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• Harry Brook blocks himself from ‘negativity’ by withdrawing from social media

  Harry Brook has shielded himself from the recent negativity around England from outside the camp by withdrawing from social media, believing his mental health has been boosted as a result.

  Up until the last couple of months, Brook’s international career had been an unqualified success, with starring roles in the ‘Bazball’ revolution after gatecrashing the Test middle order while he was an ever-present in England’s T20 World Cup triumph last year.

  By his own admission, Brook has found the one-day format a tougher nut to crack and averaged 28.16 in England’s grim World Cup campaign, but there are indications he is starting to find his feet after a promising innings of 71 in Antigua on Sunday.

  England’s defeat in the first ODI against West Indies has deepened the sense of gloom but Brook has insulated himself from criticism by leaving his X and Instagram accounts to his handlers.

  “I’ve been off social media for a while now, anything I stumble across, I delete it from the phone,” he said.

  “I haven’t really seen any negativity, I think that’s helped my game, helped my mental health and everything to be off social media and seeing all the negativity that brings.”

  Earlier this year, Brook followed up three low scores at the Indian Premier League with a century and took aim at his detractors, saying with an impish grin in an interview: “I’m glad I could shut them up.”

  He was relentlessly targeted for abuse after struggling for the rest of the event and the Yorkshireman admitted he chose his words poorly.

  “I was an idiot and I said that stupid thing in an interview which I regret a little bit,” he said.

  “In India, you end up sitting in your hotel room, not much to do so I find myself just scrolling Instagram or Twitter or whatever and come across stuff you just don’t want to see.

  “I thought it was the right idea to get off it. I’ve obviously still got Instagram and Twitter but thankfully I’ve got someone running it for me.”

  Having been discarded by Sunrisers Hyderabad, Brook has entered into next year’s IPL auction, extending a hectic winter programme with England.

  The 24-year-old revealed he was tired following the World Cup but had no inclination to skip the white-ball tour of the Caribbean, after which England play a five-Test series in India, starting next month.

  “I probably felt like I needed a little bit of a break after the World Cup, to be honest,” Brook said.

  “It wears you out. Obviously we didn’t have a great competition as well, which didn’t help.

  “To have a little two-week break at home was refreshing. But I’m happy to be out here, to be honest. I feel like I’ve got some things I need to work on especially in one-day cricket.”

  Brook, who had no hesitation in “straight away” signing a three-year England central contract in October, is one of the country’s few three-format players and has no plans for slowing down.

  For now, though, he is keen to finesse his batting in ODIs. While he has now played 13 times for England in the format – all in 2023 – his 50-over opportunities for Yorkshire in recent years have been limited as the domestic competition clashes, controversially, with The Hundred.

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  “I want to play as much as I can for England,” Brook added.

  “Until the summer I hadn’t played anything (in ODIs). I was just trying to figure out, find my feet in the format really and try to find a tempo with the way I wanted to bat.

  “England have been renowned for being an aggressive side but there’s always so much time. The other day was a perfect example of that.

  “It was about nine overs from the end that I got out and I felt like I was sat up on the balcony watching for about three hours. There’s so much more time than you actually think.”

  England are unlikely to ring the changes on Wednesday despite a four-wicket defeat at the weekend for a match, on a fresh pitch, they must win to send the series to a decider in Barbados on Saturday.

• Maia Bouchier and Danielle Gibson handed their first central contracts by ECB

  Maia Bouchier and Danielle Gibson have been handed their first central contracts by the England and Wales Cricket Board.

  England Women have once again issued 18 full-time deals, with the retired Katherine Sciver-Brunt and the dropped Freya Davies the only omissions from last year’s list.

  Bouchier is rewarded following a season that ended with her cracking a career-best 95 against Sri Lanka in the final ODI of the campaign, while Gibson made her debut in the T20 leg of this summer’s Ashes contest.

  Issy Wong remains in the group despite a difficult year that saw high expectations meet mixed form on the field.

  In addition, supplementary development contracts have been handed to rising stars Mahika Gaur, Lauren Filer and Bess Heath, all of whom broke into the international setup over the summer.

  While the men’s side moved recently to a system of multi-year contracts, with several leading players tied into two and three-year arrangements, the women’s squad remains on 12-month agreements.

  Yet the ECB has announced that the terms include “significant structural improvements” as well as increased bonuses for victories over the strongest opposition and the previously-announced upgrade to match fees, which are now equal with the men’s team.

  England director of women’s cricket, Jonathan Finch said: “Maia Bouchier and Danielle Gibson have been part of our group over the summer, have performed well and will be important players for England moving forward.

  “The introduction of development contracts is a key step for us and allows us to support a wider group of players in their ongoing development and we will work closely with the regions to manage the players’ development and workloads.

  “After a record-breaking Ashes summer, we have a really exciting 12 months of cricket ahead and we feel this group of players will form the foundations of our side that will take us through various bilateral series and the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.”

  England conclude their 2023 calendar on tour in India, with three T20s at Mumbai’s storied Wankhede Stadium this week followed by a one-off Test at the DY Patil Stadium.

  For many, including Sarah Glenn, it is a first chance to experience cricket in India, where England last toured in 2019.

  As a leg-spinner, Glenn is particularly keen to explore her game in a nation that has produced some of the finest slow bowlers ever.

  Speaking ahead of Wednesday’s series opener, Glenn said: “I’m really excited. I’ve never played in India before or in front of Indian crowds, so it’s something new for me.

  “It’s something I’ve always looked forward to and wanted to be part of.

  “This tour is more than just games, it’s a chance to develop my game here, learn off others with how they go about it and see where I can take my spin bowling.

  “I’m always looking to improve, so I’ll have a play around with it and see what is the best way to take wickets.”

• Mitchell Johnson: Does David Warner deserve to sign off from Tests on own terms?

  Mitchell Johnson has launched on astonishing broadside at David Warner, questioning whether his former Australia team-mate deserves to sign off from Tests on his own terms.

  Warner has been Australia’s linchpin opener for over a decade and key to their World Cup triumph, but he expressed his wish to retire from Tests at the end of their series against Pakistan in Sydney next month.

  He has been named in their squad for the first match in Perth, starting on December 14, despite averaging 28.9 in his last 25 Tests, amassing just one hundred – albeit a double ton – in that time.

  But Warner was criticised for trying to organise his own farewell by former fast bowler Johnson, who thinks the 37-year-old is undeserving of one, pointing to his role in the 2018 ball-tampering saga.

  In his column for The West Australian, Johnson, who represented Australia 256 times in all formats, wrote: “It’s been five years and David Warner has still never really owned the ball-tampering scandal.

  “He has a decent overall record and some say is one of our greatest opening bats. But his past three years in Test cricket have been ordinary, with a batting average closer to what a tailender would be happy with.

  “Now the way he is going out is underpinned by more of the same arrogance and disrespect to our country. As we prepare for David Warner’s farewell series, can somebody please tell me why?

  “Why a struggling Test opener gets to nominate his own retirement date. And why a player at the centre of one of the biggest scandals in Australian cricket history warrants a hero’s send-off?”

  Johnson, who played 26 Tests alongside Warner including the 2013/14 Ashes in which the former left-arm fast bowler terrorised England, also censured Australia’s selectors.

  George Bailey, Australia’s chief selector and another former team-mate of Johnson, was accused of being too close to some players.

  “The handling of Warner in recent years, who played with Bailey in all three forms, raises the question of whether Bailey was simply too quickly out of playing and into the job and too close to some of the players,” Johnson added.

  Responding to Johnson’s critique, Bailey told a press conference: “Ultimately, we still think (Warner) is in our best 11 players to win the first Test.”