Sports Bulletin

Sports Bulletin Report Dubai (UAE):-The International Cricket Council (ICC) today announced that South African batter Zubayr Hamza has been suspended from all cricket-related activities for nine months after admitting to an anti-doping rule violation under the ICC Anti-Doping Code. Hamza provided an out-of-competition sample on 17 January 2022 in Paarl, South Africa, in which the prohibited substance Furosemide - which is a specified substance in Section S5 of the 2022 WADA Prohibited List - was found. He admitted the violation and, having established no significant fault or negligence on his part, a nine-month period of ineligibility has been imposed, backdated to 22 March 2022, the date that Hamza accepted a provisional suspension.  The effect of this suspension is that Hamza will be eligible to return to cricket on 22 December 2022. In addition, all of Hamza’s individual performances between 17 January and 22 March 2022 have been disqualified. Alex Marshall, ICC General Manager – Integrity Unit said: “The ICC is committed to keeping cricket clean and has a zero-tolerance approach to doping. It is also a timely reminder to all international cricketers that they remain responsible for anything they put into their bodies, to know exactly what medication they are taking so as to ensure it does not contain a prohibited substance and does not result in an anti-doping rule violation.”

Aamir Ali Janjua Dubai (UEA):-Australia superstar Alyssa Healy and South Africa spin wizard Keshav Maharaj have been voted as the ICC Women’s and Men’s Players of the Month for April 2022. The International Cricket Council (ICC) today announced that Australia’s star of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Final Alyssa Healy, and South Africa’s spin wizard Keshav Maharaj have been voted the ICC Women’s and Men’s Players of the Month for April 2022. Healy was selected the standout female player in April following her match-winning innings of 170 in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Final in Christchurch, setting a record for the highest score ever made in any World Cup Final in the process. Tormenting England’s bowlers from the outset and scoring at a strike rate of 123.18, her blistering showcase at the crease steered Australia to a formidable total of 356 for 5, and with England falling short in reply, helped her side claim their seventh ODI crown. In being selected the ICC Player of the Month for April, Healy becomes the second female to win the accolade on two separate occasions after securing her first award back in April 2021. Healy was selected ahead of fellow nominees Janet Mbabazi (Uganda) and Nat Sciver (England). On being named the ICC Women’s Player of the Month, Healy responded “I am very humbled to win this month’s award ahead of two outstanding players. It was great to see Janet Mbabazi’s name in the mix after a stellar tri-series for Uganda. I’m looking forward to seeing her name in contention for more ICC Awards over the years to come. Thanks to all the fans for voting and supporting the women’s game. It’s been a great start to 2022 for our sport and I’m looking forward to seeing what the rest of the year holds.” JP Duminy, the former South Africa international and ICC Player of the Month voting panel member remarked, “Alyssa’s performance has certainly taken the world by storm and to do it in a Final says a lot about the character of this woman. She is a pioneer in the women's game and has set the bar extremely high.” South Africa’s Keshav Maharaj is named the ICC Men’s Player of the Month after enjoying a prolific spell with the ball during their recent ICC World Test Championship series victory over Bangladesh on home soil. The spinner proved a constant threat to the tourists, taking 16 wickets at an average of 12.12, celebrating two seven-wicket hauls in the second innings of both Tests. His wickets were significant catalysts for his side’s 2-0 series triumph, winning comfortably on both occasions - by 220 runs in Durban, and 332 runs in Gqeberha. In securing this month’s award, Maharaj overcomes fellow nominees in compatriot Simon Harmer - with whom Maharaj shared lengthy spells in tandem on their way to victory - and Jatinder Singh (Oman). Acknowledging his award, Maharaj responded “I’m honoured and privileged to receive the ICC Player of the Month award for April and I want to thank my teammates for helping me win this award. I’m really happy with how the team has performed this past season and I hope we can build on this to reach greater heights as a unit.” Speaking about Maharaj’s excellent performances in April, member of the voting panel and ICC Hall of Famer Lisa Sthalekar said, “Keshav was key to South Africa’s success in the series. The amount of wickets he claimed at crucial times was exceptional and his valuable runs were among the main reasons they defeated Bangladesh.”

Sports Bulletin Report DUBAI (UEA):-Australia have increased their lead over second-placed India from one to nine rating points while Pakistan have overtaken England to fifth position in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s Test Team Rankings following the annual update carried out today. Australia, who beat England 4-0 in a five-match home series in January, have moved from 119 to 128 rating points in the annual update that drops the 2018-19 season and reflects all series completed since May 2019. Series completed prior to May 2021 are now weighted at 50 per cent and subsequent series at 100 per cent. India have also gained a point to move to 119 while England have had the biggest decrease of nine points as their 4-1 series win over India in 2018 is now dropped from the rankings. England’s 88 rating points is their lowest since 1995. The England versus India series that began in 2021, will be included in the rankings once the final postponed Test is completed. South Africa have closed the gap with third-placed New Zealand from 13 points to just one point in the updated rankings that still contain 10 teams since Afghanistan and Ireland are yet to play enough Tests to be included in the rankings. In the updated ODI rankings, New Zealand remain on top but their lead over England is reduced from three to one point. The gap between England and third placed Australia has increased from seven to 17 points. Pakistan have moved past South Africa to fifth place while the United Arab Emirates are the biggest gainers, earning six rating points and advancing two places to 13th. India remain on top in T20Is, extending their lead over second-placed England from one to five points. South Africa and Australia have overtaken New Zealand, who are now in sixth place. Similarly, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are now ahead of Afghanistan (10th). The biggest rating improvement has been by Portugal, who have moved up five places to 45th in the latest update, in which the number of ranked teams has fallen from 91 to 72, as 19 teams have not played the required six rated matches since May 2019. Of the 19 teams to have lost their ranking, 11 still have a rating since they played some T20Is in the past three years. Mexico, Philippines and Isle of Man have played five matches so will regain their ranking when they play their next match, while France, Peru, Hungary, Samoa, Brazil, Chile and Turkey will regain their ranking after playing two more matches. Bhutan need to play four more matches to be ranked. Fiji, Costa Rica, Japan, South Korea, St Helena, China, Indonesia and Myanmar have not played since May 2019 and so have lost their rating.

Aamir Ali Janjua DUBAI (UAE):-The ICC Player of the Month nominees have been announced for April 2022 with strong men and women candidates getting nominated for their impressive performances. The ICC Women’s Player of the Month shortlist sees two stars of the showpiece finale of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 in New Zealand nominated for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month,  Alyssa Healy (Australia) and Nat Sciver (England). They are in the running to scoop the award alongside Janet Mbabazi (Uganda), who shone following dominant performances in the Capricorn Women’s Tri-series in Namibia. South African spin duo Simon Harmer and Keshav Maharaj are nominated for the ICC Men’s Player of the Month after tormenting Bangladesh batters throughout their 2-0 victory in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) series. Jatinder Singh of Oman completes the lineup for the men’s award thanks to his outstanding contributions with the bat in the recently concluded ICC Cricket World Cup League 2 competition in the UAE. Alyssa Healy (Australia) Alyssa Healy celebrates her second nomination for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month Award thanks to her masterful innings of 170 against England in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Final. This phenomenal display of power-hitting and control helped her set a new record for the highest score ever recorded at a World Cup Final, and was the driving force behind Australia claiming their seventh ODI crown. Victory here would also mean she becomes the second player to win the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award on two occasions, after being crowned back in April 2021. Janet Mbabazi (Uganda) Janet Mbabazi enjoyed a highly successful month in which she shone both with bat and ball. Representing her country in six T20Is as part of the Capricorn Women’s Tri-series, she took 11 wickets at an astonishing average of 7.81, while also amassing 118 runs on her way to becoming her side’s leading run-scorer, and the tournament’s leading wicket-taker. Her nomination means she is the first Ugandan to be shortlisted for the ICC Player of the Month. Nat Sciver (England) In response to Healy’s heroics in the first innings of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup final 2022, Nat Sciver was instrumental in bringing England back into contention with a blistering 148* in Christchurch. Despite seeing her teammates fall at regular intervals, Sciver hit a truly memorable inning as her side fell short in the finale, including 15 fours and one maximum at a strike rate of 122.31. This is her second nomination for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month, her first being back in February 2021. Simon Harmer (South Africa) The South African spinner was an integral part of the potent bowling attack that dominated Bangladesh in both of the ICC World Test Championship series matches taking place in Durban and Gqeberha. Harmer took 13 wickets at an average of 15.15, driving his side’s charge to victory by taking three or more wickets in each of the tourists’ four innings in the series. Harmer, alongside Maharaj, caused a constant threat to Bangladesh, who eventually succumbed by 220 and 332 runs. Keshav Maharaj (South Africa) So often the spearhead of the South African spin attack, Maharaj celebrates his nomination on the shortlist for the ICC Men’s Player of the Month Award after taking 16 wickets in the WTC series win over Bangladesh at an average of 12.12. Attacking in tandem with Simon Harmer, Maharaj took seven wickets on two separate occasions, both during the second innings where he ended with figures of 7 for 32 and 7 for 40. In addition to his bowling masterclass, he scored a useful 84 in the first innings at Gqeberha to help his side set an imposing total on their way to a 332-run victory. Jatinder Singh (Oman) Singh was instrumental at the crease for Oman in the highly competitive ICC Cricket World Cup League 2 tournament in the UAE in April. Amassing 259 runs in his four ODIs at an average of 86.33, his two standout performances came in commanding victories over PNG (118* and 79) while also scoring a half-century in a narrow defeat against Scotland.

Aamir Ali Janjua Dubai:-Following the recent decision to expand the ICC Women’s Championship to ten teams, the ICC Board approved a recommendation that ODI status be extended to a number of Associate Member women’s teams to enable them to progress to global qualifying events based on ODI rankings. Governance The ICC Board received an update from the Afghanistan Working Group which recommended Mirwais Ashraf as the ACB’s appointed representative to the Board. The Working Group advised the Board that the ICC was continuing to support the Afghanistan Men’s team to play international cricket while monitoring the governance of the sport in the country including the development of the women’s game. The ACB confirmed their continued commitment to developing women’s cricket and will submit a full action plan and budget to do so to the Working Group which will continue to monitor the situation and receive regular updates on its progress. Cricket Following the recent decision to expand the ICC Women’s Championship to ten teams, the ICC Board approved a recommendation that ODI status be extended to a number of Associate Member women’s teams to enable them to progress to global qualifying events based on ODI rankings. The CEC were updated on the use of home umpires from July 2020 to February 2022 due to COVID. The Committee acknowledged that the performance of home umpires was strong and had not affected games. The use of home umpires had also led to 12 members of the International Panel umpires making their Test match debut. In line with a previous recommendation from the ICC Men’s Cricket Committee, the CEC agreed that more neutral match officials should be utilised as travel restrictions are lifted while building on the success of the use of home umpires. The ICC Board approved and ratified a number of appointments to the ICC Men’s Cricket Committee: Mahela Jayawardena – Past Player representative (reappointment) Gary Stead – National Team Coach representative Jay Shah – Member Board representative Joel Wilson – ICC Elite Panel Umpire Jamie Cox – MCC Representative ICC Events The qualification pathway for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 was confirmed with 12 teams qualifying automatically for the event. The top eight teams from the 2022 event will be joined by the two host Members, West Indies and USA plus the next highest ranked teams on the MRF ICC Men’s T20 rankings table as of 14 November 2022. If West Indies finish in the top eight in Australia later this year, three teams will progress based on rankings and if outside the top eight two teams will qualify from the rankings table. The remaining eight spots will be decided through a regional qualification process with Africa, Asia and Europe each qualifying two teams and Americas and EAP one each. The qualification pathway for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 was agreed. Eight teams will gain automatic qualification into the event, comprising the top three teams from each group of the 2023 event plus host (if not in the six) and next highest ranked teams on the MRF ICC Women’s T20 rankings table at a pre-determined date. The remaining two teams will be identified through the Women’s T20 World Cup global qualifier. The qualification pathway for the eight team ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup was also confirmed. The yet to be determined host of the event will automatically qualify along with the next five highest placed teams at the end of the 22-25 ICC Women’s Championship (IWC). The remaining two teams will be identified through a global qualifying event between the four bottom-placed teams in the IWC plus an additional two teams from the ODI rankings. South Africa was confirmed as the host of the inaugural ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup 2023, to be staged in January next year as a 16-team, 41-match event.

Aamir Ali Janjua Dubai (UAE):-The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced that Pakistan’s superstar skipper Babar Azam, and Australia’s run-machine Rachael Haynes have been named the ICC Men’s and Women’s Players of the Month for March 2022. Azam scoops the Men’s award following a number of thrilling batting displays in Pakistan’s multi-format series against Australia. Amassing 390 runs in the pulsating Test series, his supreme contribution was highlighted by his record-breaking innings of 196 in the second Test, salvaging a draw for his side against the odds on the final day in Karachi. At the forefront of his side’s batting outfit, his exploits during the subsequent ODI battles that took place in March also cemented his claim as the standout player in international cricket during the month. Scores of 57 and 114 – the latter helping his side chase down an imposing 349 set by Australia, saw him as a constant threat to an otherwise formidable bowling attack. Azam received the award ahead of fellow nominees Kraigg Brathwaite (West Indies) and Pat Cummins (Australia), and in doing so, becomes the first player to win the ICC Men’s Player of the Month award on two occasions, after being crowned back in April 2021. Speaking about Babar’s phenomenal performances in March, member of the voting panel and former West Indies international Daren Ganga said, “Babar wins this award not only because of the significant glut of runs scored during the Pakistan v Australia tour, but also because his success with the bat across formats. Being able to fulfil the burden of expectation as a captain and batter for Pakistan as host to an Australian team visiting after 24 years is a monumental achievement.” Rachael Haynes celebrates becoming the ICC Women’s Player of the Month following a formidable set of displays on the road to Australia’s seventh ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup trophy. Scoring 429 priceless runs in eight matches at an average of 61.28, her extraordinary feats at the top of the order proved crucial to her side’s unbeaten run to the final, where they subsequently overcame England to cap a thrilling tournament. Her accomplishments at the crease throughout the month laid the foundations for her team to set imposing totals and chase down big targets, and were made even more impressive by her ability to perform during pivotal times. Her 130 against England in the opening game set the tone for a dominant unbeaten run to the final, while her other standout performance came in the form of a classy 85 during the semi-final win against the West Indies. In securing this month’s award, Rechael Haynes overcame the fellow nominees Sophie Ecclestone (England) and Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa) following their outstanding displays with both bat and ball in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup in New Zealand. “Rachael Haynes has displayed tremendous consistency for Australia,” remarked Sana Mir, the former Pakistan international and ICC Player of the Month voting panel member. “She set the tone for the tournament with a big hundred in their first game and her contributions throughout the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup set a platform for the other batters to build on. Haynes is a quality batter and a leader in women’s game.”