England have named nine uncapped players in a new ODI squad for the series against Pakistan following a coronavirus outbreak in the initial party.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) revealed three players and four members of the management team returned positive tests in Bristol on Monday and will observe a period of self-isolation.

Due to being deemed as close contacts, the remaining members of the ODI party must also isolate.

The selectors were forced to pick a new squad two days before the first match at Lord's, with Ben Stokes returning to captain the side and Chris Silverwood back from a break to replace Paul Collingwood as head coach.

Test duo Zak Crawley and Dan Lawrence got the nod along with fellow batsmen Will Jacks, Phil Salt and all-rounder Lewis Gregory.

Brydon Carse, Tom Helm, John Simpson and David Payne could also make their ODI debuts.

Dawid Malan and James Vince, who was among the players pulled out of ongoing County Championship matches for unexpected England duty, were also named in the squad.

Incoming squad and support team members will follow PCR tests and bridging protocols to ensure safe entry to camp.

Managing director of England men's cricket, Ashley Giles, said: "It's a great opportunity to play on the biggest stage, and for most of the players selected it's not necessarily something they would have been expecting 24 hours ago.

"It's an exciting group of players, with some young talent and some players who have impressed at domestic level over a long period of time.

"We're in unprecedented territory, in terms of replacing an entire squad and management team, and I'm very proud of how everyone has come together in order to get it done – both those within the ECB and from the county game.

"Ben hasn't captained our ODI side before so it's a huge honour for him. We all wish him well and it's a role I'm sure he'll thrive in.

"I'd like to also put on record the thanks of the ECB to the PCB for their support and understanding during this time."

 

England squad:

Ben Stokes (captain) Jake Ball, Danny Briggs, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Lewis Gregory, Tom Helm, Will Jacks, Dan Lawrence, Saqib Mahmood, Dawid Malan, Craig Overton, Matt Parkinson, David Payne, Phil Salt, John Simpson, James Vince.

England have been forced to name a new squad to face Pakistan after seven members of the ODI party tested positive for coronavirus.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) revealed three players and four members of the management team returned positive tests in Bristol on Monday and will observe a period of self-isolation.

Due to being deemed as close contacts, the remaining members of the ODI party must also isolate.

The ECB confirmed both the T20 and ODIs against Pakistan will go ahead, with the fit-again Ben Stokes returning to captain the side and a squad will be announced later on Tuesday.

Incoming squad and support team members will follow PCR tests and bridging protocols to ensure safe entry to camp.

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— England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 6, 2021

ECB chief executive Tom Harrison said: "We have been mindful that the emergence of the Delta variant, along with our move away from the stringent enforcement of bio secure environments, could increase the chances of an outbreak.

"We made a strategic choice to try to adapt protocols, in order to support the overall wellbeing of our players and management staff who have spent much of the last 14 months living in very restricted conditions.

"Overnight we have worked swiftly to identify a new squad, and we are grateful to Ben Stokes who will return to England duties to captain.

"We also recognise the impact this news will have on our First Class Counties and their men's playing squads and thank them."

England secured a 2-0 ODI series win over Sri Lanka, with no result possible in the final match in Bristol on Sunday due to rain.

 

James Anderson took his 1,000th first-class wicket and finished with career-best figures as Lancashire dismissed sorry Kent for only 74 on Monday.

Legendary England seamer Anderson claimed a staggering 7-19 from 10 overs on day two of the County Championship match at Old Trafford.

England's record Test wicket-taker, and holder of the most caps for his country in the longest format, tore through Kent in a stunning spell from the James Anderson End.

He took seven of the first eight Kent wickets to fall, reducing them to a pitiful 34-8.

Anderson, who turns 39 this month, reached the 1,000 mark in his 262nd first-class match and bettered his previous best first in an innings of 7-42, which came in England's defeat of West Indies at Lord's in September 2017.

That was the match in which Anderson claimed his 500th Test scalp.

Captain Stafanie Taylor took four wickets and scored an unbeaten 43 to lead the West Indies Women to a six-wicket victory over Pakistan Women at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua Sunday.

England's third ODI series clash with Sri Lanka was abandoned on Sunday after torrential rain in Bristol. 

The match was initially suspended in the 34th over of Sri Lanka's innings due to rain, although play resumed after a delay of almost 40 minutes. 

Dasun Shanaka hit an unbeaten 48 as the visitors posted 166 all out. 

England, hoping to seal a 3-0 series win, never had the chance to respond, though, the match abandoned after relentless rain for around 90 minutes following Sri Lanka's innings. 

England are next in action on Thursday in the first ODI against Pakistan in Cardiff, while Sri Lanka start their own ODI series against India on July 13. 

  West Indies Women secured an insurmountable 2-0 lead over Pakistan following a 7-runs DLS method win over Pakistan Women in the three-match T20I series in North Sound on Friday.

Electing to bat first the Windies Women complied just 125 with the DLS further reducing the target to 110.  Pakistan were 103 for 6 when the rain stopped the match.

The West Indies effort was built on the backbone of Chedean Nation and Kycia Knight, who put together a 32-run stand from 26 balls for the fifth wicket.  The batsmen were 28 and 30 not out respectively, after forming the partnership at 69 for 4 in the 14th over.

In pursuit, Pakistan got off to a tough start after the top three were sent back to the pavilion with just 25 runs on the board.  Pakistan had five run-outs, with Nida Dar top-scoring with 28.  West Indies Women coach Courtney Walsh admits he is hoping for a clean sweep.

“I don’t expect any complacency to set in. Winning is a habit to have and I want us to go out and focus on us winning the series comprehensively,” Walsh said, following the match.

 

Quinton de Kock and Aiden Markram paved the way for South Africa to claim their first Twenty20 series win since March 2019 as they held off West Indies to secure a 25-run victory.

Having decided to bat first in Grenada, Temba Bavuma's side went on to seal a decisive triumph to round off a 3-2 series success.

De Kock's 60 and Markram's 70 set the tone as the tourists reached 168-4 from 20 overs.

It proved the difference, with Evin Lewis' 52 not enough to inspire the Windies, who also lost the Test series against the Proteas 2-0.

South Africa could hardly have got off to a poorer start, however, with captain Bavuma dismissed on the third delivery of the day.

Yet thanks to the efforts of De Kock – who struck his third straight half-century – and Markram, the Proteas were on 128 by the time they next lost a wicket.

After helping to muster the highest partnership of the series for either side, De Kock picked out Andre Russell off Fidel Edwards' bowling, before Markram, who has now scored 50 or more in four of his last nine T20s, succumbed two overs later.

David Miller added 18 off 16 deliveries to ensure South Africa finished with a flourish.

Lewis went on the attack to get Windies off to a strong start, but by the time he was caught by Markram, the hosts were 75-3, having lost Lendl Simmons and Chris Gayle.

Shimron Hetmyer's 33 included two sixes, but the loss of Kieron Pollard and Andre Russell in swift succession ultimately left the Windies with too much to do, with Nicholas Pooran's dismissal the final blow to their hopes.

DE KOCK LEADS THE WAY

Though Markram was awarded with player of the match, De Kock has enjoyed a brilliant series.

His innings also included four boundaries along with a pair of sixes, while De Kock's total of 225 runs are also the most by a batter in a bilateral series. 

Lungi Ngidi (3-32), was the pick of the bunch from South Africa's bowling attack.

BOUCHER GETS A MONKEY OFF HIS BACK

This was also a huge win for South Africa coach Mark Boucher. The Proteas have hardly had much in the way of consistent success under his coaching unit, albeit the coronavirus pandemic has certainly played a part in that.

Indeed, South Africa were on a five-series losing streak in T20s, but they may just have started to turn things around.

Ollie Robinson has received an eight-match ban for historic Twitter posts of a racist and sexist nature, though the England fast bowler is free to play cricket again with immediate effect.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) had suspended Robinson while investigating the social media posts which were made between 2012 and 2014.

A Cricket Discipline Commission (CDC) panel handed the 27-year-old a ban as well as a fine of £3,200 for breaching two ECB directives, though five of the eight games are suspended for two years.

Having already missed three matches, one of which was the second Test in the home series against New Zealand, Robinson is now able to resume his career.

"I fully accept the CDC's decision. As I have said previously, I am incredibly embarrassed and ashamed about the tweets I posted many years ago and apologise unreservedly for their contents,” he said in a statement.

"I am deeply sorry for the hurt I caused to anyone who read those tweets and in particular to those people to whom the messages caused offence. This has been the most difficult time in my professional career for both my family and myself.

"Whilst I want to move on, I do want to use my experience to help others in the future through working with the PCA."

Robinson's previous posts resurfaced during the opening day of his Test debut for England against New Zealand at Lord’s, in which he claimed match figures of 7-101 while also contributing 42 runs.

He took a short break from the game before returning to action, playing for Sussex Sharks in the domestic Twenty20 competition. The judgment made by the panel means Robinson is now available to be considered for England duty.

"We accept the decisions made by the Cricket Discipline Commission and the sanctions they have imposed," Tom Harrison, the ECB's chief executive officer, said.

"Ollie has acknowledged that, whilst published a long time ago when he was a young man, these historic tweets were unacceptable. He has engaged fully in the disciplinary process, admitted the charges, has received his sanction from the CDC and will participate in training and use his experiences to help others.

"Given he has served the suspension handed down by the CDC, he will now be available for selection for England again.

"We stand against discrimination of all forms, and will continue working to ensure cricket is a welcoming and inclusive sport for all."

Meanwhile, England have announced an unchanged 16-man squad for the upcoming one-day fixtures against Pakistan on home soil. That means batsman Tom Banton – who was called up midway through the ongoing series with Sri Lanka – will remain with the group.

West Indies made it 2-2 in the five-match Twenty20 series against South Africa on Thursday, captain Kieron Pollard top-scoring with 51 and Dwayne Bravo taking four wickets. 

The Windies posted 167-6 and successfully defended the total to ensure everything is still left to play for in Saturday's final match in the T20 series. 

South Africa, who last won a T20 series in March 2019 against Sri Lanka, have not successfully chased a target above 160 since February 2018 when they beat India.

West Indies enjoyed a superb opening over, plundering 20 from the bowling of Aiden Markram – their most in the first over of a T20 and the most by any team batting first in this format.

South Africa responded well to that early setback, however, taking six wickets in the next 15 overs, with George Linde in particularly impressive form, the 29-year-old putting in the most economical performance of his T20 career, conceding just 16 runs in four overs.

The Proteas undermined their efforts in the closing stages as they conceded 66 runs in the final four overs. 

Pollard and Fabian Allen scored six sixes in that period, while the former hit three in three balls off Kagiso Rabada, who bowled his most expensive T20 over.

The impressive Pollard brought up a sixth T20 half-century and his highest score in seven innings as Lungi Ngidi's (0-48) two death overs cost 30 runs. 

Allen suffered what looked like a dislocated shoulder as he tried to cut off a Temba Bavuma sweep as South Africa attempted to start their chase strongly, with his overs made up for by Pollard and Andre Russell. 

Quinton de Kock did his best to drive his team forward, the former captain scoring a second successive half-century (60) and a sixth T20 fifty in his last 15 matches, but no other South Africa batter scored more than 20.

Bravo rolls back the years

Bravo made light of Allen's absence with a superb display. He took the wickets of Linde, de Kock, Tabraiz Shamsi and Ngidi in 12 balls in the closing stages of the match to eventually finish with career-best figures of 4-19.

Rabada sums up Proteas' woes

South Africa's chances of victory collapsed during a dismal final four overs, with Kagiso Rabada particularly generous. His penultimate over of the innings proved to be the most expensive at 25 runs, while he did not complete a full quota of four overs for the first time in a T20 match since his debut in 2014. 

Eoin Morgan will use Sunday's final ODI against Sri Lanka to rotate England's squad after a series victory was secured on Thursday.

England captain Morgan hit an unbeaten 75 to return to form at The Oval in the second ODI of the three-match series, leading England to an eight-wicket triumph.

The hard work had been done by Sam Curran, whose maiden ODI five-for dismantled Sri Lanka's top order, with David Willey (4-64) more than chipping in to limit the tourists to 241.

Jason Roy's superb 60 got England going before Morgan and his Test counterpart Joe Root (68) guided the hosts over the line with 42 deliveries to spare.

It marked Morgan's first big score since he hit 106 against Ireland in August 2020, with the one-day skipper having scored 23, 42, 23, 22 and six in his five innings between then and Thursday.

"Nice to score some runs and make a contribution to a series win," Morgan said at the post-match presentation.

 "It's worked in my favour, distractions as a captain, to not think about your batting for some time.

"The game was set up by the bowling unit, two left-armers swinging it early, and then the wicket became a bit flatter and slower and we had to sit in and build pressure to create chances."

 

"I think we'll see more changes, it's only three days away but we also have an eye on the Pakistan series, 50-over cricket is a chance to bring guys in," Morgan added when asked if he would look to introduce fresh players into the XI for the final match in Bristol.

"We're always looking to grow and get better.

"I still don't think I'm striking it that well but [it was] nice to get some time in the middle."

Curran was awarded the Player of the Match prize for his efforts of 5-48 on his home ground.

"Really special, to be playing in front of the fans, you can hear them now – an awesome atmosphere, to do it on my home ground us really special," said the Surrey bowler.

"I feel I've played a lot of cricket, feel like I'm learning, picking the brains of other guys. The more I play and fail I learn from those experiences."

Eoin Morgan and Joe Root guided England to a comprehensive eight-wicket victory to seal an ODI series success over Sri Lanka.

Sam Curran's first international five-for set England on the way to a convincing win at The Oval on Thursday as, despite Dhananjaya de Silva's efforts, Sri Lanka were limited to 241-9.

Dhananjaya's 91 from as many balls, an innings that included 13 boundaries, propelled Sri Lanka to a respectable score after Curran (5-48) had ripped through the tourists' top order.

It was not enough to hold England off, though, with captain Morgan (75 not out) and his Test counterpart Root (68 not out) rounded things off to seal the series win before the final match in Bristol on Sunday.

Dhananjaya was out in the middle by the 11th delivery of the day, Curran having dismissed both Kusal Perera and Avishka Fernando.

Curran and partner in crime David Willey (4-64) had the tourists at 21-4 by the seventh over, though successive boundaries got Dhananjaya into his stride.

Dhananjaya's impressive stand finally ended just nine runs shy of a maiden ODI century, Willey doing the honours, with Curran getting his five-for by sending Chamika Karunaratne packing.

Jason Roy had thumped his way to 40 by the end of the eighth over of the chase, with Jonny Bairstow crunching 14 in the next over to join the party.

Bairstow dragged on from Wanindu Hasaranga and Roy got himself to 60 before being caught by Dhananjaya, yet Sri Lanka would have no more joy in the field.

A six and a fortunate inside edge took Morgan to a confidence-boosting half-century, with Root reaching a second straight 50 in the next over, and victory was capped when England's captain hooked a short ball out to the leg-side boundary.

 

CURRAN SETS THE TONE AND MORGAN REGAINS FORM

Surrey bowler Curran was due a star turn, and he delivered in some style on his home ground.

Morgan, meanwhile, was in need of a morale-boosting innings after some tricky form. He had not scored 50 or over since hitting 106 against Ireland in August 2020, having scored 23, 42, 23, 22 and six in his five innings since then, before Thursday's encounter.

SRI LANKA LEFT REELING

That is five defeats on the bounce to start this tour for Sri Lanka, who now have to hope to avoid a T20 and ODI two-series whitewash.

Thursday's game came 15 years to the day since Sri Lanka chased down 322 at Trent Bridge with eight wickets in hand and 75 balls to spare, but this was a poor imitation of that team. This was Sri Lanka's 428th ODI defeat in men's cricket, seeing them overtake India as the side to lose the most matches in the format, while the Lions have also lost seven games this year, more than any other team.

Player of the match Shamilla Connell took three wickets and two wickets from Aaliyah Alleyne helped West Indies Women to a 10-run victory over Pakistan Women at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Wednesday.

Chasing 137 for victory after the West Indies made 136 for 6 from their 20 overs, Connell and Alleyne combined to restrict Pakistan to 126 for 6 despite an unbeaten 45 from Ayesha Naseem and 24 not out from Fatima Sana.

Together, the pair mounted an unbroken seventh-wicket partnership of 69 from 45 balls, rescuing Pakistan from a precarious 57-6.

Connell did the early damage bowling both openers, Javeria Rauf and Captain Javeria Khan for 5 and 7, respectively, with only 14 runs on the board. Hayley Matthews made it 23 for 3 when she dismissed Muneeba Ali for 9.

Connell took her third when she bowled Nida Dar for 9.

Alleyne then bowled Aliya Riaz for 8 and Iram Javid for 11 as Pakistan slipped further to 57-6 in the 13th over.

However, that would be the last of the success for the West Indies Women who toiled in vain while trying to break the partnership between Naseem who hit two fours and a six in her 33-ball knock.

At the other end, Sana proved just as difficult to dislodge as she scored her runs from 21 deliveries.

Connell returned 3-21 while Alleyne took 2-23.

Earlier, the West Indies got their total courtesy of an opening stand of 65 between Matthews and Deandra Dottin, who scored 32 and 31, respectively.

Both openers were dismissed in the space of two balls as the West Indies Women slipped from 65-0 to 67-2. Captain Stafanie Taylor went for 11 with the score at 93 and the scoring slowed.

Kyshona Knight scored 23, Chedean Knight, 14, and Kycia Knight 15, helping the West Indies closed on 136 for 6.

Dar was tight taking 2-15 and Sana took 2-32.

 

West Indies batsman Nicholas Pooran insists the team can have no excuses for losing the third T20 match against South Africa as they were in a strong position to claim a win.

South Africa won the third encounter between the teams by a single run to take a 2-1 lead in the five-match T20I series.  At 96 for 3, at the halfway mark, chasing 168, the West Indies seemed well on the way to the target but were often stifled by Tabraiz Shamsi who turned in the most economical effort of his career (2 for 13 in four overs).

Even so, needing 44 runs off the last four overs, Andre Russell seemed set to deliver a win for the team when he smashed back-to-back sixes off Anrich Nortje but was dismissed later in the over after also being dropped.

Pooran, who made a pedestrian 26 for 28, and is really yet to fire for the series, smashed Lungi Ngidi over midwicket for six off the second ball of the 18th over but could not maintain that momentum and was dismissed by Nortje in a penultimate over that only cost 4 runs.

“I felt like South Africa bowled well, they bowled well in the middle and they bowled well in the last two overs of the game and I think that’s where they won the game,” Pooran said following the match.

“As a team, we are still building, we are still trying to bind as a team.  I didn’t think it was too bad, in T20 games partnerships form, you lose wickets, but I felt like today was our game to win in all honesty,” he added.

“We had that partnership, I was there until the second to last over with Fabian and we should have found a way to win that game.  No excuses.”

 

South Africa moved 2-1 ahead in the five-match Twenty20 series against West Indies on Tuesday, Kagiso Rabada holding his nerve to clinch a one-run win in Grenada.

Quinton de Kock marked his 50th international appearance in the format by smashing 72 from 51 deliveries, helping the Proteas to post 167-8 - their highest total so far.

Aiden Markram and Rassie van der Dussen contributed 23 and 32 respectively, yet South Africa lost a clatter of wickets in the closing stages.

Obed McCoy claimed two in the penultimate over as he finished with career-best figures of 4-22. There was also a run out to follow in the next, the last of five wickets to go down for the addition of just 20 runs across the final 18 deliveries.

Evin Lewis (27) and new opening partner Lendl Simmons (22) added 51 for the first wicket in West Indies' reply, yet for the second outing in a row they faltered in the face of high-class spin.

Having claimed 1-16 last time out, Tabraiz Shamsi seemingly turned the match in his team's favour by taking 2-13, Lewis and Shimron Hetmyer (17) the batsmen to depart to the left-arm slow bowler.

Andre Russell blasted 25 in a hurry but his departure at the end of an expensive Anrich Nortje over shifted a see-saw contest back in favour of South Africa. Left needing 15 off the last, West Indies came up just short despite a final-ball six from Fabian Allen.


Proteas set the pace thanks to De Kock

De Kock celebrated reaching a personal milestone with a brutal display of hitting, his 51-ball knock at the top of the order including five fours and two sixes. The wicketkeeper-batsman is in impressive form, having now scored 266 runs in his past five T20 innings away from home.

Call of duty needs a reboot

The West Indies have batted second in each of their past 10 T20I meetings with South Africa, winning the toss in all but one of those games. However, the strategic decision may need a rethink before the sides face each other again, as they have gone on to win on just four of those occasions.

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