I didn’t realise the AFL bought all the cricket grounds round the countries
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They have usage rights - I don’t agree with their decision but it’s entirely within their usage rights to block the event.
Yep- come March, footy is boss.
I like the Sheffield Shield but it is very much an ‘off Broadway’ event compared to the AFL juggernaut.
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Matt Kuhnemann yesterday spoke publicly for the first time since being cleared by the ICC of a suspect bowling action.
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South Australia will host Queensland in the Sheffield Shield final at Adelaide’s Karen Rolton Oval starting March 26. The two teams played out a draw at the same venue yesterday in their final group game.
Meanwhile in Perth, Victoria beat triple defending champions WA by 34 runs, with Peter Siddle claiming the home team’s final wicket, finishing on 792 first-class wickets. WA’s loss has meant they will fall to the bottom of the ladder to finish the season, the first time they have finished at the foot of the Shield table since 1963-64.
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- Really could have gone one more but at 40 I guess he’s done with the long days.
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Michael Gough and Joel Wilson have been removed, while former cricketers, South Africa’s Allahuddien Paleker and England’s Alex Wharf have been included in the ICC’s elite panel of umpires for 2025-26 as part of the ICC’s routine performance-assessment process.
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Australia won game 1 by eight runs and game 2 by 82 runs. In game 1, Ash Gardner fractured her right index finger after spilling a return catch, and returned to Sydney for further scans. According to ESPNCricinfo’s report:
Bowling the 17th over of the New Zealand innings - her third - after New Zealand had opted to bat, Gardner sent in a flighted delivery to Sophie Devine, who went down the track and hit the ball back hard towards Gardner. Gardner got both her hands on the ball attempting the catch, but spilled it and it was immediately clear that she had hurt herself. The physio was out, and Gardner went off the field soon after.
I get the kiwis like a bit of late season international cricket at home, but this T20 series in deepest darkest March, while the IPL is on is a bit daft
I’ve seen bigger crowds at local cricket
The NZ/Pakistan men’s series and the women’s Trans-Tasman series have felt incredibly pointless. Good news is there’s still three men’s ODIs to come!
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I thought full members couldn’t play during the IPL?
I believe member nations can schedule cricket during that time - just that players have to be released to play IPL. So NZ are without their IPL players and well, Pakistan don’t have to worry about the IPL.
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A few of those Kiwis may be up for IPL contracts in the future, especially Tim Seifert.
For those that know the weather patterns in Aotearoa, March is a good month to play cricket, particularly from Wellington southwards. The Kiwi drizzle is at its least pervasive at this time of year.
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Have noticed in the last couple if years that state teams have all but phased out their old mascot names. Though Queensland still have the Bulls logo on their caps and helmets but also use the old QCA logo as well.
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More teams should play this time of year - the IPL might take a few stars, but there’s more than enough depth to still play.
Indeed, might be a good time for Aus to tour NZ - given how the main part of summer is always full with home matches, we could get a 3 test series in during the IPL window.
Given we have so many players in the IPL, if you schedule matches in this window, then you can leave September-October as a pretty empty part of the calendar to have a proper rest break that can include all of the players.
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Ehhh no thanks. I’m fine with hit and giggle but I’d rather test matches be played at full strength.
On this - the World Cricketers Association might be on to something.
4x 21 day protected windows a year for international cricket. I’m less convinced of their idea for series to contain multi formats by definition.
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If the idea was done in reverse I wouldn’t mind it- set aside four blocks of 30-40 days a year with no international tournaments for the T20 franchise competitions (IPL in one window, BBL/SA20 in other etc.) to have clear air, and leave the rest of the year for traditional domestic and international competitions.
The idea as they’ve put it though would only hasten the demise of international and domestic cricket outside of the big 3 (IND, AUS, ENG), and give these franchise tournaments way too much control over the calendar.
I think it would protect cricket in a lot of markets where it is struggling to retain their players, but I take your point.
The problem is franchise competitions are only going to grow - if windows can be established to protect international cricket it will go some way to helping it survive.
There’s so many now - Jimmy Neesham who played for NZ for example in the Pakistan T20 series was playing a T20 league in Nepal of all places last year (among about half a dozen other sides/leagues in the last 12 months or so).
It does give the franchise T20 leagues a lot of control over the calendar - but they essentially have it anyway. This would safeguard it a little.
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Several Australian cricketers also feature in the Real Cricket app.