CA chief executive says pay talks with players and privatisation discussions with states remain unresolved.
Cricket Australia chief executive Todd Greenberg says talks with the Australian Cricketers' Association over a new pay deal have not concluded. Privatisation discussions with New South Wales and Queensland are due to move forward in September. Both sides still differ on how revenue gets split and what players will be asked to do.
Greenberg said governance talks remain live but no final agreements are on the table. Multiple stakeholders need to sign off before either the pay structure or the ownership changes can be finalised. The BBL contracting process requires alignment between CA and the ACA before the next season can be fully planned.
The pay negotiations and privatisation talks are running on separate tracks but both require resolution before the league's operating model can be confirmed. Greenberg indicated that September remains the target for progress on the ownership discussions.
Farokh Engineer says he has never received the Padma Shri announced for him in 1973 and is still seeking official confirmation 53 years later.
Farokh Engineer, 88 and now settled in England, still hasn't received the Padma Shri announced for him in 1973. He read about it in the newspapers while playing county cricket. Since then he's written to Arun Jaitley and, more recently, to Jay Shah, who promised to help. The official awards site lists him among the recipients, but no letter ever came.
He'd like the certificate framed and to attend the Rashtrapati Bhavan ceremony with his wife. A BCCI source says the board intends to raise the matter with the government in the coming weeks. Engineer played 46 Tests between 1961 and 1975, and was the first-choice keeper for the Rest of the World side in the early 1970s.
Dhananjaya de Silva believes Sri Lanka's experience on turning pitches at Galle gives them an advantage over India.
Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva says his side have the upper hand against India in the first Test in Galle because they know how to bat on turning pitches once the surface starts to grip. De Silva expects the pitch to help batters in the first two or three days before turning, with spinners becoming the primary line of attack.
De Silva believes the hardest part of batting in these conditions is knowing what to do when the surface begins to change. He said several batters become clueless when it turns and do not know how to approach an innings. Sri Lanka will look to drag India deep into the Test and let the spinners dictate the game. Left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya has played more matches at Galle than any other player in either squad.
Chaminda Vaas has backed Shubman Gill to be India's most important batter in the first Test at Galle.
Veteran pacer Chaminda Vaas believes Shubman Gill will be the key player for India in the opening Test against Sri Lanka in Galle. The conditions are expected to test the Indian batters, particularly with the pitch likely to offer assistance to spinners as the match progresses. Gill will have the added responsibility of leading the team from the front and setting the tone.
Vaas believes Gill's temperament and ability to build long innings could make him India's biggest weapon in Galle. The former Sri Lanka pacer has closely watched the Indian captain's batting and feels his consistency and composure make him particularly difficult to dismiss once he settles in. Gill has made a strong start as India's Test captain, scoring 1,076 runs in nine matches and 15 innings at an average of 82.76 with six centuries.
Centuries from Zadran and Atal powered Afghanistan to their highest ODI total and an unassailable 3-0 lead over Ireland.
Afghanistan posted their record one-day international score of 343 for 9 as they thrashed Ireland by 42 runs in Belfast on Wednesday to clinch a five-match series with a game to spare. Ibrahim Zadran and Sediqullah Atal both struck centuries in Afghanistan's second-wicket partnership of 231. After the opening match of the series was washed out last week, Afghanistan won the second and third matches by 92 runs and three wickets respectively.
Ireland opener Andrew Balbirnie managed a century of his own in response for the hosts before becoming the 11th of leg-spinner Rashid Khan's 12 wickets so far this series. Curtis Campher's aggressive 84 from 46 balls maintained Ireland's slim hopes of victory but they were never truly in the hunt and they were eventually bowled out for 301. The series concludes at Stormont on Saturday.
KL Rahul aims to extend his Test centuries beyond 100 as his conversion rate trails other top openers.
KL Rahul returns to Sri Lanka aiming to turn his Test centuries into bigger scores after his current average of 128.45 lags behind contemporary openers. Six of his 12 hundreds have finished between 100 and 110, and only two have gone past 150. Rahul is the only batter in the current squad who played in India's previous Test tour of Sri Lanka in 2017, where he scored half-centuries in both matches.
Former opener Wasim Jaffer said Rahul needs both mental strength and physical fitness to stay out there for long hours. Mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton noted that modern players arrive at Test level already low on mental reserves because of packed schedules. Rahul's one domestic score above 200 is a triple century in a Ranji Trophy final against Uttar Pradesh.
Amit Mishra says Gautam Gambhir deserves more time as India Test coach amid recent struggles.
Former India spinner Amit Mishra has urged patience with head coach Gautam Gambhir after India's poor recent Test results. Mishra said one coach for all formats has been the norm for years and that any coach needs time to establish themselves. He pointed out that Rahul Dravid also required 1-1.5 years before performance improved under his tenure.
Under Gambhir, India have won eight, lost 10 and drawn one of their 19 Tests, with series defeats against New Zealand, South Africa and Australia. Mishra stressed that players must take more responsibility and adapt to conditions rather than blame the coach. Gambhir's position is understood to be safe until the end of the 2025-27 World Test Championship cycle.
Sony and Fancode secured the rights deal for the three-match series, with the ACB set to receive around $2 million per match in combined revenue.
Sony and Fancode have acquired the television and digital rights for the three-match India-Afghanistan T20I series scheduled in Delhi from September 13 to 17. ITW Universe, the Afghanistan Cricket Board's global consulting partner, sold the TV rights to Sony on Thursday, with Fancode taking the digital rights.
The combined rights value across both platforms will bring the ACB approximately $2 million per match. This figure exceeds the revenue Afghanistan typically earns from other bilateral series but remains below the per-match value of ₹68 crore paid by JioStar for a previous Afghanistan series in India under the 2023-28 BCCI rights cycle.
JioStar opted not to bid for the short series. Organisers have sold nearly 90 percent of on-ground sponsorship inventory for matches at prime time in the capital, despite the late announcement of the series dates.
Ibrahim Zadran and Sediqullah Atal centuries powered Afghanistan to their highest ODI score and an unassailable 3-0 series lead over Ireland.
Afghanistan posted their highest ODI total of 343 for 9 to beat Ireland by 42 runs in Belfast and seal the five-match series with one game remaining. Ibrahim Zadran and Sediqullah Atal both scored centuries in a second-wicket partnership of 231. Ireland opener Andrew Balbirnie replied with a century before becoming Rashid Khan's 11th wicket of the series.
Curtis Campher scored an aggressive 84 from 46 balls but Ireland were eventually bowled out for 301. Afghanistan won the second and third ODIs by 92 runs and three wickets respectively after the opening match was washed out. The series concludes at Stormont on Saturday.
Hasan Mahmud took a career-best 6 for 55 to lead Bangladesh's attack in Darwin.
Australia collapsed to 198 on day one in Darwin — their lowest Test score ever against Bangladesh. Hasan Mahmud finished with 6 for 55, his best in international cricket.
Mitchell Starc claimed his 434th Test wicket during the innings, overtaking Rangana Herath as the most successful left-arm bowler in Test history. He also equalled Kapil Dev's tally, though in fewer matches.
Bangladesh reached 96 for 1 by stumps, cutting the first-innings deficit to just 102 runs. Before the match, captain Najmul Hossain Shanto had pointedly asked whether the Test would last three or five days — a question that looks sharper now. A sight-screen delay also saw Steve Smith targeted by remarks from an Australian spectator.
Sumith Fernando, a former coach of Kusal Mendis, has died after an altercation with players over drinking water during a match in Colombo.
A 62-year-old coach who once mentored former Sri Lanka captain Kusal Mendis during his school days has died following an altercation with players during a cricket match in Colombo. Police said on Thursday that a 17-year-old school cricketer was arrested on Monday on suspicion of assaulting Sumith Fernando and was remanded to child probation custody until August 17 after being produced before a Colombo court on Tuesday.
A dispute over drinking water led to the altercation involving two players on August 8, following which Fernando was taken to hospital. He died on Tuesday while receiving treatment. Fernando was a former coach of Prince of Wales College in the Colombo suburb of Moratuwa and later served as the curator of Bloomfield Cricket & Athletic Club.
Brook admitted the captaincy workload left him tired and welcomed a return to domestic cricket without leadership duties.
England white-ball captain Harry Brook said leading the side against India took a heavy toll and that he was glad to return to The Hundred purely as a batter. England won the recent T20I series 4-0 and the ODI series 2-1.
Brook, who also captained England at the T20 World Cup earlier this year, said the responsibility of captaincy drains energy even after successful results. He is playing for Sunrisers Leeds in The Hundred Eliminator at Headingley on Friday.
Brook also spoke about his long-standing relationship with Test captain Joe Root, noting they have played together for Yorkshire since he was 14.
Ashwin believes Morgan is the leading candidate to replace Fleming at CSK. He said Dhoni's leadership will be central during the transition period.
Ravichandran Ashwin says Eoin Morgan's name keeps coming up whenever Chennai Super Kings talk about their next head coach. The franchise cut ties with Stephen Fleming after another poor season, and early conversations about a replacement have already started. Ashwin told his YouTube channel the timing is still undecided — Morgan might not take over until after the mega auction next year.
Morgan has never coached a franchise or international side since retiring in 2023. Ashwin thinks MS Dhoni will be the steady hand during whatever transition comes next. He figures Dhoni's presence could keep the dressing room stable while the new setup finds its feet.
India and Pakistan can only meet in the final or bronze-medal play-off at the Nagoya Asian Games.
The much-anticipated India-Pakistan clash will not be seen in the early stages of the Nagoya Asian Games, with the two arch-rivals placed in separate quarterfinals. India and Pakistan have been directly seeded into the quarterfinals along with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
India have been placed in Quarterfinal 2, while Pakistan will feature in Quarterfinal 1, with both matches scheduled for September 28. The semifinal draw ensures that the two sides cannot meet in the last four, meaning their only possible meeting would come in the gold-medal match or bronze-medal play-off.
The Asian Games will be held from September 19 to October 4, while the cricket competition will begin on September 17. The women's matches will be played first, with the final scheduled for September 22, before the men's competition takes centre stage.
Shubman Gill returned to batting action in India's warm-up match against Sri Lanka XI after missing the first two days with a finger injury.
India captain Shubman Gill returned to action on Sunday, walking out to open the innings in India's chase of 207 against Sri Lanka Cricket XI in the final innings of the Colombo warm-up match. Gill had missed the opening two days after suffering a right ring-finger injury during training in Colombo.
His return comes at an important time for India, with the first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle scheduled for August 15. The captain was seen batting in the nets at the Nondescripts Cricket Club Ground earlier on Sunday before taking his place at the top of the order.
Gill's absence was confirmed at the toss on Friday morning after he sustained an impact injury to his right ring finger during Thursday's practice session. KL Rahul had led the side in his absence during the first two days of the warm-up.
Afghanistan secured automatic qualification for the 2027 ODI World Cup after beating Ireland by 42 runs in the fourth ODI in Belfast. Sediqullah Atal and Ibrahim Zadran scored centuries while Rashid Khan took six wickets in the second ODI, giving Afghanistan an unassailable 3-0 lead in the series.
The win confirmed their place among the top eight teams in the ICC ODI Rankings on September 30, 2026, the cut-off for automatic qualification. Afghanistan will join Australia, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, England, Bangladesh, South Africa and Zimbabwe in the 2027 World Cup.
West Indies, currently ranked 10th, will miss direct qualification despite having two matches in hand against India. The West Indies will enter the World Cup Qualifier that begins in February 2027, marking their third consecutive appearance in the qualifying tournament.
Sharma's unbeaten 28 steered Sunrisers to victory after Issy Wong's late three-wicket burst gave Brave hope.
Deepti Sharma guided Sunrisers Leeds into the women's Hundred final with an unbeaten 28 off 22 balls in a five-wicket win over Southern Brave at The Oval. She also picked up a wicket to take her tournament tally to 13 from nine matches, making her the provisional leading wicket-taker. Sunrisers chased down 115 with 11 balls to spare.
Southern Brave were restricted to 114 for seven, with Lizelle Lee top-scoring on 32 off 25 balls. Annabel Sutherland and Hannah Baker took two wickets each for Sunrisers. Lauren Winfield-Hill made 37 in the chase before being bowled by Issy Wong, who finished with three for 21.
Sharma and Winfield-Hill added 41 runs for the fourth wicket to steady the innings after Sunrisers slipped to 54 for three. They will face Trent Rockets in the final at Lord's on Sunday. Sunrisers are looking to secure back-to-back Hundred titles.
MI London and Welsh Fire both failed to reach the knockout stage of The Hundred after narrow defeats on the final day of the group stage.
MI London were eliminated from The Hundred despite posting a hard-fought two-run victory against Birmingham Phoenix in their final group game at Edgbaston. MI needed to win by 59 or more runs to leapfrog third-placed Sunrisers Leeds on net run-rate and reach the Eliminator. Instead, they finished fourth, level on points with second-placed Manchester Super Giants and Sunrisers, who will face each other in the Eliminator at The Oval on Friday.
Earlier on Wednesday, Welsh Fire were also eliminated as they suffered a six-run defeat by London Spirit in their final group match in Cardiff. The hosts' hopes of progressing were slim even if they had won because of their net run-rate of minus 1.001. Fire ended their campaign in fifth place.
Ellyse Perry hit an unbeaten 62 off 39 balls to guide Birmingham Phoenix to a five-wicket win against MI London.
Birmingham Phoenix prevailed in the battle to avoid the wooden spoon in The Hundred women's competition as Ellyse Perry's composed half-century condemned MI London to a sixth defeat. Both teams had managed a solitary victory heading into this fixture but a fifth-wicket stand of 66 between Perry and Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana ensured Phoenix halted a three-match losing streak.
Set a modest target of 122, the hosts were wobbling at 48-4 after Jemima Spence and Davina Perrin fell in the powerplay. Kirstie Gordon took 2 for 20 with her left-arm spin. Perry found a willing partner in Sana, who eventually fell to Nicola Carey when just seven runs were required, and the Aussie superstar secured the win with six balls to spare.
Perry hit seven fours and two sixes in her unbeaten 62 off 39 balls. The victory ensures Phoenix leapfrog MI London and avoid finishing bottom of the women's table, finishing seventh with MI London in eighth place.
Farveez Maharoof believes Gurnoor Brar could be India's X-factor pacer in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah for the Sri Lanka Test series.
Former Sri Lanka all-rounder Farveez Maharoof has backed uncapped pacer Gurnoor Brar to provide India with an X-factor in the two-Test series against Sri Lanka. Brar, who was included in India's squad for the Test series, made his international debut against Afghanistan in an ODI earlier this year and has picked up 11 wickets in six innings at an average of 32.81. The 25-year-old also boasts impressive numbers in first-class cricket with 62 wickets in 19 matches at an average of 25.24.
Maharoof said Brar impressed during India's warm-up game against Sri Lanka XI, finishing with three wickets and troubling several batters who have already featured in Test cricket. He acknowledged that Brar's lack of Test experience could make his selection a gamble but believes his ability to generate pace and bounce could make him valuable in short spells.
India's squad for Sri Lanka Tests includes Shubman Gill (Captain), KL Rahul (Vice-Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Manav Suthar, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Devdutt Padikkal, Saransh Jain and Auqib Nabi.
