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Squad includes fit-again big-hitting keeper-batsman Tim Seifert and three spin options in Mitchell Santner, Todd Astle and Ish Sodhi

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Aug-2019New Zealand captain Kane Williamson and senior pacer Trent Boult have been rested for the T20 leg of the ongoing Sri Lanka tour. In Williamson’s absence, Tim Southee will lead a squad that includes a fit-again big-hitting keeper-batsman Tim Seifert and three spin options in Mitchell Santner, Todd Astle and Ish Sodhi.”Kane and Trent played an enormous role in our recent World Cup campaign and with a big summer ahead, we see it as a good opportunity to give them a rest,” selector Gavin Larsen said.Wicketkeeper-batsman Seifert, who had suffered a finger injury during the four-day Plunket Shield and later missed the World Cup, returned to the side, as did Tom Bruce. The aggressive Central Districts batsman wasn’t part of New Zealand’s squad for their last T20I series against India, but he was particularly impressive in the Super Smash T20 competition, hitting 353 runs in 11 innings at an average of nearly 40 and strike rate of 157.58.Seam-bowling allrounder Doug Bracewell, who had been included in the squad for those T20Is against India earlier this year – though he did not get into the XI – was left out now. Seth Rance was picked as a like-for-like replacement.Fast bowler Scott Kuggeleijn and allrounder Daryl Mitchell, the son of former All Black John Mitchell, have both retained their places in the squad as New Zealand seek to identify their combination for the T20 World Cup next year.”Following that amazing ride in the ODI World Cup, it’s exciting to begin setting our sights on another world event,” Larsen said. “The series in Sri Lanka will be a challenging one against a team who are tough to beat in their own conditions.”Our T20 team has been pretty consistent over the past couple of years and we’re really happy with the power and versatility we have in this squad.”All three T20Is will be played in Pallekele, with the first game on September 1.Squad: Tim Southee (capt), Todd Astle, Tom Bruce, Colin de Grandhome, Lockie Ferguson, Martin Guptill, Scott Kuggeleijn, Daryl Mitchell, Colin Munro, Seth Rance, Mitchell Santner, Tim Seifert (wk), Ish Sodhi, Ross Taylor

Other big names inducted in the tournament’s mini-draft include Chris Lynn, Shane Watson and Brendon McCullum

Umar Farooq24-Jul-2018

T10 teams after mini draft

Maratha Arabians: Rashid Khan (icon), James Faulkner, Alex Hales, Dwayne Bravo, Kamran Akmal
Pakhtoons: Shahid Afridi (icon), Colin Ingram, David Willey, Mohammad Irfan, Liam Dawson
Bengal Tigers: Sunil Narine (icon), Jason Roy, Sam Billings, Asif Ali, Mujeeb Ur Rahman
Punjabi Legends: Shoaib Malik (icon), Evin Lewis, Chris Jordan, Luke Ronchi, Liam Plunkett
Kerala Kings: Eoin Morgan (icon), Kieron Pollard, Sohail Tanvir, Paul Stirling, Dasun Shanaka
Rajputs: Brendon McCullum (icon), Mohammad Hafeez, Rilee Rossouw, Chris Lynn, Mohammad Shahzad
Northern Warriors: Darren Sammy (icon), Andre Russell, Dwayne Smith, Wahab Riaz, Nicholas Pooran
Karachians: Shane Watson (icon), Jofra Archer, Anton Devcich, Colin de Grandhomme, Ben Laughlin

Rashid Khan, Chris Lynn, Brendon McCullum and Andre Russell are among the big names who will take part in this season’s T10 League. The eight franchises – up from six last season – gathered in Dubai on Monday for a mini-draft, where they picked their icon players and chose four players to retain from their 2017 squads.The teams will meet again for the main draft on September 2 to pick eleven players for the ten-day tournament in December.Rashid and McCullum will be the icon players for Maratha Arabians and Rajputs respectively, while Lynn and Russell will turn out for Rajputs and Northern Warriors. Rashid is one of three Afghanistan players in the league, alongside Mujeeb Ur Rahman (Bengal Tigers) and Mohammad Shahzad (Rajputs), while Ireland has a representative too, in Paul Stirling (Kerala Kings).Pakhtoons retained Shahid Afridi as their icon player while Shoaib Malik and Eoin Morgan renewed their ties with Punjabi Legends and Kerala Kings respectively. Darren Sammy has moved from Bengal Tigers to the newly inducted Northern Warriors franchise, as icon player.The other new team, Karachians, has signed up Shane Watson as its icon player. Watson last competitive match was the IPL final, in which he smashed a match-winning unbeaten 117.Ahmed Shehzad and Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed have been released by their franchises.The inclusion of two new teams will increase the length of the tournament, from 13 matches over four days to 28 over ten days. In addition, Team Sri Lanka have undergone multiple makeovers – they renamed themselves Rajasthani Heroes first, and then Rajputs.The six existing teams were allowed to retain two players in category A and one each in B and C. The two new teams had an open list to pick their new set of five players from.Each category is based on the player’s form, experience and tournament fee, with the icon having the highest value. Following the success of last year’s inaugural edition, the organisers have hiked the franchise fee from USD 400,000 to USD 1.2 million for the two new teams. All eight teams are entitled to 10% of the central revenue pool, which includes net income from media rights, gate money and sponsorship.In May, the ICC presented a SWOT analysis, in which it listed T10 as a “threat” but also suggested that “cricket as a sport should continue to capitalise on shortened format opportunities like T10″.”The response I can tell you has been exceptional over the year since we launched T10,” Shaji Ul Mulk, the chairman of the T10 League, told ESPNcricinfo. “The commercial success of T10 is the very fact that we have sold two news teams for USD 1.2 million each and have sold partial shares of Kerala Kings with the same price. So this has immediately given valuation to the exiting team owners.”With new valuation the stakes have grown with the format itself evolving further. After the sensational success of the first year and making global history, T10 Cricket League management has decided to allow the other existing five teams to resell full or partial shares.”It’s actually about creating value for the existing team owners in line with the triple valuation of the league in the first year since inception. It’s a very rare cricket league in the world that in a year has become cash positive. For the new teams we will be seeing positive growth because we hope to have another one or two teams in next couple of years and I am sure the valuation by that time will be much higher than it is today.”

Sri Lanka, who were clinical in the first game, will look to stretch Bangladesh’s losing streak in T20Is to nine

The Preview by Mohammad Isam05-Apr-2017

Match Facts

Thursday, April 6, 2017
Start time 1900 local (1330 GMT)Mashrafe Mortaza will play his final T20I on Thursday•Associated Press

Big picture

The second T20 international against Sri Lanka will be Mashrafe Mortaza’s last, and Bangladesh will be keen to farewell their captain with a victory. If Bangladesh come back from Tuesday’s thrashing and win, the T20I series will end in a draw, like the ODI and Test series did.Sri Lanka, who were clinical in the first game, will look to stretch Bangladesh’s losing streak in T20Is to nine.It was the returning Kusal Perera who led Sri Lanka’s charge in the first match with a 53-ball 77. He found little support from the other end, but that did not stop Sri Lanka from acing a chase of 156. Lasith Malinga, predictably, was Sri Lanka’s most effective bowler with two wickets. Vikum Sanjaya’s swing, Asela Gunaratne’s dibbly-dobblers, and Seekugge Prasanna’s accurate legspin ably complemented Malinga.Mosaddek Hossain and Mahmudullah played cameos to rescue Bangladesh’s innings, but the side will need more from the top order, especially Soumya Sarkar who has a tendency to throw away starts.To give Mashrafe the perfect send-off in this format, Bangladesh will have to improve their fielding, and they also must find a way to absorb pressure. That is how they won at the P Sara Test and Dambulla ODI.

Form guide

Sri Lanka WLWWW (completed matches, most recent first)
Bangladesh LLLLL

In the spotlight

Kusal Perera‘s renewed vigour enabled him to make a match-winning half-century in the first game, and now will look to blend that vigour with consistency.All eyes will be on Mashrafe Mortaza, who had announced his retirement from T20Is at the toss in the previous game. Will it turn out to be a happy ending for Mashrafe?

Team news

Sri Lanka are likely to retain their winning combination from the first T20I.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Upul Tharanga (capt), 2 Kusal Perera (wk), 3 Dilshan Munaweera, 4 Chamara Kapugedara, 5 Asela Gunaratne, 6 Seekkuge Prasanna, 7 Milinda Siriwardana, 8 Thisara Perera, 9 Nuwan Kulasekara, 10 Lasith Malinga, 11 Vikum SanjayaBangladesh, on the other hand, might consider replacing Taskin Ahmed with offspinning allrounder Mehedi Hasan, who is uncapped in T20Is.Bangladesh (possible): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Soumya Sarkar, 3 Sabbir Rahman, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 5 Shakib Al Hasan, 6 Mosaddek Hossain, 7 Mahmudullah, 8 Mashrafe Mortaza (capt.), 9 Mohammad Saifuddin, 10 Mustafizur Rahman, 11 Taskin Ahmed/Mehedi Hasan

Pitch and conditions

The second T20I will be played on the same pitch that was used for the first one. It is expected to be good for batting, but is likely to assist the spinners as the game wears on. Showers have been forecast for the day but the chance of rain in the evening is small.

Stats and trivia

• Mashrafe Mortaza will finish his T20I career as Bangladesh’s highest wicket-taker among fast bowlers.
• Bangladesh have now lost eight T20Is in a row, their second-worst run in the format

Andrew Flintoff, England’s Ashes-winning allrounder and former captain, has been elected the new President of the Professional Cricketers’ Association

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Feb-2016Andrew Flintoff, England’s Ashes-winning allrounder and former captain, has been elected the new President of the Professional Cricketers’ Association.Flintoff was elected on Tuesday at the PCA’s annual general meeting at Edgbaston Golf Club on Tuesday, and succeeds his fellow Lancastrian David Lloyd to become only the seventh President in the Association’s history.His tenure will include the PCA’s 50th anniversary celebrations next year, when a number of high profile events are planned.”This is a huge honour, especially as it will be the Golden Jubilee of the PCA in 2017,” Flintoff said. “I have been a PCA member for more than 20 years now and it is an organisation that I am proud to be involved in.”The Association has carried out pioneering work on mental health and wellbeing for past and present players through the Mind Matters series and the PCA Benevolent Fund does outstanding work in looking after players, past and current, and their dependants who fall on hard times.”We have a small but dedicated team of professional staff who I look forward to working closely with during my time as President.”Jason Ratcliffe, the PCA assistant chief executive, said: “Fred has always offered his help freely down the years, so it’s fantastic that he will take up this prestigious honorary role. He has transcended cricket since finishing, and as the last terrestrial cricketing hero, he has earned respect and universal popularity. We’re all looking forward to having him on-board especially over our 50th anniversary”The previous holders of the PCA presidency are John Arlott, Jack Bannister, Mike Gatting, Sir Ian Botham, Chris Broad and Lloyd, who was pleased with the identity of his successor.”I’m delighted to hand over the reins to Freddie who I know will be as thrilled as I was to become PCA President,” Lloyd said.”It’s an honour that is bestowed on very few and to head an organisation that does so much to help so many is a huge privilege.”The PCA will also have a new chief executive starting in March, with David Leatherdale, the former Worcestershire batsman, set to replace Angus Porter.

Cricket Australia’s Youth Selection Panel named a 14-player squad for the Under-19 quadrangular series, which begins in India on September 23, making six changes to the squad that played in the U-19 tri-series in Darwin last month

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Jul-2013Cricket Australia’s Youth Selection Panel named a 14-player squad for the Under-19 quadrangular series, which begins in India on September 23, making six changes to the squad that played in the tri-series in Darwin last month.Right-hand batsman Jaron Morgan, left-hand batsman Kelvin Smith, legspinner Tom Andrews and pacer Ben Ashkenazi have been recalled to the side, while medium-pacer Guy Walker and fast bowler Billy Stanlake’s inclusion is subject to their fitness. Joel Logan, Josh Dunning and Jeremy Maher have been placed on standby for the series. Gabe Bell, Alex Gregory, Tom Leaver and Matthew Short, who played in the tri-series against India and New Zealand, have not been included in the squad.Pacer Cameron Valente, the leading wicket-taker at the 2013 U-19 National Championships, has been retained in the side along with Jake Doran and wicketkeeper Ben McDermott, the top run-getters for Australia in the tri-series.”This Quad Series in India is part of our preparation for next year’s ICC U-19 Cricket World Cup and to ensure that our emerging talent is exposed to international competition and conditions that challenge and build our players technically and mentally,” Greg Chappell, CA National Talent Manager, said. “A number of these players have already had a taste of international cricket against top-quality opposition. This year, our U-19s played New Zealand in New Zealand, as well as India in Darwin. Matthew Fotia also worked with Glenn McGrath at his MRF Pace Foundation academy in India.””We’ve selected a strong bowling contingent, with Cameron Valente’s clever medium pace variations and quality pace bowlers in Matthew Fotia, Ben Ashkenazi, Guy Walker and Billy Stanlake,” Chappell added. “India’s dry wickets will offer turn for our spinners Tom Andrews, and Riley Ayre, while top-order batsman Kelvin Smith can also provide support with his part-time offspin.”Australia are scheduled to tour Sri Lanka after the quadrangular seriesAustralia U-19 squad: Sean Willis, Jaron Morgan, Kelvin Smith, Damien Mortimer, Ben McDermott, Jake Doran, Matthew Kelly, Tom Andrews, Cameron Valente, Matthew Fotia, Ben Ashkenazi, Guy Walker, Billy Stanlake, Riley Ayre

Yorkshire secured maximum batting bonus points for the first time in two years as they reached 416 and built up a first innings lead of 163 on the third day against Northamptonshire

01-Jun-2012
ScorecardOli Stone claimed his maiden first class wicket but couldn’t prevent Northants conceding a large lead•Getty Images

Yorkshire secured maximum batting bonus points for the first time in two years as they reached 416 and built up a first innings lead of 163 on the third day against Northamptonshire. The visitors replied with 43 for 1 in 15 overs before bad light ended play in this Division Two match with 10 overs remaining at Headingley.Rain caused eight overs to be lost before play was able to begin at noon with Yorkshire on 190 for 3 and Joe Root needing only two more runs to complete his first century at Headingley. He did not have long to wait, steering his third ball from Lee Daggett to the third man boundary to reach the milestone in 137 deliveries. It contained 11 fours.Jonny Bairstow, 36 overnight, raised the century stand in the same over and his half-century followed from 92 balls with eight boundaries.It was another impressive display from Root but when he had reached 125 he fell to a splendid catch by wicketkeeper David Murphy, who took a sharply rising ball stood up to the stumps to Andrew Hall. The fourth wicket pair had put on 147 in 31 overs but the departure of Root slowed down Yorkshire’s progress and they lost their momentum in the afternoon session.Neither Bairstow nor new batsman Gary Ballance was able to force the pace and the usually brisk Ballance took 17 balls to get off the mark. In 10 overs together the pair scraped only 25 runs and Bairstow then lost his off-stump to Hall after making 68 from 137 balls, with 10 fours.The tempo remained flat even with the arrival of Anthony McGrath, who took 14 balls to get off the mark and Yorkshire were unable to take full advantage of Hall having to hobble off the field with a strain one ball into a new over.After McGrath and Ballance had scored 32 together in 11 overs, Ballance bobbed up a bat and pad catch off James Middlebrook to Alex Wakely at short leg to leave Yorkshire on 300 for 6 and it took Azeem Rafiq to bring some much needed impetus to the innings. He went on the attack with a series of perfectly timed strokes and, with McGrath also showing greater fluency, Yorkshire were able to go in to tea on 361 for 6 in 92 overs.But early in the evening session, Rafiq’s spree was ended by Daggett, the batsman flashing outside off-stump to be caught by Murphy for 37 from 44 balls with six fours.Two runs later, McGrath played across the line to a full-length ball from David Willey and was lbw for 47 and when Ryan Sidebottom steered Daggett to Stephen Peters at first slip in the 100th over a further 21 were still required for the fifth batting bonus point.They got there in the 104th over thanks to some clean straight drives by Mitchell Starc, and the last wicket pair added a useful 37 before Steve Patterson was bowled round his legs by Middlebrook.Coming on as first change, Starc pinned Middlebrook lbw with his fourth ball but with the light deteriorating he could be risked for only one over before giving way to Rafiq. Peters (20) and Kyle Coetzer (12) were the not out batsmen when bad light ended play with the visitors still needing to do a lot of work to deny Yorkshire a third win of the season.

Kolkata Knight Riders began nervously, Mumbai Indians finished similarly, but it was Mumbai who booked a place in the Champions League T20 and in semi-final equivalent of this IPL

The Bulletin by Sidharth Monga25-May-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Aiden Blizzard’s early blitz allowed Mumbai Indians the cushion to overcome a middle-overs crisis•Associated Press

Kolkata Knight Riders began nervously, Mumbai Indians finished similarly, but it was Mumbai who booked a place in the Champions League T20 and in the semi-final equivalent of IPL 2009. What will irk Kolkata is that they were the better side for 39 overs in the previous match between these sides, but one bad over then set up this rematch in the quarter-final equivalent. Mumbai then did enough to make use on the second chance.Kolkata’s top order came out trying too hard for a big start, losing four wickets for 20, and Ryan ten Doeschate’s 70 was not recovery enough on a good Wankhede track with short boundaries. A blazing start from Aiden Blizzard and Sachin Tendulkar seemed to have put to rest Mumbai’s habit of muddled chases, but they choked again. For the second consecutive game, though, James Franklin scuppered Kolkata’s hopes. This time, with much more on the line, he produced a less dramatic, but more assured 29.Munaf Patel bowled smartly to capitalise on Kolkata’s palpable nervous energy, taking three wickets, including those of Jacques Kallis and Yusuf Pathan. It was a subtle change-up immediately after being driven for four that sent Kallis back. The wicket-taking delivery was pitched in the same area, but was bowled with a scrambled seam and was hence a touch slower. The slice settled with a diving Tendulkar.Gautam Gambhir, Shreevats Goswami and Manoj Tiwary concentrated just on the boundaries, in the process failing to place the good balls for singles. The dot balls mounted, and all three fell to shots they would normally not play. ten Deoschate played sensibly, though, looking for singles and punishing the bad balls. That calm rubbed off on Yusuf, their 60-run stand took the run-rate past six an over, and a big finish could not have been ruled out.Munaf, though, returned to interrupt the comeback with more clever bowling. Convinced that the short ball would trouble Yusuf, he let his Baroda team-mate have some. The first one took a top edge for four, the second went for a single along the ground, and the third one was mistimed over midwicket. Munaf persisted, and with his fourth bouncer of the over, he sent his man back.Ambati Rayudu, a part-time wicketkeeper, proceeded to miss ten Doeschate and Shakib Al Hasan in the next two overs. ten Doeschate went on to score the highest for a No. 6 this IPL and Kolkata got 60 in the last six, yet a blazing start to the chase was always going to knock them out. Blizzard and Tendulkar provided just that.Blizzard relished the pace of Brett Lee, while Tendulkar took care of the spin of Iqbal Abdulla and Yusuf Pathan. A lot of class and a lot of power merged effectively to bring up the fifty in the fifth over. There was a remote semblance of redemption for Lee when he came back to remove Blizzard, but not before the batsman had hit him for four and six in that over.Then Mumbai stumbled. Rohit Sharma ran himself out, Tendulkar fell to a sharp bouncer, and Rayudu seemed to have been sawn off. From 81 for 0 in the eighth over, Mumbai had been reduced to 103 for 4 in the 13th. A mini-partnership ensued, but Shakib trapped Pollard to make it 123 for 5. T Suman couldn’t handle the nerves and holed out to long-off.The asking-rate crept past run-a-ball for the last two overs, but a top edge off Lee’s first ball brought it back to 11 off 11. L Balaji, who failed to defend 21 in the last match, didn’t get a shot at redemption. The last over went to Shakib – his figures 3-0-17-2 until then – who needed to defend seven. Harbhajan lofted the second ball over midwicket, and let out a roar.

Nicky Shaw, the England fast-bowler, has retired from international cricket at the age of 28

Cricinfo staff10-Jul-2010Nicky Shaw, the England fast-bowler, has retired from international cricket at the age of 28.Shaw was the Player of the Match in the 2009 World Cup final for taking 4 for 34 to help England defeat New Zealand in Sydney. It was the highlight of a career that brought 46 wickets in 70 ODIs, in addition to 11 wickets in five Tests.”Whilst I have enjoyed my time playing, I feel it is now time to retire from the international game ahead of my move to Australia,” she explained. Isa Guha replaced her for the ODI series against New Zealand which began on Saturday.Shaw made her debut in 1999 aged 17 and also featured in England’s Ashes-winning side in 2008 and the team that won the World Twenty20 at Lord’s last year.Yet the 50-over World Cup final was her dream performance as she only came into the side as a late replacement when Jenny Gunn suffered a calf injury on the morning of the match. Her four wickets helped England sink New Zealand and take the title. “I started the day crying, and I finished the day crying,” she said.

Bad weather spares Leicestershire further examination but innings defeat looms

ECB Reporters Network10-Sep-2024Yorkshire remain on course for a victory that they believe may be enough to realise their promotion ambitions despite bad weather washing out more than half of the second day of their Vitality County Championship match at Leicester.Leicestershire will resume on day three at 35 for two in their second innings, trailing by 246 after Yorkshire had posted 379 following an excellent 126 from captain Jonny Tattersall and a career-best 88 from pace bowler Matthew Fisher, who also claimed both Leicestershire wickets.Rain forced the players off shortly before two o’clock and they were unable to return. It meant 57 scheduled overs were lost but with two full days still to come Yorkshire would be mightily disappointed should they fail to turn their strong position into a win.Ahead of this fixture, head coach Ottis Gibson predicted that one win from his side’s final three Division Two matches would be enough to secure a top-two finish, even though they trailed second-placed Middlesex by a point going into this round.In the play that was possible, Leicestershire’s hopes of limiting Yorkshire’s lead after they were dismissed for 98 on day one went unfulfilled in an opening session dominated by a 138-run ninth-wicket partnership between Tattersall and Fisher, who could not be parted for an hour and a half, and only when home skipper Lewis Hill had belatedly recalled Rehan Ahmed into the attack.The England wrist spinner, who turned 20 last month and has been named in the squad to tour Pakistan next month, was successful with his fourth delivery (having struck with his second in his first spell on day one) as Tattersall’s fine innings ended with an edge to slip. He finished with three for 60.The Yorkshire captain had completed his second hundred of the season in the sixth over of the morning from 170 balls. He celebrated with two lovely straight driven fours off Scott Currie and had raised his boundary count to 14 by the time he was out.The pitch appeared to offer far less to the bowlers than it had 24 hours earlier, when the first dozen overs of the morning saw Leicestershire lose seven wickets for 15. The corresponding period this time resulted in Yorkshire adding 51 without loss as Fisher posted his maiden first-class half-century for the county. Even the new ball, taken as soon as available nine overs into the day, had little effect.More to the point, in the broader context, the shift in the balance of the contest had enabled Yorkshire to turn one batting bonus point overnight to three, which may be vital as they bid to seal their return to Division One, matching Middlesex’s haul against Gloucestershire. They were one short when Tattersall was out, but Fisher and Ben Coad added another 31 from just 26 balls before Ahmed dismissed Fisher, helped by a sharp catch snapped up at ankle height by wicketkeeper Ben Cox.Seamer Tom Scriven, still searching for his first five-wicket bag in first-class cricket, finished with four for 103.There was time for Leicestershire to face one nervy over before lunch, and though they survived that one, they slipped to 34 for two for two shortly before the rain arrived, Fisher continuing his productive day by taking both wickets.Opener Rishi Patel, whose approach to his side’s 281-run first-innings deficit was to be ultra aggressive, profited only briefly from it before he was leg before playing a horrible hoick across the line. Partner Ian Holland was more cautious but departed quickly nonetheless, caught at first slip.

Lack of runs leads to resignation, with Jack Leaning taking over Championship duties

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Jun-2023Sam Billings has stepped down as Kent red-ball captain for the rest of the season, with Jack Leaning set to take charge of the side when their County Championship campaign resumes against Northamptonshire at Wantage Road on Sunday.Billings, who made three Test appearances in 2022 – most recently in England’s seven-wicket win against India at Edgbaston – opted out of a stint with Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL to focus on his role at Kent.However, he has endured a grim run of form in the County Championship, making 92 runs in 10 innings, including three ducks and a highest score of 31.Kent are currently second-from-bottom of the Division One standings, with one win from seven matches, and Billings’ form prompted him to leave himself out of their most recent Championship match, a five-wicket loss to table-toppers Surrey at Canterbury.”Kent cricket can confirm that men’s captain, Sam Billings, has decided to step down as captain in red-ball cricket for the rest of the 2023 season,” a club statement read.”Jack Leaning, who captained Kent against Surrey last time out in the Championship, will captain the side in Sam’s absence.”Billings will continue to lead the side in the Vitality Blast and remains the club captain in men’s cricket.”His fortunes as white-ball captain have been rather better, however. Kent have won their last six T20 Blast games under Billings’ leadership, and are currently fourth in the South Group, with a place in the quarter-finals within their grasp.Kent have named a 13-man squad for their trip to Northamptonshire, who are the only team below them in the current Division One standings.Arafat Bhuiyan, Arshdeep Singh and Matt Quinn all feature after not being involved in the Blast, while Ben Compton is set to slot back in at the top of the order. Harry Finch is included in the first XI squad after impressing in the Second XI Championship, Michael Hogan and Grant Stewart have been rested to focus on this week’s Blast contest against Sussex.