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A match-winning knock from Rob Nicol, followed by a triple strike from Mitchell McClenaghan set up Auckland’s 20-run win against Otago, as they lifted the Georgie Pie Super Smash title in New Plymouth

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Dec-2015
ScorecardMitchell McClenaghan broke the back of Otago’s chase with three wickets in the sixth over•Getty Images

A crucial contribution from Rob Nicol, followed by a triple strike from Mitchell McClenaghan set up Auckland’s 20-run win against Otago, as they lifted the Georgie Pie Super Smash title in New Plymouth. It was, their fourth in domestic history.Otago’s openers – Hamish Rutherford and Anaru Kitchen – added 50 in 33 balls and were well on their way to the target of 167 before McClenaghan took three wickets in four balls to change the course of the final.After choosing to bat, Nicol anchored Auckland’s innings with a 54-ball 77, including eight fours and three sixes, and formed significant stands with the middle order, the largest being 50 for the third wicket with Brad Cachopa, to help post a total of 166 for 6.Robert O’Donnell provided the innings with the required impetus and momentum with a 10-ball 19. Warren Barnes returned figures of 3 for 33 while Kitchen was most economical, conceding 21 in his four overs.The chase began in sprightly fashion before Auckland roared back into the game with regular wickets. James Neesham (21 off 17) and captain Nathan McCullum (35 off 21) provided brief resistance but with the required run-rate skyrocketing and wickets tumbling, it was a task too far. Donovan Grobbelaar also picked up three wickets in five balls to ensure there wasn’t a late resurgence.”He’s a big occasion player and he stepped up for us there. I felt that they were at parity and it was touch-and-go in terms of someone cleaned up and carried on through, and he just came in and devastated them to be fair, and they never really recovered from that,” Auckand captain Rob Nicol said while speaking about McCleneghan’s triple-wicket maiden that sent back Otago’s top three.

Moeen Ali became the third player to reach 1,000 first-class runs for the season as Worcestershire struggled to get on terms with Kent at New Road.

03-Aug-2013
ScorecardMoeen went past 1,000 runs for the season•PA Photos

Moeen Ali became the third player to reach 1,000 first-class runs for the season as Worcestershire struggled to get on terms with Kent at New Road.The former Warwickshire batsman followed Joe Root (England and Yorkshire) and Chris Rogers (Middlesex and Australia) to the milestone while making 59 in his county’s progress to 213 for 7 on a rain-shortened second day. Moeen’s innings was crucial in trimming his team’s deficit to 111 after James Tredwell’s best Championship bowling performance for two years.Tredwell twice took two wickets in five balls in posting figures of 4 for 34 but Worcestershire comfortably avoided the follow-on thanks to the composure of Tom Fell, the 19-year-old Oxford University batsman, who made an unbeaten 62 against Australia last month. He again looked impressive in scoring 64 not out from 123 balls on his second appearance in the Championship.Fell’s unbroken eighth-wicket partnership of 55 with Jack Shantry made sure that Moeen’s work was not wasted.Having passed the 900 mark more than a month ago, the Moeen finally crossed the 1,000-run threshold when his eighth boundary, a crisp shot through midwicket off Mark Davies, took him to 43. By then Worcestershire had lost their openers, Matt Pardoe and Daryl Mitchell both giving slip catches in a spell of 2 for 23 by Darren Stevens, and soon after afterwards Thilan Samaraweera was taken behind the wicket off Calum Haggett.For Kent it was another day of consolidation in their recovery from a dismal start to the season. Bottom of the division at the halfway stage, their campaign began to pick up with a first win against Gloucestershire at Cheltenham. Now they are looking a stronger, more competitive unit. Their seamers pegged away with the necessary accuracy and the pressure led to mistakes by Worcestershire’s top order, although it was a switch to Tredwell’s spin that accounted for Moeen.After batting for two and a half hours, a loose shot to mid-on sparked off a collapse in which Ben Cox, Joe Leach and Gareth Andrew were all snapped in a ring of close catchers.When the seventh wicket fell at 158, Worcestershire still needed 15 to make Kent bat again but Shantry cleared that hurdle with two cover driven boundaries in an over from Davies. This seemed to take the momentum out of Kent and Fell, who made s duck in his only previous Championship innings against Glamorgan, cashed in with 10 fours.

Ireland have a huge challenge ahead of them in the World Twenty20, having been grouped with one of the favourites, West Indies, and a team with a reputation for doing well on the world stage, Australia

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Sep-2012Ireland have a huge challenge ahead of them in the World Twenty20, having been grouped with one of the favourites, West Indies, and a team with a reputation for doing well on the world stage, Australia. They had made a splash in the 2011 World Cup with a thrilling defeat of England, and their captain William Porterfield was certain Ireland would not be pushovers in Sri Lanka.”We are confident with ourselves, with what we’ve got in terms of player potential,” Porterfield said. “Craig McDermott (who recently joined as Ireland’s bowling coach) has fit in pretty well, working with the bowlers. They’ve been taking confidence from him with the fact that he was with Australia before us but he’s come in and he’s seen what we’ve got and he’s got a lot of confidence within the squad that we can go out there and beat anyone.”Ireland had a strong showing in the qualifying tournament six months ago in Dubai, where they won all but one of their 11 matches. Since then, they have played only three official T20s, losing all of them to Bangladesh. Porterfield, though, was happy with the lead-up to the World T20.”The majority of the lads have been here about a week or so and we’ve had a couple of games so we’ve got some game time in the middle,” he said. “Preparations have gone really well so far.”Since we qualified in March we’ve had a season’s cricket in between but it’s always been something all the lads have had half an eye on throughout the season as we knew we were going to finish off with the World Cup in Sri Lanka and it’s obviously the subcontinent, so it’s a great atmosphere and a great place to play cricket.”With the World T20’s first round featuring only two matches per side, Porterfield wanted Ireland to make a strong start. “Our first game is against Australia,” he said, “so it’s important we start well. There are groups of three teams so you’ve got to win at least one game if not two to go through out of the groups.”Ireland have a warm-up game against Zimbabwe on Thursday and another against Bangladesh on Monday before the match against Australia next Wednesday.

Midlands rivals complete the double with four-wicket win at Grace Road

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Jul-2024Veteran allrounder Samit Patel tormented Leicestershire Foxes for the second time this Vitality Blast season as Derbyshire Falcons completed a double over their East Midlands neighbours in the North Group to lift their hopes of qualifying for the quarter-finals.The 39-year-old Falcons skipper, whose 64 was the difference when the sides met at Edgbaston at the start of the campaign, hit nine fours and two sixes in an unbeaten 67 as Derbyshire chased down 185 to win by four wickets with four balls to spare.Ben Cox hit four sixes in a 30-ball unbeaten 61 and Lewis Goldsworthy 48 from 41 as the Foxes finished strongly to post 184 for six. Former Leicestershire seamer Zak Chappell took three for 42 and Patel two for 27, with Pakistan left-arm quick Mohammad Amir wicketless on his Derbyshire debut.Derbyshire had been well ahead of the required rate by posting 64 in their batting powerplay but had lost three of their key batters. Luis Reece edged behind off Mike, who then held a good low catch in the deep to remove the dangerous Aneurin Donald. Tom Scriven marked his return from a six-week injury absence by bowling David Lloyd, each of the trio falling to the eighth ball they faced.Yet with fellow veteran Wayne Madsen (46) and Patel using their nous to find the gaps in the field, the Falcons were more than halfway to their target at 96 for three after 10.They put on 80 in nine and a half overs before Madsen smacked Hull straight to New Zealand all-rounder Jimmy Neesham on the cover boundary. When Mike had Ross Whiteley leg before for a golden duck in the next over, the outcome looked less certain with 52 still needed off 33 balls.Brooke Guest was caught off a top edge to give 19-year-old Sam Wood his first senior wicket but there was no pinning down Patel, who continued to find the rope as the last over arrived with the scores level, Chappell hitting the winning boundary.Earlier, Patel had seen a quick reward for deciding to field first as the Foxes lost three wickets for 45 in the powerplay, with early indications that taking the pace off would be an effective tactic.Chappell, hit for two fours and a six, responded by bowling Sol Budinger with a slower ball and held another one back a touch to similarly dismiss Rishi Patel, with Paul Stirling run out in between, his first innings for the Foxes ended by Madsen’s direct hit from midwicket.The home side slipped to 78 for five by the 11th over. Neesham’s first innings as a Leicestershire player encompassed a stumping chance survived off Alex Thomson before he was bowled by Patel, with Louis Kimber following a big six over the leg side by hitting the left-arm spinner’s next ball down straight to long off.But Goldsworthy and Cox sensibly gave themselves time to get the measure of the pitch and their 48 off four and a half overs until the former was caught on the cover boundary created an opportunity for Cox to attack in the last four overs.He had some luck on 10, his first attempt to clear the ropes dropped by Thomson, who lost the ball in the sun, but cashed in by hammering four sixes in the last four overs, scoring 44 of the 58 runs added.

Three times at the SCG the TV official ruled that slip catches hadn’t carried

AAP and ESPNcricinfo staff08-Jan-2023Pat Cummins says there has to be a better way for the third umpire to adjudicate on catches after Richard Kettleborough was forced to make three contentious decisions during the third Test.Sydney match umpires lodged reviews for three catches taken low to the ground in the slips at the SCG. On each occasion, third umpire Kettleborough found evidence the ball had touched the ground before the fielder was able to control it. Consequently, none of the catches were given.Cummins’ team-mates Marnus Labuschagne and Josh Hazlewood previously suggested the first step to changing the way such catches were officiated would be to scrap the on-field umpire’s soft signal, given the third umpire overturned it on two of the three occasions, although that decision now only becomes a factor if technology fails or is unavailable for the third umpire.Related

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• Australia don't make big spin gains at SCG ahead of India tour

“I don’t really know the answers but there has to be a way to try and improve it somehow,” Cummins said after the Test against South Africa ended in a draw. “As it currently stands, it’s really hard to give a batter out. If there’s any kind of benefit of the doubt, it goes the batter’s way.”I think with a couple of camera angles really slowed down, it’s pretty hard to not find doubt somewhere. I do feel for Ketts a little bit up there.”In making a decision, the third umpire only has access to footage from the host broadcaster, Fox Sports and not from Seven Network cameras.”Maybe there’s more cameras we can use down the track,” Cummins said.South Africa captain Dean Elgar was visibly frustrated when his side was on the receiving end of the first non-catch call but at stumps said he was pleased the umpires remained consistent throughout the match.”The way the umpires conducted the three was pretty good. I think it was brilliant,” he said. “Once you’ve set the bar with the first one, you can’t really budge much from there.”Those things are always going to be a grey area, some guys will say out, some guys will say not out. At the end of the day, their decision is final and as players we respect that.”

Batting consultant praises Joe Root’s enduring drive ahead of his 100th Test

Andrew Miller03-Feb-2021Jonathan Trott, England’s batting consultant in India, has stressed the importance of big first-innings runs, with contributions all down the order, as the team puts in its final preparations ahead of Friday’s opening Test at Chennai.Trott, who has taken over the role filled by Jacques Kallis in Sri Lanka, was a part of the last England side to win a series in India in 2012-13 – a campaign in which Joe Root, now set to play his 100th Test, made his first England appearance in a series-settling draw in Nagpur.And just as that triumph was built on England’s ability to put big first-innings runs on the board – they posted scores of 413 and 523 in their two victories at Mumbai and Kolkata – so too will be their hopes of competing against an India side riding high after a hard-fought series win in Australia.”The message varies from player to player, but the fundamentals of playing in India are pretty much the same,” Trott said. “It’s about big runs in the first innings, like anywhere else, but in India it’s really, really important.”Although England can expect a typically stiff examination of their techniques against spin, with R Ashwin fit again, and either Axar Patel or Kuldeep Yadav set to partner him, Trott also stressed that India’s pace attack is a match for any line-up in the game, with Jasprit Bumrah and Ishant Sharma the probable spearheads in Chennai.”We saw their pace attack in Australia do really well, and they’re very talented all round with the ball,” he said. “For batters nowadays, as you go around the world, everyone’s got a good pace attack, so it’s crucially important to prepare for both.”I wouldn’t reinvent the wheel with the guys,” he added. “But it’s about making sure that they’re in the right space and ready to do whatever the conditions dictate, and that their all-round game is in tip top shape. That comes down to us as coaches, but also as players taking responsibility, not only in training but in the matches as well.”Confronting the new ball and perhaps the reversing ball, with spin in the middle, and the seamers doing a very good holding job, your skill level has to be very high, especially when playing in the heat and humidity of Chennai. You have to be very, very switched on.Related

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“And we saw in Sri Lanka that you need to play good cricket for all the four-five days that the Test lasts. It’s not just about first innings, but being able to back it up as batsmen and bowlers in the second innings as well, because that’s when the games are won and lost.”England’s options with bat and ball are set to be boosted by the return of Ben Stokes, who missed the Sri Lanka leg of the winter but has been training in Chennai since Sunday. And with both Moeen Ali and Chris Woakes available again after coming through their Covid quarantine periods in Sri Lanka, England have the ability to field a deeper batting line-up than was the case in Galle, where Dom Bess produced a gutsy 32 from No. 8 to help turn the tide in the second Test.”[Depth] is key,” Trott admitted. “It’s always a luxury if you can, but you have to make sure you have the right options with the ball as well, and I think that’s paramount when it comes to winning Test matches.”You try to find that balance all the time, so that’s why we’re very lucky to have a player like Ben Stokes, but it’s key for everybody to make sure that they have a good game plan as a batter, and make sure that they can chip in and hold up an end.”Even if you’re down at the lower end of the order, [you have to] understand what your role is, so working with those guys is always enjoyable for myself as a batting coach, and making sure that the guys are ready to perform.”All eyes, however, are bound to be on Root as he embarks on his 100th Test, fresh from an outstanding series in Sri Lanka where his haul of 426 runs was instrumental in England’s triumph. And looking back on his debut series, Trott admitted his success had not come as a surprise.”He’s certainly baby-faced still,” he said. “You wouldn’t say he’s played 100 Test matches compared the crow’s feet that most guys get from playing so much cricket in the sun.”But I wouldn’t be surprised one bit. On that tour [in 2012], he came into the warm-up games and impressed everybody, not only by his skill but the way that he conducted himself.”He was new to the scene then, but he’s gone from strength to strength. He leads by example, he still has a passion for the game and the desire to improve. I think that rubs off on everyone and England are very lucky to have a guy like that leading from the front and batting in the middle order.”

Jeetan Patel, the former New Zealand offspinner, has been named as Warwickshire’s new first-class and one-day captain

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Nov-2017Jeetan Patel, the former New Zealand offspinner, has been named as Warwickshire’s new first-class and one-day captain, with Grant Elliott continuing to lead Birmingham Bears in the NatWest T20 Blast.Patel, 37, joined the club in 2009 and has been their overseas player across all formats since 2012, during which time he has played a part in three domestic trophies, including the County Championship in 2012, the T20 Blast in 2014, and Royal London Cup in 2016.All told, he has taken 353 first-class, 102 List A and 113 T20 wickets for the club and was named as the PCA County Most Valuable Player in both 2014 and 2016 and runner-up in 2017.His appointment comes at a difficult time for Warwickshire, who were relegated from the top flight of the County Championship last season. Ian Bell, the former club captain stood down towards the end of the season following a loss of form, and was initially replaced by his former England team-mate, Jonathan Trott.”We’re thrilled to have Jeetan returning to the club in April as our captain,” said Ashley Giles, Warwickshire’s director of sport. “He’s a true Bear, who has won all three domestic competitions at the club, and sets exceptionally high standards on and off the pitch.”In addition to being one of the best cricketers on the county circuit for several years, Jeetan has played a key role in mentoring our young spin bowlers and we believe that he will be an excellent leader as we continue our transition and build a platform for more success in the future.”Patel said: “I absolutely love playing for Warwickshire and it’s a great honour to return to Edgbaston in 2018 as club captain. When you look at the guys who have captained the club over the years and what they have achieved, it is amazing to go on that list.”It’s all about looking forward now though and working hard with the current group of players to try to create something special for the club and supporters in the years ahead. Last season was a difficult one but every club goes through transitions and the important thing is how people react. The challenge is there for us to rebuild and go again.”As part of that redevelopment, the club have named Dom Sibley as the new vice-captain, following his arrival from Surrey in August. Sibley, 22, made an immediate impact with 191 runs in seven T20 games to help the Bears to the Final of the T20 Blast, and he also scored 310 runs in six County Championship appearances.”Dom made a significant impact after joining the club at a difficult time last season and we saw some real fight and character in the innings that he played,” Giles said. “He’s fitted well into the changing room and by working closer with Jeetan, Grant and the other experienced players, we believe that he can also develop into an excellent leader.”

While the exact terms of the contract are not yet known, reports suggest it could make him a million-dollar player in the BBL

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Oct-2017Chris Lynn has signed a new five-year deal with the Big Bash League franchise Brisbane Heat. The franchise has called it “the biggest deal in BBL history”, although among Australian players, Aaron Finch is also on a lucrative long-term deal having signed with Melbourne Renegades for three seasons in August 2016.The exact terms of Lynn’s contract are not yet known, but reports suggest it could make him a million-dollar player in the BBL.Heat have also announced two-year deals for coaches Daniel Vettori and Shane Bond. “The fact we have locked-up Dan and Shane and a good proportion of our squad for the next few years bodes well for the future,” Lynn told the franchise’s website. “The Heat has evolved into a club for all Queensland fans and we’re determined to make a success of the opportunity we have ahead of us. It was one of the best experiences of my career to play in front of five sold-out home crowds at the Gabba.”To be in the same side as a legend like Brendon McCullum and enjoy some success along the way made it even more memorable. I’m honoured that the Heat have shown confidence in me for the coming seasons and given us the opportunity to achieve something special as a club in the future.”Lynn has spent his entire BBL career with Heat, scoring 1459 runs for them at an average of 39.43 and a strike rate of 155.04. He had an phenomenal 2016-17 season, scoring 309 runs in five innings while only being dismissed twice, at a strike rate of 177.58.Numbers of that nature make Lynn one of Australian cricket’s most exciting talents – when fit. He has suffered persistent shoulder injuries, and he is currently recovering after undergoing surgery. He has missed the start of Australia’s home season – including the entirety of the domestic one-day tournament – for the fourth year running, and has not been offered a Queensland contract for 2017-18.Lynn said that his recovery was proceeding steadily. “I’ve had some good reports from the surgeon and the QC medical staff and we’re working to the recovery plan. It is feeling okay now, although there is still a way to go.”

Chris Rushworth beat Ottis Gibson’s record for most wickets in a season but Middlesex’s greater all-round bowling strength has put them in pole position for victory at Chester-le-Street

ECB/PA23-Aug-2015
ScorecardChris Rushworth has beaten Ottis Gibson’s Durham wickets record•Getty Images

Neil Dexter’s 13th first-class century helped Middlesex take command of their match against Durham at Chester-le-Street, although their victory march was delayed by Scott Borthwick.Needing 308 to win, Durham go into the final day on 134 for 5 with Borthwick unbeaten on 68. They are 16 points behind their second-placed visitors and, although unlikely, victory could take them ahead with Middlesex running the risk of a points deduction. Their over-rate was reading minus four when they finally turned to Ollie Rayner four overs from the close.Batting was easier under clear skies than on the first day and a half, but Middlesex persevered with seam as their trio of Tim Murtagh, Toby Roland-Jones and James Harris proved the more effective unit.Chris Rushworth recorded his seventh five-wicket haul of the season, so beating the county record of 80 first class wickets in a season by Ottis Gibson, reinstalled recently as England’s bowling coach, a record which he had equalled the previous day, but he had limited support as Middlesex totalled 280 in their second innings.Graham Onions added two wickets to his seven in the first innings, but John Hastings was clearly struggling after playing in every match this season and debut boy James Weighell remained wicketless.Durham had to turn to the spinners after the only wicket in the first 90 minutes came from a ball well wide of leg stump, which Dawid Malan was adjudged to have nicked to the wicketkeeper.Ryan Pringle conceded 19 in his first three overs, Dexter driving him over long-on for six to celebrate his century, in which his fluent driving saw his second 50 come off 55 balls.But when the off-spinner went round the wicket Dexter nibbled at one outside off stump and edged behind to depart for 112.
Borthwick came on for the next over and struck with his first ball, a full toss which had John Simpson lbw when he missed an attempted sweep. Rayner failed to heed the lesson as he went the same way in the leg-spinner’s next over.Three wickets had gone down for one run and only nine more were added before Roland-Jones lofted Onions gently to mid-off.Reserve wicketkeeper Stuart Poynter, briefly substituting for Mark Stoneman, dropped it and a further 51 were added before Rushworth took the last two wickets with the new ball. It was the second costly miss of the innings as Malan was dropped first ball and made 63.Durham’s rookie opener Graham Clark bagged a pair when he edged the second ball he faced from Roland-Jones and the rest were all lbw.Only Paul Collingwood, who made 20, looked likely to give prolonged support to Borthwick, who rarely looked troubled in reaching his eighth championship 50 of the season off 95 balls.

For all the outcry, the ICC annual conference remained wedded to a 10-team World Cup looks set to go ahead in England – and the ECB’s unyielding attitude has caused resentment from Ireland and Scotland in particular

Tim Wigmore01-Jul-2015For the 95 Associate and Affiliate members of the ICC, the most significant part of the recent annual conference was what was not announced. There was no formal discussion of the format of the next two World Cups, effectively confirming that the 2019 and 2023 tournaments will be three days longer than the 2015 edition but reduced to ten teams.”The only information that I’ve had from the ‘Big Three’ was that it was extremely difficult to unpick the TV rights and to change things,” Ross McCollom, chairman of Cricket Ireland, said in reference to the takeover by India, England and Australia. The ICC’s broadcasting deal with Star Sports, agreed last October, guaranteed India nine games in the 2019 and 2023 World Cups.Scotland captain Preston Mommsen has made clear his disgust at the attitude of England who, as hosts of the 2019 tournament and a prime mover in restructuring the governing body, were critical to the ICC’s decision-making.Giles Clarke, the ECB president, is known to be a strong supporter of the move; a senior ICC source recently described him as “hell bent” on a 10-team World Cup. The ECB chose not to explain its stance.”There is anger at what I’m reading about the ECB and their input into this ICC meeting,” Mommsen said. “That’s going to make me and my Associate colleagues very angry that they’ve taken such a selfish and narrow-minded approach to the entire decision-making process. It’s very short-sighted and not good for the growth of the global game.”He added that the proximity of leading Associates to England made the possibility that none would qualify for the 2019 World Cup “a serious missed opportunity”.”I don’t think they have any right to call it a World Cup,” Mommsen said. “It’s completely regressive when you compare it to other global sports. It’s beyond belief that this is actually happening in 2015.”The idea and dream of playing in a World Cup is what inspired me to try and play for Scotland. I’m sure it was the carrot for many current and past Scottish players to play the game.”Mommsen fears that the reduction in teams for the World Cup will “significantly impact upon the younger generation. It’s going to be even more of a challenge now for Cricket Scotland to keep growing the sport.”Mommsen even suggested that “taking that to a higher body is something that I have no doubt will be looked at by the top Associate nations”. In 2011, there was talk of Associate nations challenging the original plans to make the 2015 World Cup ten teams in the Court of Arbitration for Sport, although this time there is at least the prospect of a qualifying tournament for the last two spots.His frustration is exacerbated by the performance of the Associates in the 2015 World Cup, and the support Martin Crowe, Kumar Sangakkara, Sachin Tendulkar and many others gave to their presence.”It’s probably the best tournament that Associates have had,” Mommsen said. “The ICC could actually take a lot of credit for all their hard work but instead of embracing that instead that they’ve decided to take away all the hard work.”It would be good to know the facts of why this decision has been made. Clearly money is a huge factor but that can’t be the only factor,” Mommsen said, arguing that the ICC could make far more money in the long run by displaying a more inclusive attitude. “The deal is short sighted in terms of markets that could be tapped into in the longer term. If you gave other countries the chance to a) take part and b) try and take part that opens the door.”While less withering than Mommsen, Willie Donald, the acting chief executive of Cricket Scotland, was also exasperated by the news. “If England haven’t supported wider access to the World Cup then that is unfortunate,” he said. “We share the disappointment of the other associates.”Donald suggested that there was a “bipolar situation” in the ICC, contrasting the genuine efforts made to expand cricket with “the decision to corner the market”.Niall O’Brien, who has played in all three World Cups in Ireland’s history, said that “we wouldn’t be where we are now” if Ireland hadn’t participated in the 2007 World Cup, which was a 16-team tournament. “If that’s not as possible for a young lad now they may well choose a different sport.””All the other sports are expanding their World Cups and we don’t see why we should be shrinking ours,” he said. “It’s gut-wrenching. It’s just a bit sad that potentially Ireland have played in their last World Cup.”O’Brien added that it was “very strange” that the 2019 World Cup qualifier will be in Bangladesh, while the 2023 World Cup qualifier has been awarded to Zimbabwe. “The ICC obviously don’t want a Full Member to miss out on the tournament,” he said. The previous World Cup qualifier was in New Zealand, replicating the conditions in the main tournament.But McCollom suggested that Ireland had not yet completely given up hope that the decision to contract the World Cup might be reversed.
“It’s not like they’ve never changed decisions before so we’ll always live in hope that they might see the light and change their minds,” he said. “The quote that they’re trying to use is a bigger, better global game but reducing the size of the World Cup doesn’t back up what they’re saying.”While Ireland have led the opposition to previous ICC decisions, they have been comparatively less vociferous in opposing the steps taken to reduce the World Cup, reflecting their hope that the new ODI 12-team structure will lead to more fixtures.McCollom conceded that it had been “extremely frustrating” trying to secure games against Test nations but added, “there is traction happening”. It is understood that Ireland hope to host both Sri Lanka and Pakistan for two-match ODI series in 2016; they are also likely to play a triangular series with Afghanistan in Zimbabwe this October, with the same three teams playing in a tri-series in Ireland next year.Tim Anderson, the ICC’s well-respected head of global development, last week asserted that Associate cricket was “in a much better place now than say it was six or 12 months ago” despite the World Cup decision.However, it is far from clear that Associates themselves agree. “I’m not even sure we’re in an equal place – we’re in a new place and a different place,” Donald said.Tim Cutler, the chief executive of Hong Kong, was also not convinced. “With the World T20 now out to four years and the reduction in World Cup teams I would have to say the assertion that there are now more opportunities for Associates and Affiliates isn’t entirely accurate,” he said. “It’s quite a bitter pill to swallow.”Cutler also argued for cricket to strongly consider making a push for Olympic status, something staunchly opposed by England and India. “Perhaps a sixes tournament in the Olympics could be the shop window opportunity for us to showcase our great sport without compromising media deals,” he said. “Even the cynics cannot deny that the potential of national investment in new markets like China is appealing.”Based on the example of rugby sevens, the Chinese Cricket Association would expect to receive $20 million a year from the Chinese government if cricket was included in the Olympics. They currently receive only $30,000 a year from the ICC.