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A round up of the North Zone matches from the Inter State T20 Tournament played on February 2, 2017

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Feb-2017Shikhar Dhawan struck an unbeaten 47-ball 82 to power Delhi to a six-wicket win against Services in Dharamsala. Dhawan hit 11 fours and three sixes as Delhi swept past their target of 132 with 39 balls remaining. Delhi were in a bit of trouble at 43 for 3 before Dhawan and Nitish Rana (22 off 16) calmed them with a fourth-wicket partnership of 74.Having sent Services in, Delhi were firmly in control through most of Services’ innings, striking regularly and reducing them to 96 for 7 in the 17th over. Amit Pachhara, though, ensured Services wouldn’t give in without a fight, scoring an unbeaten 56 off 46 balls, and adding an unbroken 35 for the eighth wicket with Rahul Kanojia. Vikas Tokas (3 for 23) and Manan Sharma (3-0-8-2) were Delhi’s most impressive bowlers.Manan Vohra’s 60 and a 16-ball 34 from Gurkeerat Singh set the foundation of Punjab‘s 23-run win over Himachal Pradesh, leading the team to a score of 162 for 7. Punjab’s bowlers, led by Harbhajan Singh (2-25) and seamer Baltej Singh (3-33), then pinned Himachal to 139 for 9, with five wickets falling in the last five overs. Vohra’s 50-run partnership with Anmolpreet Singh helped Punjab recover from a poor start before Gurkeerat added quick runs at the end, hitting four fours and two sixes. Harbhajan then struck in successive overs to dismiss Himachal’s openers after a good start, after which the side stumbled from 114 for 2 in the 15th over to 130 for 9 in the 19th over. Ankush Bains was the top-scorer for Himachal with a 32-ball 57.A manic penultimate over, in which Haryana lost four wickets, saw them fall four runs short of Jammu & Kashmir‘s total of 156 in Nadaun. Needing 24 off the last two overs with six wickets in hand, Haryana’s chase began to go awry with the run-out of the well-set Rajat Paliwal. Then, Haryana lost wickets off three consecutive deliveries -Harshal Patel was run-out without facing a ball after which Ram Dayal dismissed Rahul Tewatia and Sanjay Pahal. In the final over, Haryana could only hit 14 runs out of the required 18, with Virender Dahiya hitting a six during his three-ball stay. Earlier, Shubham Khajuria’s 68 (57 balls) lifted J&K to 156 for 3 after they opted to bat. He was well-supported by Ian Dev Singh (27) and Mithun Manhas (31 not out).

He might not be a sure starter in India’s limited-overs XIs nowadays, but Ajinkya Rahane has been given a Grade A BCCI central contract, which carries a retainer of Rs 1 crore

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Nov-2015He might not be a sure starter in India’s limited-overs XIs nowadays, but Ajinkya Rahane has been given a Grade A BCCI central contract. It is an elite group: only four players have made it to Grade A, others being Test captain Virat Kohli, limited-overs captain MS Dhoni and offspinner R Ashwin.Rahane was the captain when India went to Zimbabwe without Dhoni and Kohli. Rahane had an excellent year with runs in Australia, both in Tests and at the World Cup, to go with his previous year where he scored runs in South Africa and England. Grade A carried a Rs 1 crore retainer.

The BCCI’s contract list for 2015-16

Men’s players
Grade A (Rs 1 crore): MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, R Ashwin, Ajinkya Rahane
In: Ajinkya Rahane
Out: Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suresh Raina
Grade B (Rs 50 lakh): Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Rohit Sharma, M Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Mohammed Shami
In: Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suresh Raina
Out: Ravindra Jadeja, Pragyan Ojha
Grade C (Rs 25 lakh): Amit Mishra, Axar Patel, Stuart Binny, Wriddhiman Saha, Mohit Sharma, Varun Aaron, Karn Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, KL Rahul, Dhawal Kulkarni, Harbhajan Singh, S Aravind
In: Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh, S Aravind
Out: Pankaj Singh, Vinay Kumar, Manoj Tiwary, Parvez Rasool, Robin Uthappa, Sanju Samson, Kuldeep Yadav
Women’s players
Grade A (Rs 15 lakh): Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, Harmanpreet Kaur, Thirush Kamini
Grade B (Rs 10 lakh): Smriti Mandhana, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav, Ekta Bisht, Veda Krishnamurthy, Niranjana Nagarajan, Poonam Raut

Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who was India’s Player of the Series in England in 2014, has been relegated to Grade B as has Suresh Raina. Bhuvneshwar hasn’t been able to replicate his form from the previous year after his return from injury. Since he was given a Grade A contract last year, Raina has made another unsuccessful attempt at a Test comeback, and has had an average time in the ODIs.Test openers M Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan, batsmen Cheteshwar Pujara, Rohit Sharma and Ambati Rayudu, and fast bowlers Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Shami retained their Grade B contracts, which carry a Rs 50 lakh retainer.Ravindra Jadeja, who has made a successful comeback to Tests with the Man of the Match award in Mohali, went down from Grade B to Grade C. After a shoulder injury, he had an indifferent time in international cricket, which led to his being dropped from all formats after the ODIs in Bangladesh in June. Another Grade B contract holder, Pragyan Ojha, whose action came under the spotlight before he came back to domestic cricket with corrections, was not given any contract.The total number of contracts went down from 32 to 26. Pankaj Singh, Vinay Kumar, Manoj Tiwary, Parvez Rasool, Robin Uthappa, Sanju Samson and Kuldeep Yadav lost their contracts. Harbhajan Singh and S Aravind were given Grade C contracts, whose retainer is Rs 25 lakh. Naman Ojha, who made his test debut in Sri Lanka, missed out on a contract as well.Women cricketers were awarded contracts for the first time, with Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, Harmanpreet Kaur and Thirush Kamini bracketed in Grade A that carries a retainer of Rs 15 lakh. Seven other players were handed Grade B contracts of Rs 10 lakh each.Last year the BCCI had not announced the various retainer fees for the various grades because there had not been an AGM owing to the impasse over IPL corruption issues. The retainer fees have not gone up from what they were in 2013.

Australia sealed a tight win over New Zealand on the third day at the Bert Sutcliffe Oval in Lincoln

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Apr-2013
Scorecard
Australia sealed a tight win over New Zealand on the third day at the Bert Sutcliffe Oval in Lincoln. New Zealand began the day on 153 for 4, and would have hoped to save the game on what was the final day but were bowled out for 241. They slipped to 175 for 6 and then lost their captain Tim Seifert, who had held the innings together until then, making 97. Having collapsed to 196 for 9, New Zealand were helped by an unbeaten 33 from No.11 Harley Jenkins, who stretched the lead to 206.Australia had limited time to chase down 208 but did so successfully, with three wickets to spare. They were 38 for 3 at one stage but didn’t stray from their objective of winning the game. Opener Jaron Morgan made 72 in 89 balls and was ably supported by the middle and lower orders, with valuable contributions from each batsman. Tom Andrews made 31, Cameron Valente guided the chase after Morgan fell with an unbeaten 36, and there was assistance from Guy Walker, Matthew Short, and Jake Doran, who scored at better than a run a ball. The chase was completed in 44.5 overs.In the first innings, both teams declared after batting for 80 overs. New Zealand made 385 for 9, with the openers Rakitha Weerasundara and Henry Collier being among four batsmen to hit half-centuries. Australia responded strongly, scoring at better than five an over, making 420 for 4, thanks to hundreds from Short and Sean Willis.

A round-up of the preliminary finals and play-offs in the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Mar-2012

Preliminary finals

The Afghanistan players celebrate after securing qualification for the 2012 World Twenty20•Getty Images

Afghanistan ensured they will appear at the ICC World Twenty20 for the second competition running with a comprehensive win over previously unbeaten Namibia in Dubai. Victory by 47 runs booked Afghanistan a place in the final of the qualifying tournament, where they could meet Namibia again; they will play either Ireland or Netherlands – who both won their first play-off games earlier in the day – for the second berth on offer for the 2012 World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka.Having chosen to bat, Afghanistan were dismissed off the final ball of their innings for 146. Against big-scoring Namibia, other sides may have felt that score was barely enough – but Afghanistan have swept all before them in the last week and the bowlers blew away their opponents’ dangerous top order, effectively ending Namibia’s hopes at 18 for 4 after four overs. Dawlat Zadran was the destroyer-in-chief, taking 3 for 1 in his opening two-over spell, including the wicket of Raymond van Schoor, the tournament’s leading runscorer, for a first-ball duck. Gerrie Snyman was also dismissed for 0 in the same over, before Dawlat had Craig Williams caught behind and Aftab Alam – who went on to claim 4 for 25 – removed Louis van der Westhuizen, ensuring that none of the top four made double figures.After that opening blitz, Namibia’s hopes were in tatters and they were eventually bundled out for 99. Their struggles put into perspective Afghanistan’s score, with several batsmen getting in and then out. Karim Sadiq and Javid Ahmadi put on 57 for the opening wicket in 6.3 overs but they both fell in quick succession as Sarel Burger claimed three for 16 from his four overs. With boundaries drying up – Afghanistan managed 10 fours and no sixes – Asghar Stanikzai and Mohammad Nabi chipped away lower down the order. In the end, their efforts proved more than enough.Ireland swept past Canada in the first play-off stage, winning by 10 wickets at the Dubai International Stadium. Read the full report here.Netherlands edged out Scotland by three wickets at the ICC Global Cricket Academy to set up a meeting with Ireland in the next stage. Chasing 167 to win, Netherlands looked in control thanks to a steady hand from Tom Cooper, but his dismissal for 60 left them requiring 15 from the last two overs, with seven wickets down. The tension was broken swiftly, however, as Tim Gruijters smashed his second ball for six, with 11 runs coming off the penultimate over bowled by Kyle Coetzer, before Tom de Grooth’s top-edged four sealed victory with five balls to spare. Scotland, coming off a surprise group-stage defeat to USA, had earlier given themselves a chance of an upset thanks to another impressive opening stand between Richie Berrington and Calum MacLeod. They put on 59 in 6.3 overs before Berrington’s departure for 37, with MacLeod – a former bowler – going on to pass 50 for the third time in the tournament. Netherlands’ spinners slowed the scoring in the later stages though, with Mudassar Bukhari, Pieter Seelaar and Peter Borren each picking up two wickets as the Dutch kept the target down.

Play-offs

Nepal beat Kenya by five wickets and two balls to spare to win a semi-final for the seventh place play-off in Dubai. After choosing to bat, Kenya were restricted to 139 for 4. Their captain Collins Obuya top scored with 52 off 42 balls. Basanta Regmi took 3 for 23 for Nepal, while Shakti Gauchan conceded only 19 in four overs. Nepal’s openers gave the chase a steady start, adding 64 in ten overs and their captain Paras Khadka remained unbeaten on 26 to secure the victory. Nepal’s chase was aided by 17 extras.Papua New Guinea (PNG) defended a modest total of 118 for 9 against Italy to win the other semi-final for the seventh place play-off in Dubai. Damian Crowley took 4 for 18 to limit PNG after they chose to bat, while Carl Sandri claimed 2 for 18. Opener Tony Ura (37) was the only PNG batsman to make it past 20 and the innings was floundering at 69 for 6 before the tail propped the total past 100. PNG’s bowlers, however, bowled economically and struck regularly to hinder the Italy chase. Hitolo Areni took 3 for 9 in four overs, and had support from the new-ball attack, Willie Gavera and Rarva Dikana. Italy slipped from the comfortable position of 81 for 3 in 14.4 overs and were restricted to 106 for 7 in 20 overs.Hong Kong beat Uganda by five wickets to win one 11th place play-off semi-final in Sharjah. After putting Uganda in, Hong Kong restricted them to 130 for 8. Apart from the openers, Roger Mukasa and Arthur Kyobe, no Uganda batsman made more than 20. Irfan Ahmed to 3 for 32 for Hong Kong, while Roy Lamsam took 1 for 15 in four overs. Ahmed then scored an unbeaten 55 to lead the chase, while Waqas Barkat and Jamie Atkinson made 31 and 30. Hong Kong slipped in the later part of the innings, losing four wickets for eight runs, but still reached the target with four balls to spare.USA beat Bermuda by 34 runs after a powerful batting performance to win the second semi-final for the 11th place play-off in Sharjah. They amassed 193 for 5 after choosing to bat; Steven Taylor made 38 off 22 balls, Sushil Nadkarni 48 off 30 and Orlando Baker 39 off 32 deliveries. The least expensive Bermuda bowler was Joshua Gilbert, who conceded 8.33 an over. During Bermuda’s chase, Lionel Cann struck three sixes and four fours in his 73 off 47 balls but got poor support from his team-mates. Muhammad Ghous took 2 for 20 for USA, while Abhimanyu Rajp and Almore Hutchinson also took two wickets apiece. Bermuda were restricted to 159 for 8 in 20 overs.After losing all seven of their Group B matches, Oman beat Denmark by 17 runs in the 15th place play-off. Oman chose to bat and their openers, Zeeshan Siddiqui and Jatinder Singh, made half-centuries in first-wicket partnership of 113. After that stand was broken in the 14th over, though, Oman’s momentum slipped and they finished on 155 for 5. Denmark were well placed in their chase, having reached 109 for 2 in the 15th over, but then lost frequent wickets to finish on 138 for 6. Hemal Mehta was Oman’s most successful bowler, taking 3 for 29 in four overs, while Amir Kaleem took 1 for 11 in three.

Adam Gilchrist, the Kings XI Punjab captain, has described his team’s seven-wicket defeat at the hands of Pune Warriors, making their first IPL appearance, as a “poor all-round performance”

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Apr-2011Adam Gilchrist, the Kings XI Punjab captain, has described his team’s seven-wicket defeat at the hands of Pune Warriors, making their first IPL appearance, as a “poor all-round performance.” Gilchrist fell in the first over of the day, after opting to bat, and if not for Ryan McLaren’s fighting half-century, Punjab would have struggled to even reach triple-figures.”It was a poor all-round performance. It started with me in the first over and that set the tone for the innings,” Gilchrist said. Punjab didn’t help themselves, dropping a couple of easy catches in Pune’s chase. Both Yuvraj Singh and Robin Uthappa, batsmen who took Pune home with some big hits, got a reprieve. “A couple of catches could have been taken and that would have left them at five for 70 odd. We just weren’t good enough today,” Gilchrist said.Punjab, like several other teams, underwent a revamp after the IPL auctions and Gilchrist said it would take a little time for the team to settle down. “We felt comfortable enough coming in to this game, but we need to take little steps [towards improving]. We will go back and work on it, it’s a long tournament and the only way is up.”McLaren was outstanding, the bowlers did create some chances, picked up wickets and there were several players who hadn’t played the IPL before so to be just involved in the experience, that is a positive in itself.”Yuvraj, meanwhile, said he enjoyed captaining Pune to a maiden win and claimed captaincy appeared a tougher job when he led Punjab. “The first two years that I captained Kings XI Punjab, I took a lot of pressure on myself and was getting distracted a lot in the field. This time I just thought I’ll be calm and relaxed and that worked for me.”It was a good toss to lose, we bowled wicket to wicket, back of a length and got the results.”

The controversial and injury-prone Pakistan fast bowler has not given up hopes of making an international comeback

Cricinfo staff22-Apr-2010Shoaib Akhtar, the controversial and injury-prone Pakistan fast bowler, has not given up hope of making an international comeback, assuring that his form and fitness in the ongoing RBS Pentangular one-day tournament in Karachi has been up to the mark. Shoaib was speaking after taking a match-winning 6 for 52 to guide Federal Areas Leopards to a convincing win against Khyber-Pakthunkhwa Panthers.Shoaib last played for Pakistan during the limited-overs series against Australia in the UAE last year. He was omitted for the ICC World Twenty20 in the West Indies later this month and got in trouble with the PCB for violating the terms of his central contract.”I am fit and bowling in rhythm,” Shoaib said. “I don’t want to live in the past. Now I am fit and playing and have proved my fitness. My performance has never been in doubt, so it’s now up to the selectors when they give me a chance.”Mohsin Khan, Pakistan’s chief selector, said Shoaib could be considered for the trip to England if he continues to perform. “If he continues to play well regularly at the domestic and club level, and proves his fitness and form, he could be considered for the English tour,” Mohsin said. “We have not written him off completely. He should be grateful to the Pakistan Cricket Board that it has given him a chance to win back his place in the national team.”Shoaib attributed the below-par performances in his past few series to a persistent knee problem, which has been corrected through surgery. Also, the rise of Mohammad Aamer and the return of Mohammad Asif have pushed him further out of national reckoning. He has not played a Test for Pakistan since December 2007.”I have experience which is precious and my competition is only with myself,” Akhtar said. “I know I have suffered fitness problems but all fast bowlers suffer with that. I am still focused and want to play for Pakistan and finish on a high.”His first target is to get selected for the “home” series against Australia in England this summer, but his ultimate goal is to make it to the World Cup next year and hopefully play a big role in seeing his team go all the way.”I know the problems I have faced in my career, but the dream to feature in the final of the 2011 World Cup in Mumbai is still alive and I want to help Pakistan win the World Cup in a year’s time.”

Bangladesh have home series lined up against Ireland, West Indies, Pakistan and New Zealand in the 2025-26 season calendar

Mohammad Isam18-Sep-2025Mushfiqur Rahim is likely to play his 100th Test at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka when Bangladesh face Ireland in the second Test of the two-match series starting November 19.The update comes after Cricket Ireland agreed to play both Tests, having earlier reportedly wanted to play an ODI series instead of the second Test. The first Bangladesh-Ireland Test will be played in Sylhet from November 11.Mushfiqur, currently on 98 Tests, will become the first Bangladesh cricketer to reach the three figure milestone when he gets there. He made his debut as an 18-year-old in 2005 at Lord’s, becoming the second-youngest to play a Test at the venue after Sachin Tendulkar.He is currently Bangladesh’s only batter with 6000-plus runs. His 219 not out against Zimbabwe in 2020 is also the team’s highest individual score.After Bangladesh and Ireland face off in two Tests, the T20Is will be held on November 27 and 29 in Chattogram, and in Dhaka on December 2.Cricket West Indies, meanwhile, announced on Wednesday that West Indies will tour Bangladesh for six white-ball matches in October. They will play the three ODIs on October 18, 20 and 23 and the three T20Is on October 27 and 30, and November 1.According to the ICC’s future tours programme, the December-January window is free for Bangladesh, which means that the Bangladesh Premier League is likely to be held at that time. The T20 World Cup will follow in February.Bangladesh’s 2025-26 calendar also includes home series against Pakistan and New Zealand.

Former Worcestershire batter Daryl Mitchell set to take charge of players’ union in interim capacity

Vithushan Ehantharajah19-Apr-2024Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) chief executive Rob Lynch will stand down from his role in June to join MCC as director of cricket operations.Lynch, who represented New Zealand at the Under-19 World Cup in 2000, has been in his role at the players’ union since October 2020. He initially served as the PCA’s commercial director from February 2020 before taking on an interim CEO role following Tony Irish’s departure in July of that year.Lynch joined the PCA from Middlesex, where he was chief operating officer. He will return to Lord’s to take up his new position at MCC once he has served a notice period that will last until June 28. Former Worcestershire captain Daryl Mitchell, currently COO at the PCA, will be promoted in an interim capacity to cover for Lynch before a permanent appointment is made.Over the course of his tenure, Lynch helped the PCA navigate through the pandemic and has been a critical voice against an “unsustainable” domestic schedule putting player welfare at risk. Lynch also attended a parliamentary hearing in 2022 where he accepted failings on behalf of the PCA after Azeem Rafiq labelled the union “incredibly inept” for failing to support him over allegations of racism at Yorkshire.In a statement released by the PCA, Lynch said: “Serving as the chief executive of the PCA has been the greatest privilege and challenge of my career. Representing the players is something I will cherish and the association is in a strong financial position, and is set-up to thrive as the sport evolves at a rapid rate.”The growth of the women’s game and equitable advancements, alongside the broader EDI perspective has brought immense and much needed challenge, with the PCA and player knowledge much better for this.”I have thoroughly enjoyed working closely with the players and the wider game to progress standards for the benefit of our members.”Thank you to everybody I have worked so closely with, including our Chair James Harris, Julian Metherell and James Cameron, the board, Richard Bevan, Eoin Morgan and importantly the most-dedicated group of staff I have witnessed in my professional career, they are a credit to PCA members and will no doubt continue to drive exceptionally high standards when I depart in late June.”Lynch, an MCC member and former Young Cricketer during the 2000 season, will succeed Jamie Cox at Lord’s, with Cox joining Somerset as their new chief executive. The director of cricket operations’ duties involved heading up the MCC’s cricket departments and overseeing the club’s global role, including guardianship of the Laws of Cricket and the MCC World Cricket Committee.Matchday operations are also a feature and will begin almost immediately. Lynch officially assumes his role in July with the first men’s Test match of the summer between England and West Indies beginning at Lord’s on July 10.MCC chief executive and secretary Guy Lavender said: “Following a thorough recruitment process, I am delighted to welcome Rob back to MCC. There was an extremely high calibre of candidates who applied for the role, and Rob was the standout individual.”With cricket’s ever-changing landscape, we are very fortunate to be appointing an individual who has such deep experience of the operations in the game, on and off the field. Rob is no stranger to Lord’s and the structure of MCC, meaning he can hit the ground running as we embark on another busy summer.”I would like to thank Jamie Cox for his huge contribution to MCC over the past three years. He has led on numerous projects during that time, including our cricket strategy and I wish him the best for an exciting role at Somerset. I am certain he will make a success of it.”

The BCCI has adopted a closed bid auction method, and will announce the winners on Monday

Nagraj Gollapudi15-Jan-2023All the major Indian broadcasters, including Disney Star*, Viacom 18, Sony and Zee, will be bidding for the Women’s Indian Premier League (WIPL) media rights at an auction on Monday. The BCCI has adopted a closed bid auction method for the day-long event, and will announce the winner on the same day.ESPNcricinfo has learned that eight potential bidders had bought the tender document which was put on sale in December. The rights, spanning a five-year period between 2023-27, comprised three categories: linear (TV), digital and combined (TV and digital). The rights will be sold globally, including India.The BCCI has also decided not to set a base price as it wants the market to determine its value considering the WIPL is untapped territory. This is in contrast to the process it adopted when it sold the media rights for the men’s IPL last year for a record net sum of close to US$ 6 billion. Those rights were split across multiple categories and regions and were fiercely contested by multiple players with the auction exercise stretching for three days.Related

• Eight IPL franchises confirmed to be in race for WIPL teams

• Women's IPL franchises to be unveiled on January 25

• Inaugural Women's IPL auction in February; deadline for registration January 26

The WIPL media rights are significant because they constitute the majority of the central commercial pool from which the five franchises will get 80% of their revenue. In the tender document for franchise rights, the BCCI has mentioned that it would share 80% of the commercial rights income it derives from WIPL with the teams in the first five years, 60% in the following five years, and 50% after that. In addition, the franchises will also get 80% of the money derived from the central licensing rights.Having conducted the Women’s T20 Challenge initially as an exhibition event, the BCCI last year finally decided to launch the WIPL with its inaugural edition set to be played in March. While the BCCI has not yet announced the tournament dates, it is understood that the first season, spanning 22 matches, is likely to be played between March 5 and 23.The BCCI will unveil the five WIPL franchises on January 25. The financial bids of these franchises, currently submitted in sealed envelopes, will be opened on that day. The BCCI has listed 10 cities in the bid document. So far, at least eight of the 10 men’s IPL franchises have confirmed they would be bidding for a franchise.

The players had taken part in the World Cup qualifiers in Zimbabwe; unclear whether the positive tests were for the new Omicron variant

Reuters29-Nov-2021Six Sri Lanka women cricketers who took part in the World Cup qualifiers in Zimbabwe have tested positive for Covid-19, the SLC said on Sunday.The ICC had called off the qualifiers in Zimbabwe on Saturday after discovery of a new variant in South Africa, which has prompted widespread travel curbs. It was not known whether the Sri Lankan players’ positive tests were for the new Omicron variant of the virus.Related

• Taylor jumps to ninth in batting; Matthews moves to career-best eighth among allrounders

• Women's World Cup qualifier in Zimbabwe called off

• SA vs Netherlands: New variant forces postponement of last two ODIs

The ICC took its decision after Saturday’s game between the West Indies and Sri Lanka was called off when a member of the Sri Lankan support staff tested positive for Covid.”The team is still in Zimbabwe, and we’re talking with the ICC to try and get them back to Sri Lanka as soon as possible,” SLC CEO Ashley de Silva told ESPNcricinfo. “The players who have tested positive will have to stay there until they test negative. There is a doctor traveling with the team who will stay behind with them.”Although the non-infected members of the squad could come back sooner, they will still have to undergo quarantine upon arrival in Sri Lanka, as the island’s government has just reimposed mandatory quarantines for arrivals from southern Africa, following the news about the Omicron variant. All of Sri Lanka’s squad members are currently in isolation in Zimbabwe.After the cancellation of the qualifiers, the ICC said that Bangladesh, Pakistan and the West Indies will progress to next year’s World Cup in New Zealand by virtue of their rankings. The three teams will join New Zealand, Australia, India, England and South Africa.South African sport began to shut down on Friday as the travel bans forced rugby teams and golfers to scramble to try to leave the country.