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After 52 years as the ICC’s member governing body in the USA, the USA Cricket Association (USACA) was expelled following a unanimous vote at the ICC’s board meeting on Thursday during the AGM in London. The expulsion ends a turbulent tenure that included three suspensions handed down by the ICC since 2005. While USACA was able to get its affairs in order to have the first two suspensions lifted, there was no way back from its most recent reprimand in 2015.”We would hope that this puts a final line on the matter,” ICC chief executive David Richardson said when asked about USACA’s expulsion in a conference call with reporters following the vote on Thursday. “Whether they decide to take legal action is obviously their decision but we would be ready to oppose it if need be.”USACA had threatened to take the ICC to court in the event of being expelled but Richardson says the ICC has proven it is standing on firm ground and does not expect the decision to be overturned by any legal challenge USACA might attempt. USACA president Gladstone Dainty and executive secretary Sankar Renganathan did not respond to ESPNcricinfo’s requests for comment on the expulsion.”Don’t forget they’ve already taken the matter to the ICC Dispute Resolution Committee on an expedited basis attempting to stop the board and full council from considering the expulsion of USACA at these meetings,” Richardson said. “The arbitrator found in favor of the ICC and found the ICC had acted rationally and was quite entitled to take the decision to expel USACA.”An ICC Americas-led caretaker administration has been overseeing cricket operations in the USA since USACA’s suspension in 2015 and Richardson said they would continue to organise national team activities in the interim until the ICC approves a different governing body to replace USACA. A USA women’s squad was announced earlier this week to tour Scotland for a T20 Qualifier, reaffirming Richardson’s stance, since 2015, that USA’s players should not be punished as a consequence of USACA’s troubles.”The whole process, from suspending USACA to expelling them, the whole objective was to unite the cricket community in the United States behind a national governing body that represented everybody,” Richardson said. “So the first step will be creating the governance infrastructure to fill that void and represent the whole cricket community bearing in mind the size of the country.”Coming with that will be the competition structures that need to exist, the development pathway, everything that a national governing body needs to get involved in. Over the next 12 months, that will be developed slowly but surely. At the same time [that USACA has been expelled], up until now the board has taken the approach that we don’t want to prejudice people playing cricket in the United States. So at the moment we have got an American office and within that office we have staff tasked with looking after the cricket community to ensure that at least the minimum is done to keep cricket going.”USACA had faced numerous problems in recent years, mainly to do with governance. The board also struggled to escape from crushing debt, currently listed at more than $4 million, though a large chunk of that came about as a result of exorbitant legal fees racked up from court battles waged by the board, including one relating to the disputed general elections of 2012. The money owed to lawyers ate into the organisation’s ability to fund national team activities, with various national camps and tournaments either postponed or canceled as a result.The USA Cricket Association had been suspended three times since 2005 under president Gladstone Dainty•Peter Della Penna

But the final straw leading to expulsion was USACA’s refusal to ratify an ICC-approved constitution, one aimed at curing governance woes by way of proposed term limits for board members as well as redefined positions on the board to reduce the powers of the incumbent executive. Instead, USACA ratified an alternate, edited version at a special general meeting on April 8, escalating the battle with the ICC before it reached its tipping point on Thursday. Richardson had sent a letter to USACA’s leadership following the vote at the April 8 AGM, warning them that the decision to ratify an altered version of what the ICC had presented to them ‘seriously undermined’ their chances of having suspension lifted.USACA’s path to expulsion was set in motion more than five years ago during the events leading into the disputed 2012 general election. Based on the results of a member compliance audit, the incumbent USACA board took the decision to disenfranchise 32 out of 47 voting-eligible league members in highly controversial circumstances. Many of the league presidents who were disenfranchised had publicly voiced opposition to USACA president Gladstone Dainty in a conference call several months prior to the election, which Dainty and most of the incumbent board eventually won in a landslide.However, it proved to be a pyrrhic victory for Dainty and the rest of the board because the majority of the disenfranchised leagues broke off to form the American Cricket Federation rather than pursue reinstatement with USACA. Under the ICC membership guidelines at the time, a member needed to be the “sole governing body” for administering cricket in their country. If more than two governing bodies existed with both claiming to have superiority, it could be seen as a violation of the statute and grounds to have membership status suspended. In fact, this particular scenario was a contributing factor to USACA’s first suspension in 2005.The ICC initially aided USACA by amending the wording of the Associate membership statute 3.1. Rather than the “sole” governing body being the ICC’s member in a given country, the ICC would recognise the governing body – at the ICC’s own discretion – that is “responsible for the administration, management and development of cricket in the country.” The ICC subsequently encouraged ACF leagues to rejoin USACA in an effort to mend fences.But ACF leadership spurned this approach and though a Dainty-led board won re-election again in 2015, the victory was short-lived as the ICC suspended USACA later that summer. An ICC report, which was presented to the world body’s members ahead of the suspension vote at the 2015 ICC annual conference, laid out numerous flaws with USACA. Among them, the ICC found that USACA did not represent the majority of clubs and leagues around the country and that the general consensus of stakeholders found USACA ‘unprofessional and not trustworthy’.The ICC subsequently laid out 39 terms and conditions for USACA to be reinstated. USACA was able to meet many of the requirements, but the main sticking point was the new constitution. The ICC has since formed a series of advisory groups in four key areas to help design the framework for a successful governance model in the future. It is expected these advisory groups will continue to work with ICC Americas staff until a governing body is designated to fill the vacancy left by USACA, a process expected to take a minimum of one to two years.

ScorecardWhat Kumar Sangakkara achieved, Dawid Malan matched [file picture]•Getty Images

An 18th first class hundred for Dawid Malan, brought up in an innings that started in rain and ended in sun, paints an appropriate picture. Middlesex were in no great shakes at 50 for 2, as Surrey exploited a lively surface in the early afternoon, when Malan strode to the crease to calm them with a bit of class.Some prefer the crashing of waves, others the wails of whales. Judging by the sighs in the Pavilion, impeccable cover drives from Middlesex’s No. 4 did the trick. It is not forcing the point to say that Kumar Sangakkara’s day one century has been matched by one from Middlesex’s own classy left-hander.Maybe his teammates sought to match the Sangakkara portrait unveiled at Lord’s before the opening day by knocking up a doodle to stick on the wall of the changing room for when he returned 103 not out – bat under one arm, game under the other.But just as Sangakkara’s was a lone hand of style and substance, Malan negotiated tricky periods to steer Middlesex out of harm’s way and close to parity, with five wickets remaining. Aided with an enterprising half-century from James Franklin in the evening session – he reached the milestone off 43-deliveries with back-to-back sixes off Scott Borthwick – they are in control of what happens next. They both rest overnight with 92 unbeaten for the sixth wicket.The last nine months have been strange for Malan who, aged 29, has never been more assured of his own game but might be a tad confused by his standing in the domestic game.Last summer, he was left “speechless” by a call-up to England’s T20 side for a one-off match against Sri Lanka, though did not make the playing XI. He was then asked to captain an exciting Lions side against Pakistan A but, despite finishing the season strongly – including an England Lions List A record score of 185 not out – he was overlooked for the winter programme. It is fair to say he was miffed by the snub.That meant filling his winter how he could. Previously he would spend the part of his off-season back in South Africa, giving his game an MOT under the precise watch of Gary Kirsten. On occasion, he has had to weigh up the possibility of spending the new year in Australia on the off-chance that he might wangle a BBL gig as a late injury-replacement.Yet again, he spent time at the Bangladesh Premier League for the Barisa Bulls before winning the PSL with Peshawar Zalmi, which involved a final in Lahore. He was back in front of the selectors’ eyes during the North-South series in the UAE. Even when he returned a century in the first match, he wasn’t getting ahead of himself. He surmised that three figures, while nice, was useless if it did not bring him closer to higher honours.For the most part against Surrey, he was chanceless. There was a bit of tentativeness early on – after all, his highest score until today, in all forms, was a 50 against Glamorgan in the Royal London One-Day Cup. But, for the most part, he had a plan against all those he faced today and stuck to it brilliantly.Against Mark Footitt, who brought Malan to the crease with an exceptional delivery that pitched on middle and leg climbed into the shoulder of Nick Compton’s bat on its way through to Ben Foakes, he remained calm and picked him off when the left-armer arrowed in at the stumps. He was able to second-guess Stuart Meaker’s changes in length, rarely omitting to punish anything over-pitched.When Meaker did settle into the groove upon the wicket of Adam Voges, he was able to unsettle John Simpson with a sustained assault on about middle and leg. After a couple of strong lbw shouts against Simpson, Malan took charge and hit Meaker out of the attack with back-to-back fours: the first cut behind point, the second thumped through cover, to take him to 68. The hundred came up off his 169th ball, as he stepped into a delivery from Gareth Batty and threaded it through a staggered cover field.For the most part, Stevie Eskinazi kept him company. It speaks volumes of Eskinazi’s standing in the side that with Sam Robson’s injury, it was Compton, in his first Championship start of the season, who opened with Nick Gubbins.Eskinazi is very much Middlesex’s man at first drop: 67 was a third score above fifty this season and one that took him past 1,000 first-class runs. He bats like a man who has made more.If Middlesex were wasteful on the first morning, they were ruthless on the second day. Surrey lost their last five wickets for just 48 thanks to some incisive bowling and exceptional catching.The bigger of Franklin’s two wickets – Sangakkara, adding just one to his overnight score – owed more to Ollie Rayner, who took his second blinding catch of the match from a wideish third slip. Sangakkara cut hard, expecting four, but instead found Rayner’s sizeable right paw. The Sri Lankan’s disbelief was shared by most who bore witness.

Zimbabwe have agreed to tour the Netherlands to play three 50-over matches ahead of a Test and limited-overs tour of Sri Lanka in July. The matches are scheduled to be played on June 20, 22 and 24. The news comes after an announcement last month that Zimbabwe will be heading to Scotland for two ODIs on June 15 and 17.”We are pleased to confirm Zimbabwe will be touring the Netherlands as part of a potentially exciting and competitive five-game programme that will also see us visiting Scotland for two of the matches,” ZC managing director Wilfred Mukondiwa said. “While the tour will give our boys the much-needed game time and a feel of unfamiliar conditions, it will also go a long way in preparing our team for the tougher series away to Sri Lanka.”Unlike the two matches against Scotland, the three matches against Netherlands may not be classified as ODIs since Netherlands do not currently have ODI status after losing it in January 2014. However, Netherlands currently sit in first place in the WCL Championship – the limited-overs competition featuring the top eight Associates outside of the ODI rankings table – effectively making them the 13th ranked team in 50-over cricket. Zimbabwe are currently 11th on the ODI rankings table, one spot ahead of Ireland but one behind Afghanistan.Zimbabwe and Netherlands have played each other on two prior occasions in ODIs or T20Is. The first was a 99-run Zimbabwe win at Bulawayo in the 2003 World Cup. They would wait more than 11 years before squaring off again and Zimbabwe were once again victorious, sealing a last-ball five-wicket win in the opening round of the 2014 World T20 in Bangladesh, though Netherlands ultimately progressed ahead of Zimbabwe into the main draw after completing a stunning chase against Ireland.This is not the first Zimbabwe tour to the Netherlands however. A Zimbabwe XI beat the Dutch by 137 runs at Amstelveen in a 2010 Intercontinental Cup match when Zimbabwe entered a side in the Associate four-day competition to help prepare themselves for re-entry into the Test arena. Netherlands had beaten the same Zimbabwe XI by 58 runs two days prior to the I-Cup contest, bowling them out for 136 in a 50-over contest.The rivalry between the two countries dates back to the mid-1980s when both played at the Associate level. Zimbabwe and Netherlands met in the tournament final of the 1986 and 1990 ICC Trophy, now known as the World Cup Qualifier, when Zimbabwe were still recognized as an Associate country prior to gaining Test status in 1992. Zimbabwe won on both occasions, by 25 runs in the 1986 final at Lord’s and by six wickets in 1990 at the Hague when Netherlands were tournament hosts, for the right to be the lone Associate representative at both the 1987 and 1992 World Cup.

Dane Vilas, the former South Africa wicketkeeper, has signed a deal with the Durban-based Dolphins franchise for the 2017-18 season. Vilas, who played six Tests for South Africa and has also signed a Kolpak deal with Lancashire, was based at the Cobras for the last seven seasons.Vilas will add rare international experience to a Dolphins squad that lost several big names ahead of the 2016-17 season. David Miller and Kyle Abbott both left the franchise, leaving Imran Tahir as the only national player in the ranks at the start of last summer. Since then, Andile Phehlukwayo and Keshav Maharaj have both played for South Africa, adding some superstar quality to the outfit.Although Dolphins also have another wicketkeeper on their books in Morne van Wyk, the 38-year old is in the twilight of his career and recently handed the captaincy to Khaya Zondo. With Dolphins also losing Daryn Smit, who has relocated to the UK, Vilas will do the bulk of the keeping duties across all formats. He is not expecting to do the same at his county, where he has been signed primarily as a batsman, thus ensuring his workload does not become excessive across back-to-back seasons.”I will be available to keep for Lancashire if they need me to but they have a young keeper, Alex Davies, who is trying to break into the England ranks, so it will be good to offer assistance where I can,” Vilas said “Signing the Kolpak deal will mean that I will be able to focus on contributing to the Dolphins in all three formats.”Dolphins have also contracted Lwandiswa Zuma, a 20-year-old seamer who was schooled at Maritzburg College, the alma mater of Kevin Pietersen, and a South African under-19 player who was plying his trade at the Bloemfontein-based Knights.In the 2016-17 season, Dolphins, under new coach Grant Morgan, did not win any trophies. They finished fourth in the first-class and one-day cups and fifth in the T20 competition.

Gautam Gambhir, who has led left-arm wristspinner Kuldeep Yadav for Kolkata Knight Riders since 2014, believes that his strongest attribute is his consistency of length. Kuldeep made a sparkling Test debut in Dharamsala, claiming figures of 4 for 68 in the first innings.Although Kuldeep has played just three IPL matches for the Knight Riders over three years, Gambhir said he has the skill-sets to have success at the elite levels of the game.”From a skills point of view, he is pretty consistent,” Gambhir told ESPNcricinfo. “If he bowls a bad ball, it is usually a fuller ball. He hardly bowls a short delivery. That kind of consistency for a wristspinner is a massive quality to have. If you have to mistake you’d much rather make it fuller than shorter. He hardly bowls long-hops which is a big quality to have.”He started his Test career on a very good note and hopefully he can continue to the same way because people can talk too much about him. At times if you start talking too much about a young boy, you can stop enjoying the game. I am not surprised with what he did in the first innings at Dharamsala because he’s got a great temperament. I realised whenever he played for us that he’s someone who is not scared of getting hit. Kuldeep has a big heart, that is what you look for in any spinner who wants to go on and play for India. Hopefully he can play for a very long time, just let him enjoy his game and express himself.”Kuldeep will join Gambhir and his Knight Riders team-mates in Kolkata at the end of the Dharmsala Test, ahead of the tenth IPL season which starts on April 5. Knight Riders begin their campaign in Rajkot on April 7 against Gujarat Lions. Having won the title twice since Gambhir took over in 2011, in 2012 and 2014, Knight Riders finished fifth in 2015 and were knocked out in the playoffs last year.Gambhir believes that as opposed to earlier years, conditions over the previous two seasons at the Eden Gardens have favoured seam over spin. Knight Riders picked up three international fast bowlers at the 2017 player auction – Trent Boult, Nathan Coulter Nile and Chris Woakes. Gambhir is also hopeful that Woakes can bring in the skills to compensate for the loss of Andre Russell, who is serving a one-year ban for a doping code violation.’We felt last year that wickets weren’t that helpful for spinners. We have strengthened our attack with pace’ – Gautam Gambhir•AFP

“We have made tactical changes this year,” Gambhir said. “Hopefully, these guys can live up to their reputation. Someone like Boult can be very useful for us who can swing the ball up front at a reasonable pace. We have strengthened our attack with pace, I thought we made a very sensible move at the auction.”We felt last year that wickets weren’t that helpful for spinners. Someone like Sunil Narine is a big threat in any conditions but we realised that there wasn’t a lot of help for our spinners so we went for genuine fast bowlers. We have someone like Umesh Yadav and Ankit Rajpoot and three quality foreign fast bowlers as well. Our bowling attack is really good and hopefully we can utilise that.”Gambhir will also be keen to make a strong statement at the IPL with the bat. Gambhir was recalled to the Indian Test team earlier this season and managed 29 and 50 in his comeback Test in Indore against New Zealand. He followed that up with 29 and 0 against England in Rajkot before he was left out.”You can’t expect someone who is making a comeback after two years to suddenly make a hundred,” Gambhir said. “The first thing you are trying to do is contribute and give a decent start to the team and I was pretty okay from that point of view. Obviously I would have liked to score a hundred but sometimes you have to be reasonable from your own expectations point of view as well. I need to be realistic. No regrets. Obviously, I could have got some more Test matches, but that’s okay, whatever opportunity you get to represent your country that is a massive honour.”I strongly believe that I can keep performing. The only thing I can do is control things that I can control. I look forward to keep performing at whatever platform, whether its Ranji trophy, IPL or playing for India. You should not be thinking about the rest.”Towards the end of the season, Gambhir was also involved in an ugly fracas with Delhi coach KP Bhaskar. Gambhir insists that he has “no regrets” about the episode where he accused Bhaskar of “creating an atmosphere of uncertainty” in the dressing room.”A lot of things happen in a dressing room behind closed doors,” Gambhir said. “If you are mature individuals, you should keep it inside the dressing room. It is supposed to be a very sacred and confidential place. So whatever happens within the dressing room you should be mature enough to handle it there, rather than getting it into the media. But if someone has got it into the media, we will handle it the way it is. If you believe in something very strongly, you will never regret it. I stood for something that I believed was right, so why would I regret it.”

Match facts

February 22, 2017
Start time 1920 local (0850 GMT)Big question: How will captain Aaron Finch keep Asela Gunaratne in check?•Getty Images

Big Picture

Adelaide Oval concludes Australia’s home international season the day after the drop-in pitches have been removed from the MCG, and the night before the Test team starts a series in India. These two events say much about how football has encroached upon the traditional Australian season, and also about why the international schedule is in serious need of greater context and better organisation. If there was anything particularly vital about this series, it was the opportunity for numerous players to make a play for contracts in the IPL, given the auction’s timing between games two and three. Logically, the outstanding performer Asela Gunaratne was picked up, while the beanpole Australian fast man Billy Stanlake was also chosen. Ben Dunk, Michael Klinger and Niroshan Dickwella were among the less fortunate.Having won both games from the final ball – albeit rather more dramatically in Geelong than in Melbourne – Sri Lanka will be eager to finish well. Equally, Australia’s makeshift assembly of players will not want to leave their time with the all-star coaching staff of Justin Langer, Ricky Ponting and Jason Gillespie without winning a match. A little like the Australian team that toured India in 1979 immediately before the reintegration of World Series players, many in this group will have very little certainty about when they may next get an opportunity to play for their country, if ever again. That should provide significant motivation even as Adelaide’s ground staff look towards their own schedule for digging up the pitch, and the Test team ponder playing cricket of a very different kind in India.

Form guide

Australia: LLWWL (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Sri Lanka: WWWWL

In the spotlight

Entering this series, Travis Head took on greater responsibility as one of few regular Australian players in the squad. However after two matches he does not have much to show for it, having made a start in Melbourne and faced a mere four balls at Kardinia Oval. In Adelaide he has done many a great deed for the Adelaide Strikers and the Redbacks, and will be out for something more substantial this time around with Australia – he of course made a fine hundred against Pakistan in a January ODI at the ground. “I play well at Adelaide Oval,” he said, “so if I get the opportunity again and if the batters set a platform and give me an opportunity late in the innings, or if I have to come in early, I’m happy with any situation and hopefully I can do a job for the side.”Having been the difference in both matches so far, Asela Gunaratne has something of a target on his back for game three. Most of Australia’s team talk will be spent trying to find a chink in his armour, while spectators and television viewers will have enormous anticipation of what he may do next. His new owners at Mumbai Indians will also be having a close look at their IPL auction investment.Travis Head is looking for a big score on his home ground•Getty Images

Team news

Adam Zampa can expect to be considered for a recall in Adelaide.Australia (possible) 1 Aaron Finch (capt), 2 Michael Klinger, 3 Ben Dunk, 4 Travis Head, 5 Moises Henriques, 6 Ashton Turner, 7 Tim Paine (wk), 8 James Faulkner, 9 Pat Cummins, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Andrew Tye.Having won the series, Sri Lanka may shuffle their options in the dead rubber., given Niroshan Dickwella received a two-match suspension for showing dissent.Sri Lanka (possible) 1 Dilshan Munaweera, 2 Upul Tharanga (capt), 3 Kusal Mendis (wk), 4 Asela Gunaratne, 5 Milinda Siriwardana, 6 Chamara Kapugedera, 7 Seekkugge Prasanna, 8 Nuwan Kulasekara, 9 Lakshan Sandakan, 10 Lasith Malinga, 11 Vikum Sanjaya.

Pitch and conditions

Adelaide Oval’s drop-in pitch is likely to be batsman-friendly while offering a little bit of nibble for pace and spin alike, due to an even coverage of grass. The forecast is for fine, warm weather.

Stats and trivia

• Sri Lanka’s first T20 international at Adelaide Oval
• Australia are still chasing their first victory over Sri Lanka in a T20 match down under

Quotes

“We don’t need to do too much differently. It’s the small moments in the games. We didn’t finish as well with the bat as we would have liked on Sunday and with the ball, we had great plans but credit to Sri Lanka, they batted well. We’ve got to free the mind and play a positive brand of cricket and hopefully the tide can turn.”

In the last two overs he bowled in Kanpur, Chris Jordan stuck to his plan of bowling yorkers throughout. He bowled 10 of his last 12 balls to MS Dhoni and conceded 16 runs off them, a strike rate of 160. What those numbers don’t tell you is that Dhoni struggled to hit eight of those 10 balls cleanly. The moral victory was Jordan’s.This attacking and fearless bowling style makes him a vital cog in England’s pace attack in the limited-overs formats. It was a testimony of how Jordan has become Eoin Morgan’s go-to bowler in the slog overs, either to pick wickets or limit runs, or often both. It was reminiscent of how Jordan had bowled a barrage of yorkers to Pakistan’s tail in his final two overs at Headingley in September, and a few months before that had helped England defend 171 in the World T20 semi-final against Sri Lanka in Delhi.His first spell there read 2-0-16-1. He then returned to bowl with Sri Lanka needing 40 off 24 balls. He walked away with a fine second spell that read 2-0-12-3. It showed why he was rated highly as an end-overs bowler. Jordan, who addressed the media on the eve of the second T20I in Nagpur, was asked of what it takes to succeed in the end overs. He impressed upon the need to remain calm and have self-belief.”Although T20 cricket can be a fast-paced game, I believe at the back-end of the innings you have to give yourself time,” he said. “You have to try and take the sting out of the game, try to keep a very clear mindset especially when guys are trying to hit you over the ropes every single ball. That calmness and that whole notion of trying to give yourself time is something I try to use and luckily it works.”Plans can change literally every ball because you’re trying to stay one step ahead of the batsman every time, and at the back-end of the innings it could be a lot of commotion. You have to try and stay clear and think about simple things and executing them, that’s what I try to do.”‘Calmness, self-belief key to bowling in end-overs’ – Jordan•Getty Images

Jordan’s yorkers have been a fundamental aspect of his end-overs bowling and are something he falls back on when summoned. Jordan said developing the wide yorker too was a result of increasing his variations to keep the batsmen guessing.”It is a skill that I have worked on very, very hard whether it’s in the nets or actually in games,” Jordan said. “Most batsmen obviously want the ball in their arc and if you bowl at the stumps a lot, that’s in their arc so you’re backing yourself to execute the skill anyway. But I find that with that wide yorker, bowling the ball outside the batsman’s arc even when you do bowl there still has to be some precision with it. I find bowling that ball more often than not buys you some dots and time, and helps you get ahead of the batsman and also pick a wicket in the innings.”It came from first and foremost using variations. When I look at death bowling I think you can’t be predictable, you have to use different variations and that doesn’t necessarily have to be pace, it can be line or length and that’s how I developed that ball. So instead of maybe bowling my slower one more often, I use the variation in line and bowl a wide yorker, straight yorker, at the back end of the innings.”Despite this expertise and the role he played in England’s march to the World T20 final last year, Jordan was dropped for the ODIs against Bangladesh, India, and more recently the three ODIs against West Indies in March. His last ODI series was against Pakistan at home, where he produced figures of 2 for 42 from nine overs and 0 for 52 from 7.2. When asked to self-assess why he had been dropped, Jordan said it was about consistency.”You are always disappointed when you have ambition and then do not get selected,” he stated. “Disappointment is an emotion that I think is warranted. I would want to get back into the ODI and the Test team as soon as possible and am working very hard to do that. But obviously, we have a very good set of players, very strong depth. It will be quite tough getting back in, but I don’t think it is beyond me.”Possibly consistency wasn’t as I’d like it to be and I do set my standards very high,” Jordan said of his exclusion. “If I look at it I can say that my consistency at that particular moment wasn’t to the level I wanted it to be but that’s not to discourage or dishearten me. I do still have opportunities and I hope to push my case to make it back.”Jordan will hope he displays more such impressive efforts, the way he did in Kanpur, in the remaining two T20s of the series and stakes a claim for the Champions Trophy in June at home. After the West Indies tour, England are scheduled to play two ODIs against Ireland and three against South Africa – all in May at home. Jordan said he was looking at every game he would play from now as a “chance to impress and a chance to stake a claim”.

Allrounder Chris Morris is set to return to action for the first time in almost six months in when he turns out for his franchise, Titans, in a first-class fixture against Knights that starts on Thursday. Morris, who last played cricket in July last year, suffered a recurrence of a chronic left knee injury and was given a substantial amount of time off to allow for a full recovery.He has not played for South Africa since June’s Caribbean triangular series, after which he played six matches for Surrey in the NatWest T20 Blast. At the time, he was struggling with the knee problem. When it worsened, he could not be considered for the ODI series against Australia in October. Morris was initially expected to be out for two months but did not turn out for Titans during the T20 competition that ended in December.In his absence, Morris has lost ground to Dwaine Pretorius, who was called up as an injury replacement on South Africa’s Test tour of Australia, and Andile Phehlukwayo, who played in the ODIs against Australia. With a Champions Trophy on the horizon, Morris will be eyeing an international comeback soon, at least in the shorter formats.In Durban, Dolphins will have ODI allrounder Andile Phehlukwayo back for their match against Warriors. Phehlukwayo only played one match of the T20 campaign, in which he suffered a groin injury that kept him out of the rest of the tournament. He played two matches for provincial side Kwa-Zulu Natal in December ahead of his franchise return.

Mitchell Starc summed up Australia’s glee about the WACA pitch, and a commanding day one display, after his four wickets had helped spearhead the hosts to an early jump on South Africa in Perth.Though he had scooped plenty of wickets in unhelpful conditions in Sri Lanka before being rested from the South Africa ODI tour, and was then laid up by a deep cut sustained in a training mishap, Starc was evidently delighted to be operating in conditions where all members of the Australian side felt very much at home.”Better than last year,” Starc said – with a grin – of the pitch, following the bore draw with New Zealand in 2015. “There was a bit in it for bowlers throughout the day. We even saw a couple jump off newish cracks towards the end. At the same time, [it is] a really fast outfield and a nice wicket if batsmen get in.”It’s a lot nicer to bowl on than Sri Lanka, that’s for sure. All you’re after is an even contest between bat and ball, and there was something in it [the pitch] throughout the day. If you put the ball in the right areas and made the batsmen play, your catchers were always in the game.”There’ll be enough in it throughout the whole Test match if you’re willing to put the ball in the right area often enough. At the same time, if batsmen get in and want to take the game on, like Davey did tonight, there’s plenty of runs out there. You couldn’t ask for more from the opening day of the summer.”The wound Sarc had sustained is still open and requires daily cleaning, and he did not quite hit full pace across 18.4 overs. Nevertheless, his peak speed, just shy of 150kph, was slippery enough when allied to the bounce and pace on offer. “I’m still trying to get some of that rhythm and smoothness back,” he said, “but to get through 18-and-a-half overs for the day felt good. My speeds were reading okay as well, so personally I was happy with the role I played.”We bowled really well in partnerships for most of the day. There were stages where we bowled a little bit too short or a little bit too full, where they got away and batted well with a couple of partnerships. But to bowl South Africa out for under 250 was a pretty good day for the bowlers.”Helping too, was a fielding display far sharper than those in Sri Lanka. Mitchell Marsh plucked a sharp chance in the first over, before his brother Shaun later snaffled a stunner at short leg off Nathan Lyon. The ground fielding was also impressive, making South Africa work for every run.”There’s been a little bit made of our fielding,” Starc said. “We always put a lot of work into that, and to hang onto some tough chances from the very first over probably lifted the boys a bit as well.”The day was rounded off by David Warner’s acceleration, something Starc was able to enjoy from the vantage point of a dressing room far more relaxed at stumps than it had been in the morning.”The way he can change the game with his little flourish of runs is where he does so well for us,” Starc said. “To be none for 100 with Shaun Marsh building a solid partnership with Davey is fantastic for the team.”

Harmanpreet Kaur became the first India Women’s cricketer to be signed by an overseas Twenty20 franchise after inking a deal with the WBBL champions Sydney Thunder for the 2016-17 season.The confirmation on Saturday ends speculation that began with Anurag Thakur, the BCCI president, announcing in June that Harmanpreet had sealed the deal.”We are delighted to secure a player of the calibre of Harmanpreet,” Nick Cummins, the Sydney Thunder’s general manager, said on Saturday. “She was on the top of our target list, and we are very pleased that the BCCI has released her to play in Australia.”Sydney Thunder prides itself on being an innovator in Australian cricket, so it is a real fillip for the club to have signed the first Indian international to play Big Bash cricket in Australia.”Harmanpreet, India Women’s vice-captain, is said to have received an offer from three teams – including the Sydney Sixers, the runners-up in the inaugural season – before zeroing in on the Thunder.With a cap of two overseas players allowed in the playing XI of each side, Harmanpreet said her interest in the Thunder was driven by her desire to get significant match time. Currently, Stafanie Taylor, West Indies Women’s World T20-winning captain, is the only other overseas professional on their roster.”It’s a great feeling” Harmanpreet was quoted as saying in a press release. “The WBBL is a great platform for women’s cricketers. Being the first player from my country to sign a contract for a BBL club is one of my best moments.”I was looking at a franchise where I would have opportunities to showcase my talent. That’s why I was keen on Sydney Thunder. My aim is to serve my team to win the WBBL title for the second time in a row. Playing with the best players against the best players is always a great feeling. I would definitely learn a lot of things from them all.”Harmanpreet, 27, has featured in 118 internationals across formats, and impressed during India’s tour of Australia in January, when she made a 31-ball 46 to help India record their highest-ever T20 chase. She was one of India’s better performers in a disappointing World T20 campaign at home in March-April.