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• Michael Vaughan cleared of ECB racism charge

  Former England captain Michael Vaughan has been cleared of bringing cricket into disrepute by using racist language.

  The 48-year-old former batter had been accused of saying there were "too many of you lot", referring to Asian players prior to Yorkshire's T20 match against Nottinghamshire in 2009.

  Vaughan's lawyers had accused the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) of being biased in their investigation into the allegations, with cricket discipline commission (CDC) hearings ending in early March.

  Now the former Yorkshire player has seen the charge against him dismissed, with the CDC saying the claims Vaughan faced were "not proved".

  The case against Vaughan was made amid Azeem Rafiq's allegations of institutional racism at Yorkshire, which have led to major cultural and personnel changes at Headingley.

  Vaughan repeatedly and categorically denied the allegations he faced, which had been supported by former Yorkshire player Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and current England white-ball specialist Adil Rashid.

  Vaughan said on Friday: "It has been both difficult and upsetting to hear about the painful experiences which Azeem has described over the past three years. The outcome of these CDC proceedings must not be allowed to detract from the core message that there can be no place for racism in the game of cricket, or in society generally.

  "As with others who have spoken about their time at Yorkshire, I can only speak of my own experiences and of my own time there. The dismissal of the specific charge that concerned me takes nothing away from Azeem's own lived experiences.

  "The hearing made public that Azeem and I met 18 months ago, well before the CDC proceedings came into existence. I told him then that I am sorry for his unacceptable, negative experiences at the club I love and in the sport I love.

  "We had what I thought was a really positive and constructive discussion. We shook hands with a shared intention to work together in order to create positive change in cricket. For my part, nothing has altered in that respect. There is still a job to do and I remain keen to help bring about positive change in any way that I can."

  Vaughan added: "Now that the ECB's charge against me has been dismissed, I want to thank the panel for their careful attention in very difficult circumstances and to thank all of those who have given me their support during an incredibly difficult period in my life."

  The CDC disciplinary panel said in its decision: "The panel is not satisfied on the balance of probabilities that these words were spoken by MV [Vaughan] at the time and in the specific circumstances alleged."

  It added: "The panel has been required to concentrate on the focussed evidence presented to it by both parties in respect of one comment, made in two parts, on an afternoon now nearly 14 years ago.

  "This is not a case which necessitated a conclusion from the panel that anyone has lied or acted out of malice. Far from it, the panel had to consider whether the case as presented to it by the ECB, in light of all the evidence, was sufficiently accurate and reliable, on the balance of probabilities, to rule out mistake. It was not."

• South Africa v Netherlands preview: Proteas looking to secure World Cup berth

  South Africa will face the Netherlands in two ODIs that could define their entire year, aiming to seal their place at the World Cup.

  Following an exciting but disappointing 2-1 defeat against West Indies, the Proteas need to win both matches against the Dutch and hope Ireland lose at least one of their three clashes with Bangladesh in May.

  The top eight teams in the World Cup Super League automatically qualify for the World Cup in India, with the bottom five needing to go through further qualifiers with five associate teams.

  South Africa sit in 10th place, behind West Indies (eighth) and Sri Lanka (ninth), and ahead of Ireland in 11th, but two victories will take them up to eighth.

  Their matches against the Dutch will be the conclusion of a three-match series that was supposed to take place in late 2021, but following no result in the first contest, the second two were postponed due to concerns around a COVID-19 variant.

  Now that those matches are due to be played, South Africa find themselves needing to take them seriously and have selected a strong squad accordingly.

  Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, David Miller and Aiden Markram are among those to have been made available by Cricket South Africa despite their impending involvement in the IPL.

  "We have named our strongest possible squad for these games given the importance of these matches in the context of qualifying for the ICC men's Cricket World Cup," South Africa's white-ball coach Rob Walter said.

  "We have a job to do and I am confident that with this group of players, we can get the job done."

  The Netherlands bring the same squad that lost 2-1 in Zimbabwe, which included a dramatic one-run victory for the hosts in Harare in the second of their three encounters.

  Roelof van der Merwe could feature for the first time since the first match of this series against the nation he used to represent.

  Fast bowlers Paul van Meekeren and Fred Klaassen returned against Zimbabwe, but the Dutch will be without Brandon Glover, Bas de Leede and Colin Ackermann due to county commitments.

  De Kock looking to emulate Williamson and Warner

  Quinton de Kock (5,949) is just 51 runs away from becoming the seventh player to score 6,000 for South Africa in men's ODIs.

  Should he do so in the first match against the Netherlands, he will be the joint-third fastest player (139 matches) to reach the landmark in the history of the format with New Zealand's Kane Williamson and Australia's David Warner.

  Dutch looking for another rare win

  While they sit comfortably bottom of the World Cup Super League, the Netherlands can at least take solace in getting a rare win in their series against Zimbabwe.

  Their three-wicket victory on March 21 was the only win of their last 18 men's ODIs (L17).

• Republic Bank announced as new CPL title sponsor in three-year deal

  Republic Bank Limited, the largest indigenous bank in the English-speaking Caribbean, has been announced as the new title sponsor and official bank of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL).

  The announcement was made by CPL Chief Executive Officer, Pete Russell, in a press conference held Wednesday in Port of Spain to launch the 2023 season of the T20 cricket tournament.

   Having previously sponsored the CPL as the official banking partner since 2015, the bank will now assume the league’s highest sponsorship profile for the next three (3) years.

  Republic Bank has also been confirmed as a partner for the Women’s Caribbean Premier League (WCPL) which will return in 2023 for its second edition. The WCPL sees the best female cricketers from across the region and around the world showcase their skills in front of a huge global audience.

  “Republic Bank are the perfect partner for the CPL and WCPL, a company that shares our passion for cricket and Caribbean culture,” said Pete Russell, CEO of the Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League.

  “The CPL is a driver of economic growth and the creation of jobs, so having a financial group like Republic Bank as the title sponsor makes perfect sense. In addition, Republic Bank has a great track record of spreading the love of cricket across the region, something that is important to all of us at the CPL.”

  Nigel Baptiste, Group President and Chief Executive Officer for the Republic Group, said: “We are excited to be the Title Sponsor and Official Bank of the Caribbean Premier League. Cricket is hugely important to Caribbean heritage, culture, community and youth development and as the Caribbean’s largest sporting event and one of its most significant sport entertainment exports, the CPL demonstrates to the world the Caribbean’s capability and prowess, illustrates our talent and future potential, and showcases our joyous and incomparable spirit.”