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The SLC have appointed Ashley de Silva, their former director of cricket operations, as their acting CEO, before making a permanent decision

Andrew Fidel Fernando25-Mar-2013Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has appointed Ashley de Silva to the position of acting CEO, with a view to giving him the official position in six months, SLC secretary Nishantha Ranatunga has confirmed. De Silva has been SLC’s director of cricket operations since 2008, and replaces Ajit Jayasekara, who retires at the end of the month.”Like in any organisation we will give him a probation period, which will be around six months, and at the end of that we hope he will be CEO permanently,” Ranatunga said.Sri Lanka’s first Test captain Bandula Warnapura, had emerged as the early frontrunner for the position, but was later disqualified due to his age. Warnapura turned 60 in March, falling foul of an SLC rule that has enforced employees’ retirement at 60 since 2009. He will continue in his present job as development manager for the Asian Cricket Council.In addition to de Silva’s experience as director of cricket operations, he also managed Sri Lanka’s Under-19 side on an assignment basis before 2008, and was the general manager of private communication company Suntel for five years. He played as a wicketkeeper batsman for Colombo Cricket Club from 1984 to 1996, and appeared in three Tests and four ODIs for Sri Lanka.Sri Lanka’s youth cricket coach, Carlton Bernadaus, has been appointed to the director of cricket operations role that de Silva vacated.

Having emulated his technique, Darren Bravo has now sought to channel Brian Lara’s mental approach to building a major innings against Australia

Daniel Brettig in Port-of-Spain13-Apr-2012Having emulated his technique, Darren Bravo has now sought to channel Brian Lara’s mental approach to building a major innings against Australia. Bravo spoke with Lara ahead of the second Test between West Indies and Australia in Trinidad, after regathering confidence in his batting with a pair of starts in the Bridgetown match.Lara and Bravo met at a reception for the West Indian and Australian teams at the home of Australia’s high commissioner to Trinidad and Tobago on Friday evening. Bravo, 23, has also been in contact with his half-brother Dwayne, currently preoccupied by the IPL, and said he had been seeking further advice on how to go on from the middling scores he managed at the Kensington Oval.Following a stretch of poor form that spanned the limited-overs matches against Australia and a regional four-day fixture for T&T against Barbados, Bravo hinted at a return to his best while compiling 51 and 32. He hopes that promise can bloom into a major contribution in his first Test match on his home ground.”I’m quietly confident in my form at the moment, and felt good with my timing in the last two innings I’ve had,” Bravo said at the Queen’s Park Oval. “I’ve had some advice from Brian and my brother as well, so I’m taking it one step at a time and hopefully sooner or later something special is around the corner.”[The advice was] just a matter of the way I go about building an innings, it’s something I’ve been working on and hopefully I can reap the rewards in this Test match. We know what the Australians are going to come with in this Test for sure and we’re going to come together as one big team and try our best, come up with the best plan, so we can execute it and come out victorious.”We want to level the series here and make it much more exciting for the third Test in Dominica.”Bravo’s second innings in Bridgetown had the potential to grow into a significant innings, holding up the tourists after they had cut their way past the hosts’ top order. However, he pushed at Peter Siddle and edged a catch behind in the closing overs of day four, admonishing himself as he left the field for giving up a valuable start.”To be quite honest that’s the way the game goes,” Bravo said. “One bad session or a few overs of bad cricket can cause you to lose the game, and I think that is what happened. But at the same time the guys gave a good account of themselves.”I was very disappointed that I got out in the second innings being when I was there already set, and I was trying to get my team to a respectable total. It was unfortunate but hopefully I can do better in the next Test.”In acknowledging the pattern of the first Test was a reprise of several earlier matches against India in 2011, Bravo said his team had to remain positive and not be consumed by doubt about whether they can sustain their efforts over five days. The Queen’s Park Oval pitch offers the possibility of sharp spin and variable bounce, making a result likely if Trinidad’s weather is kind.”Very important that we stay positive as much as possible,” Bravo said. “We went wrong in the first Test and it is something we need to rectify as soon as possible because we don’t want it to happen again. Hopefully we can come together as a team and find the best possible way to correct what happened in the first Test and get it right in this game.”I don’t know how the pitch looks at the moment, but we all know on the Oval that on the fourth and fifth day that spin is going to have a major part. This year hopefully we can set up the game in the first three days so it is much easier for us at the end.”West Indies were able to take advantage of fine morning conditions on Friday to train fully, before afternoon rain robbed the Australians of the chance to do likewise. The visitors made a brief observation of the pitch before returning to their hotel for work in the gym and the pool.

Tillakaratne Dilshan has been appointed Sri Lanka’s captain for all three formats during the upcoming tour of England in May

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Apr-2011Tillakaratne Dilshan has been appointed Sri Lanka’s captain for all three formats during the upcoming tour of England in May following Kumar Sangakkara’s resignation from the post after the World Cup. Sri Lanka Cricket have not yet named a vice-captain to fill the role vacated by Mahela Jayawardene because “the prospective candidates are nursing injuries, and their availability for the forthcoming tour is still in question.”Dilshan’s appointment ends the speculation over whether he, or 23-year-old allrounder Angelo Mathews, would be named as Sangakkara’s immediate successor. Mathews is presently fighting to recover from a leg injury which he said could keep him out for eight weeks.In a recent interview with ESPNcricinfo, Sangakkara, who resigned with a view of giving the next captain enough time to build a team before the 2015 World Cup, had backed either player to take over the captaincy. “If they think Angie [Angelo] is too young then Dilshan will do a good job because he has these little touches for success. Anything he does on the field, he has this little knack,” he said. “I don’t know whether he will be the long-term candidate with his age, but if he keeps himself fit he can easily play the next World Cup.”Dilshan, 34, previously led Sri Lanka to a win in a triangular ODI series in Zimbabwe – the third team being India – in May-June 2010, apart from captaining the side in two Twenty20 internationals in 2008 and 2009. Presently with the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL, Dilshan is coming off a rich vein of form in the World Cup, in which he topped the batting table with 500 runs from nine matches at 62.50.

Simon Katich hasn’t so much been flying under the radar as crawling under it

Brydon Coverdale in Hamilton29-Mar-2010Simon Katich hasn’t so much been flying under the radar as crawling under it. His almost six-hour century sent the odd punter to sleep on the Seddon Park hill on a dozy Monday away from the office but it was the perfect innings for the circumstances. Australia wanted an unassailable lead and Katich set them on the path towards it with a hundred that was as painstaking as Ross Taylor’s was breathtaking.If he turns out to be the match-winner, it will be well-deserved. Nothing tells the story of Katich’s reliability like his triumph on Allan Border Medal night last month. The Australian players select their best contributors after every Test and Katich’s team-mates didn’t grant him the maximum three votes in any of the 14 matches during the award period. Still, he was named Test Player of the Year, a triumph of attrition over attraction.There’s every chance he will get the three votes after this game. His 88 in the first innings saved Australia’s blushes while his top-order friends threw their wickets away, and his 106 in the second has given them a strong chance of victory. As usual he was overshadowed, first when Shane Watson made 65 of the 85-run opening stand and then when Michael Hussey proved more fluent in the early stages of their partnership. Katich didn’t find the boundary until his 138th delivery, when he drove cleanly through extra cover and made viewers wonder why he hadn’t tried it earlier.In backyards across Australia few children imagine themselves as Katich, shuffling across their plastic stumps and squirting singles to square leg. The handful who do will at least never lose their tennis ball over the neighbour’s fence. It’s a method that has worked for Katich since his return to the side in 2008 and the proof is in a list of all-time averages for Test openers. Of every player who has opened in at least 20 innings, Katich’s average of 55.08 puts him sixth on the tally, behind legends like Jack Hobbs and Len Hutton. Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer, the bar against which modern Australian openers are measured, sit 13th and 17th.Fittingly, the only Australian above Katich is Bob Simpson, the man who Katich credits as having helped him overcome a technical flaw four years ago when he was striving to regain his place in the Test team. Since Katich won a position as an opener on the tour of the West Indies two years ago, he has been Australia’s leading run scorer, well clear of Michael Clarke and Ricky Ponting. It was a lack of consistency that cost him his place after a disappointing Ashes tour in 2005 and a more mature, more relaxed Katich has been on display following his return.”I stick to my limitations,” Katich said after his 347-minute innings. “I know the limitations of my game and given that the game was in the balance I didn’t want to take any undue risks, and make sure that I set a platform for the rest of the team. When you do bat at the top of the order it’s easy to think someone else will get the runs, but you’ve just got to make sure you get out there and lay the foundations just in case that doesn’t happen.”That solid base was built before lunch in a session that featured the equivalent of almost 33 overs of dot balls. In the first over after the break, Katich struck two consecutive boundaries having managed three in his previous 176 deliveries, and even Aleem Dar and Asad Rauf were wondering what the batsman had eaten at lunch.”The umpires were sort of joking that I might have got a bit ahead of myself,” Katich said. “They said, ‘What’s happened?’ That was when I got to about 60. Even they noticed it. They said, ‘Is that the same bloke down there?’ I did have a bit more fun after 50, that’s for sure. The first 50 wasn’t great but after that, from 50 onwards I felt like I played quite well.”He did, and there were even a couple of aerial drives down the ground that jolted the spectators out of their slumber. Perhaps Katich’s team-mates will wake up as well, and Australia’s Test Player of the Year will finally be their Man of the Match.

Blaze victory rules Thunder out of finals contention, despite career-best 6 for 35 by Fi Morris

ECB Reporters Network04-Sep-2024A career-best 6 for 35 by Fi Morris for Lancashire Thunder was countered by a List A best for The Blaze of 4 for 23 by Grace Ballinger as the visitors ran out winners by 24 runs at Sale to keep their hopes alive in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy. Defeat for Thunder ends their hopes of making the knockout stages of the competition.In a low-scoring contest, The Blaze – having started well – were pegged back to 197 all out at the hands of Morris once the spinner was introduced into the Thunder attack in the 30th over.By contrast Ballinger did significant early damage by taking the first four Thunder wickets but the rest of The Blaze attack combined to bowl Thunder out for 173 in the 46th over despite a hard hitting unbeaten 53 by Tara Norris to clinch a vital victory.The Blaze made a good start after being put in to bat with Sarah Bryce and Michaela Kirk laying a good foundation of 66 runs off 87 balls.
But both openers fell in quick succession. Sarah Bryce was caught at mid-off for 34 trying to hit Darcey Carter, making her Thunder debut, over the top with Kirk bowled for 29 by Hannah Jones’ second delivery.And The Blaze were pegged back further when Marie Kelly edged behind for 7 off the first ball of Phoebe Graham’s second spell to leave the visitors 101 for 3 in the 24th over.Kathryn Bryce and Ireland all-rounder Orla Prendergast rallied with a 34-run alliance off 45 balls before the introduction of Morris transformed the innings as wickets tumbled.The Thunder off-spinner struck with a 17-ball sequence of 3 for 6 that began with her fourth delivery that Kathryn Bryce cut to Norris at gully for 31.Having made an attractive 29 off 34 balls, Prendergast fell lbw sweeping at Morris, as did Lucy Higham for 4.Hannah Jones returned to take her competition-leading 22nd wicket when Kirstie Gordon drove to Eve Jones at extra cover for 4 before Morris ran through the rest of The Blaze line-up in spectacular style bowling Ella Claridge for 6, having Grace Ballinger lbw for 6 and Cassidy McCarthy caught for 8 with The Blaze losing their last seven wickets for 62 runs.It was Ballinger who did the early damage with an impressive spell of left-arm swing that returned figures of 4 for 13 to destroy the Thunder top order, having Eve Jones caught at mid-off for 0, Alice Clarke caught at cover for 8 followed by Morris (10) and Dani Collins (0) bowled in the space of three deliveries.But having completed seven overs Ballinger limped off injured to be replaced by Prendergast who struck immediately with her sixth delivery which Seren Smale cut savagely but straight to Kirk at point for 13 with the Thunder innings in disarray at 41 for 5 after 15 overs.Ellie Threlkeld pulled a short ball from Prendergast to Higham at deep backward square for 10, Carter was bowled by McCarthy for 11 before Grace Johnson holed out to Kirk off Groves for 27 as Thunder continued to struggle.Ballinger returned in time to see Groves trap Graham lbw for 5 but a defiant last-wicket partnership of 50 – the highest of the Thunder innings – between Norris, who hit three sixes in a List A career-best 53 not out off 56 balls, and Hannah Jones, who finally fell to Kathryn Bryce for 17, held up The Blaze who eventually wrapped up victory with 26 balls to spare.

Rainford-Brent and Pete Ackerley fill final two vacancies on board ahead of AGM

ESPNcricinfo staff09-May-2023Ebony Rainford-Brent, the World Cup-winning former England batter who went on to found the African-Caribbean Engagement (ACE) programme, is set to join the ECB board as one of two new cricket non-executive directors.The appointments of Rainford-Brent and sports development expert Pete Ackerley completes the restructuring of the ECB board, after last month’s announcement of four new non-executive directors: Penny Avis, Baroness Zahida Manzoor, Jennifer Owen Adams and Gareth Williams. Katie Bickerstaffe has also been reappointed for a further three-year term as senior independent non-executive director.”I’m delighted to make our final board appointments,” Richard Thompson, the ECB chair, said. “We have a strong and diverse board with extensive experience and a wide range of skills.”Ebony is a unique talent, a trailblazer who was a winner on the pitch and has achieved so much off it. Her ACE programme has already made a huge impact in creating opportunities for youngsters from Black communities, and she shares my impatience for making further progress in creating a truly inclusive sport.”Pete also brings with him a vast amount of cricketing experience along with invaluable insight in other sports. He is steeped in the recreational game, and will be another huge asset to the board.”I’m also delighted that Katie Bickerstaffe has been appointed as senior non-executive director. Katie has already made a huge contribution over the past three years, utilising her experience from a number of different senior roles along with her passion for growing the game.”Rainford-Brent, who worked with Thompson while director of women’s cricket at Surrey, was the first black woman to play for England and part of the teams that lifted the World Cup and World T20 in 2009, winning 29 caps between 2001 and 2010. Since retirement, she has worked as a broadcaster for the BBC and Sky Sports.Ackerley is currently chief executive officer of the British American Football Association, and has previously served on the ECB’s participation and growth board, as well as working with Lancashire Cricket Foundation, the Lord’s Taverners, the England and Wales Cricket Trust and the Football Association. He is also a former head of development at the ECB.The appointments, which are set to be ratified at Wednesday’s Annual General Meeting, will fill vacancies arising from the death of Brenda Trenowden, Jim Wood’s departure after reaching his maximum time on the board, and Valerie Amos, Martin Darlow, Barry O’Brien and Lucy Pearson not seeking re-election.

Along with R Sai Kishore, the Tamil Nadu batter has been named as a standby for India’s upcoming series against West Indies

Daya Sagar02-Feb-20222:38

Shahrukh Khan – ‘Whichever team I get picked for, I will do my best for them’

Shahrukh Khan, the big-hitting Tamil Nadu batter, has admitted that he will have an eye on the upcoming IPL auction in Bengaluru, even as he has been named one of India’s standbys for the T20I leg of the the upcoming home series against West Indies.”Of course, it [thoughts about the auction] is there somewhere in my mind, but I am not going to let it affect my preparations for the next day,” Shahrukh, who is currently undergoing mandatory quarantine, told ESPNcricinfo. He was drafted into Punjab Kings’ squad for INR 5.25 crore ahead of IPL 2021, and though his opportunities with the team were limited, he has built a massive reputation in domestic cricket.Related

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That was evident during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy final against Karnataka last November, where he clobbered an unbeaten 15-ball 33 to win his team the title, sealing the final with a six off the last ball. Shahrukh, who says his entire family was enjoying their dinner when news of his selection for the West Indies T20Is was revealed, feels he would want to play a similar style of cricket if picked for India during the series.”Playing for India is a huge responsibility in itself, and brings with it its own pressure,” Shahrukh said. “There are some massive names in this team, and I have grown up watching them on TV. My aim – if I get the chance – would be to simply go with an open mind and enjoy my cricket, just the way I do for Tamil Nadu.”If I overthink this, then I would just create more pressure on myself and stray from my natural game. My aim in every game is to go out to the middle and play freely, without worrying too much about the results and focusing on the process instead.”Shahrukh and his Tamil Nadu team-mate R Sai Kishore have both joined the India squad ahead of the T20Is, and are expected to be among the prominent names among uncapped Indian players who could be in demand during the auction in Bengaluru which will feature two new franchises for the 2022 season. But Shahrukh isn’t too fussed about how much of an increase he might get to see from his base price, set at INR 40 lakh ahead of the auction.”It depends on which set you are in, which are the names that have been brought up ahead of you, what specific things are teams looking for at that point, and what their available purse is,” he said. “Rather than worrying about such things, I am just focused on how I can keep my mind fresh and concentrate on my cricket.”

Sindh chased down 170 against Central Punjab, while Balochistan crushed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by six wickets

Danyal Rasool10-Oct-2020Balochistan beat Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by six wickets
In a clash close to the top of the table, Balochistan avenged their crushing defeat against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa last week by inflicting a similar loss on Mohammad Rizwan’s side. Awais Zia’s unbeaten 49-ball 92 helped Balochistan make short work of the 155-run target, which they achieved with six wickets and 20 balls to spare. After Shaheen Afridi removed Abdul Bangalzai for a first-ball duck and Bismillah Khan in his second over, Zia took charge of the chase single-handedly. Brushing aside the further losses of Imran Butt and his skipper Haris Sohail, Zia farmed the strike with Akbar-ur-Rehman at the other end, who played his part, finishing unbeaten on 24 and hitting the winning runs.After winning the toss, Balochistan had put KP in and removed both in-form players Mohammad Hafeez and Rizwan cheaply. Fakhar Zaman struggled to get going in the face of tight bowling, particularly by Akif Javed and Khurram Shehzad, whose combined figures of 8-0-40-3 a tell-tale sign of KP’s struggles with the bat. It was left to veteran Shoaib Malik to take them to a competitive total, as he rolled back the years to wallop 74 off 44 balls to help his side get past 150. But support from the other end wasn’t forthcoming, of which they eventually paid the price.Sindh beat Central Punjab by three wickets
In the evening game, it was a case of copy and paste for Babar Azam, who followed up yesterday’s 52-ball 86 not out with a 53-ball 86, but it wasn’t enough to prevent Central Punjab from slumping to a three-wicket defeat at Sindh’s hands. Chasing 170 and having lost their top four cheaply, Sindh dug in and benefitted from lower-middle-order contributions from Danish Aziz, who top-scored with an unbeaten 59, and Azam Khan. But when it looked like the asking rate might prove too steep, it was a blitz from Hassan Khan, who smashed 36 off 15 with four sixes, that powered Sindh past the finish line. That was despite the best efforts of Waqas Maqsood, whose figures of 3.1-0-14-3 might easily have been worthy of ending up on the winning side.After being asked to bat, Central Punjab were immediately set back by Sohail Khan removing Kamran Akmal in the first over. The Sindh fast bowler was the pick of the bunch, returning to get rid of Azam in the 15th over, as well as Saad Nasim to finish his spell. For Central Punjab, there were few contributors besides Azam, who was responsible for more than half of his side’s runs. Sindh’s team effort in the chase suggested that might have been an important point of difference.

Visitors beaten with bat, ball and in the field as England win by 208 runs

Valkerie Baynes06-Jun-2019Before this match, West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor had bemoaned the lack of so much as a full-time masseuse within her team’s set-up. And, as a number of the visiting players stood round their dugout grimacing and clutching at aches and pains after a torrid afternoon in the field, it was clear much more would be needed to cure their ills.Not that Taylor was making any excuses in her candid interview with ESPNcricinfo, in which she also revealed that her passion as a competitor often brought her to tears just talking about her game. Taylor described her team’s sloppy performance in the field on Thursday as “atrocious”. England could also improve in the field, with four chances missed, but the difference between these two sides was staggering as her opposite number, Heather Knight, and Amy Jones led an impressive team performance.Katherine Brunt was at her best, claiming two wickets in two balls, while Sophie Ecclestone and Laura Marsh claimed three apiece as West Indies were bowled out for a paltry 110, Chedean Nation running out of partners with an unbeaten 42.On the basis of this showing at Grace Road, much will need to change – possibly too much – for West Indies to be competitive in the second match of their three-ODI series in Worcester on Sunday.Knight and Jones fell agonisingly short of centuries but, by both reaching the nineties, they set West Indies an insurmountable target – England’s 318 for 9 was their highest ODI score against West Indies – and made an emphatic statement to ICC Women’s Championship table leaders Australia ahead of next month’s Ashes.Tammy Beaumont set the foundation, seeing the ball magnificently to plunder 32 off 28 balls, including six fours, but her innings came to a premature end when she lofted Hayley Matthews over mid-on only to find Shakera Selman just inside the boundary. Beaumont and Jones had taken England past 50 inside seven overs with Jones hinting at her form when she smacked the first ball of the innings – a Selman full toss – over the leg-side boundary for six.It was one of two maximums for Jones, who also hit 10 fours on a good batting wicket with a fast outfield. After Sarah Taylor fell cheaply, Jones and Knight took total control and during passages of play appeared to be picking off boundaries at will. Jones brought up her fourth half century in a row but only briefly raised her bat to mark the moment. Her maiden ton remains elusive after she fell on 91, three runs shy of her best score, driving Matthews towards mid-off where Stacy-Ann King jumped and raised her left hand above her head to almost casually pluck the ball from the air.Knight reached 94 off as many balls with 13 fours and appeared annoyed with her tame dismissal, a top edge off Afy Fletcher that went straight to Shamilia Connell at fine leg. But she and Jones had put England in an excellent position and a neat cameo from Nat Sciver bumped the score up further.Heather Knight carves through point•Getty Images

As her team threw themselves about for little reward amid a flurry of uncharacteristic miss-fields, Taylor had a bright moment when she clean bowled Brunt, who tried to smack the ball onto the leg side but found herself out of position as the ball took the top of her off-stump. England lost four wickets in the last five overs and Knight was disappointed the total wasn’t nearer 340 but, against the opposition, they had more than enough.”It’s hard to swallow,” Taylor told Sky Sports. “I didn’t think we bowled to our plan and I think it cost us. The English girls are quite good when you look at their batting lineup, it will take a lot more discipline to get those girls out.”The fielding was atrocious today … it’s sad to say. It’s a matter of going into the team room and discus what we need to discus and let it out and let this game go. We have two more games to go so hopefully we can bounce back.”Brunt had a brilliant opening spell with figures of 5-2-6-2, claiming the wickets of Matthews and Shemaine Campbelle with the fourth and fifth balls of the eighth over of the innings.West Indies never really got going and when Ecclestone uprooted Kycia Knight’s off-stump to claim her first wicket, there was worse to come for the visitors. Ecclestone had Kyshona Knight and King out in consecutive overs and West Indies were 73 for 6 after 25. Marsh got amongst the wickets and, when she knocked over Connell’s off-stump it was game over.Knight said: “We’ve talked about hitting the ground running in series, something that hasn’t probably been a strength of ours as a squad, so to put in that sort of performance in the first game of the summer, I’m really chuffed.”I think we’re actually disappointed with 318 in the end. If one of me and Amy was there in the last five overs we could have pushed that up to sort of 340 and we want to keep pushing that bar in terms of scoring big.”

Cameron Bancroft, the player to actually tamper with the ball during the Cape Town Test, has been banned for nine months, as the fall-out of the scandal rumbles on

Daniel Brettig in Johannesburg28-Mar-2018Steven Smith and David Warner, formerly captain and vice-captain of Australia, have been banned from playing international and domestic cricket for 12 months by Cricket Australia for their roles in the pre-meditated plan to tamper with the ball during the Cape Town Test. Warner is banned from captaincy for life, and Smith for 12 months after the completion of his ban. Cameron Bancroft, the player caught tampering with the ball, was banned from playing for nine months and from captaincy for 12 months after the completion of his ban.CA has said that the plan was devised by Warner, the foreign object used was sandpaper, and that Bancroft and Smith lied publicly in their post-match press conference in referring to it as adhesive tape. The full charge sheet confirms a raft of misdeeds by the trio, under which they have been charged with conduct contrary to the spirit of the game, conduct unbecoming, conduct harmful to the interests of cricket, and conduct bringing the game into disrepute. The basis for these charges includes the following:Warner developed the plan to alter the condition of the ball, instructed Bancroft in how to do it including making a demonstration of technique with sandpaper, and the misled the umpires by helping to conceal the plan.Smith had prior knowledge of the plan and did not stop it, directed the plan’s concealment on the field once it became apparent that the team had been caught out on the big screen, and then made “misleading” public comments about the “nature, extent and participants” in the plan.Bancroft had knowledge of the plan, took instruction as to its carrying out and then did so, before seeking to conceal the evidence and then to mislead the umpires as to what had taken place, and then joined Smith in making misleading public comments about what he had done.All three players were told of their bans in person by the CA chief executive James Sutherland at the team hotel in Johannesburg on Wednesday morning. Smith left the team hotel to fly home soon afterwards. All players will have the right to challenge the verdicts and also the duration of their penalties via a CA code of behaviour hearing with an independent commissioner, who can also choose whether the hearing is public or private. Players at the hearing are permitted to call as many witnesses as they like and also to have legal representation.
Warner, who has been singled out as the architect of the plan and given the harshest penalty of the three, is expected to challenge the verdict and take the matter to a code of conduct hearing. It is not known what Smith and Bancroft intend to do – all three players have seven days to consider the charges and their intent to accept or challenge. All three players have been replaced in the squad ahead of the fourth Test against South Africa in Johannesburg.”The sanctions we have announced are significant for the individuals involved. That is why the process has had to be thorough to ensure that all relevant issues have been examined,” Sutherland said. “I am satisfied that the sanctions in this case properly reflect a balance between the need to protect the integrity and reputation of the game, and the need to maintain the possibility of redemption for the individuals involved, all of whom have learned difficult lessons through these events.”The CA chairman David Peever said that the Board had chosen to take a path that still allowed the players to eventually rebuild their careers. “The CA Board understands and shares the anger of fans and the broader Australian community about these events,” he said. “They go to the integrity and reputation of Australian cricket and Australian sport and the penalties must reflect that. These are significant penalties for professional players and the Board does not impose them lightly. It is hoped that following a period of suspension, the players will be able to return to playing the game they love and eventually rebuild their careers.”While banned from international and first-class cricket, Smith, Warner and Bancroft are all permitted to play club cricket for the period of their bans “to maintain links with the cricket community”, and at the same time will be required to commit to 100 hours of voluntary service in community cricket.The ball-tampering incident took place during the afternoon session on day three at Newlands and was picked up on by TV cameras. A small, yellow object was seen in Bancroft’s hands after he had worked on the ball, which he later claimed to be adhesive tape with soil particles on it. He was also captured taking the object from his pocket and placing it down his trousers.The footage showed Bancroft rubbing the rough side of the ball, the opposite side to which he would usually be trying to shine on his trousers. He put the object down his pants after being spoken to by the substitute Peter Handscomb, who had come on to the field after speaking to Australia coach Darren Lehmann over a walkie talkie. Lehmann seemed to speak to Handscomb after footage of Bancroft working on the ball was shown on the TV screens at the ground.The on-field umpires Nigel Llong and Richard Illingworth were then seen speaking with Bancroft, though they did not choose to change the ball or penalise the Australians five runs – the statutory on-field penalty for illegally changing the condition of the ball. When Bancroft spoke to the umpires, he was shown holding a bigger, black cloth rather than the small yellow object he had earlier seemed to place down his trousers.Smith and Bancroft owned up to the offence at the press conference after play on the third day. Smith and Warner were stood down as Australia’s captain and vice-captain during the Newlands Test, and both players took the field on the fourth day under wicketkeeper Tim Paine’s leadership.The ICC had already suspended Smith – who was fined 100% of his match fee and given four demerit points – from the fourth Test against South Africa, while Bancroft was given three demerit points and fined 75% of his match fee. There was no ICC sanction against Warner.Smith and Warner had already stepped down from their positions as captains of the IPL franchises Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad, and have subsequently been banned from playing in the tournament.