families. Allrounder Daniel Sams, who contracted Covid-19 shortly before the IPL started, made himself unavailable for selection.”They are clearly quite shaken by the experience, and are very appreciative to be back home, very much looking forward to being reunited with family and friends today,” Hockley said. “It’s a couple of weeks before the West Indies touring party then regroups at the National Cricket Centre [in Brisbane] and then that’s the time to refocus.”Hockley also confirmed that Cricket Australia is continuing to work towards getting the squad Covid-19 vaccines before they depart in late June.Last month the Australian government approved vaccines for Olympians who will be heading to Tokyo and the cricketers are set to come under the same eligibility criteria for those given exemptions to leave Australia for work purposes.”We really welcomed the government announcements that people with exemptions to leave Australia for work will be eligible for the vaccine,” Hockley said. “Now once the players are out of quarantine we will be working to offer them vaccinations before heading off to the West Indies.”