Glenn Philips roped in by Gloucestershire for Vitaly T20 Blast

New Zealand international Glenn Philips has signed a deal with Gloucestershire and will represent them for the full duration of the Vitality T20 Blast. The 24-year-old who has been a regular in the national colours in the recent past played all 14 home fixtures for New Zealand which included a stunning 108 of a mere 51 deliveries against the West Indies.

Replacing an experienced Ross Taylor, Philips has left a mark in the national colours. As far as Gloucestershire is concerned, Philips can also be a wicket-keeping option if James Bracey has to miss out on some part of the tournament due to national duties. Philips is a perfect three-dimension player who can also chip in with some useful overs with his off-spin.

An attacking middle-order batsman, Philips has improved quite significantly while playing against spin which started during his association with the Jamaica Tallwahs in the Caribbean Premier League. It is also reported that he could have been a proper backup option for the IPL franchises in the IPL auctions.

Philips will be available for the County Championship that takes place during the vitality Blast. More specifically he will be available for the matches against Middlesex and Hampshire. Philips is a solid long format batsman as well and will look to make a mark in his new venture.

Gloucestershire’s interim head coach Ian Harvey said that Philips is an exciting batsman to watch and he is looking forward to his journey with Gloucestershire.

"Glenn is very exciting to watch and he's going to add a massive amount to what is already a powerful T20 batting line-up. He can bat at the top of the order, in the middle and also add to our firepower at the end. He's a bit of an all-rounder because he bowls and keeps wicket as well so he will give us plenty of options.

"To have someone in your side with the ability to do pretty much everything is a huge bonus and his experience of playing around the world in franchise cricket is going to be a massive benefit for our players. He's played Test match cricket and can keep wicket so he gives us plenty of options if we want to bring him in for red-ball games."

Discover more

Salil Ankola distances himself from banned CIC members for interference claims

Mumbai Cricket Association’s (MCA) Chairman of the selection committee, Salil Ankola has distanced himself from two of the sacked members of MCA’s Improvement Committee (CIC) Lalchand Rajput and Raju Kulkarni. They had earlier claimed to the MCA ombudsman that the selectors were ready to justification and testify in their favour. As per reports it os learnt that Rajput questioned the fact that the secretaries had interfered in CIC matters and included players in the XI without the approval of the selectors. Salil Ankola, the current MCA selection committee head who is a former cricketer and an actor stated that neither Rajput nor Kulkarni had spoken with him in this regard and he is not ready to testify in front of Ombudsman Justice Vijaya Tahiliramani. “This is to inform about the recent series of allegations made by the Cricket Improvement Committee on ‘interference of secretaries in the selection process. There have been recent media reports on Mr Lalchand Rajput and Mr Raju Kulkarni stating that ‘selectors’ are willing to testify for the interference to the MCA Ombudsman,” Ankola was quoted as saying during an official statement. “I, as a chairman of the selection committee for Mumbai Cricket Association, would like to place it on record that I have never spoken to Rajput on the above issue. Neither I have given any consent to testify in front of anyone. As a chairman of the selection committee, I have been transparent and always kept Mumbai’s interest above anything else.” Meanwhile, it must be noted that Ankola’s statement has come after both Rajput and Kulkarni submitted a petition to the MCA ombudsman contesting their removal from CIC. “Selectors are willing to testify for the interference: e.g. inclusion of 2 players in 20 selected by senior team selectors for Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021 (SMAT) after BCCI allowed 22 players due to Covid, instead of 20. The same 2 players were included in the playing 11 in the SMAT in some matches. Also, a left-arm bowler who was not in the original 20, who was a number 11 batsman, was made to open the innings in the SMAT,” the petition says.

Down with gastrointestinal infection, Brendan Taylor to miss first T20I against Pakistan

One of the most reliable middle-order batsmen to have graced the game from Zimbabwe, Brendan Taylor has been ruled out of the opening T20I against Pakistan in Harare on 21st April due to a gastrointestinal infection. This could be a big blow for the African minnows who are hoping to start the series on a high. They haven’t played against many top-class teams in the recent past and hence it should be good exposure for a team who is again trying to find a mark in international cricket. Taylor has not represented his country for over a year. The last time he made an appearance was during the tour of Pakistan last year. Subsequently, he missed out on the one-off Test match against Afghanistan om UAE earlier this year. The experienced campaigner couldn’t attend the cam prior to the Test due to an illness. He also didn’t take part in the T20I series against the same opponents. Zimbabwe is slated to play Pakistan in a three-match T20I series which will be followed by a two-match Test series. All the match will be played in Harare during April-May. There is no doubt about the fact that Brendan Taylor is one of the finest Zimbabwe batsmen, especially from the modern generation. He retired from international cricket after the 2015 World Cup for a Kolpak deal. Taylor again returned in 2017 when his deal with Nottinghamshire came to an end owing to family reasons.

IPL 2021 | Presence of Ricky Ponting, other seniors helps a great deal, says Rishabh Pant

Delhi Capitals after losing 5 back to back matches against the Mumbai Indians including four in the last season finally managed a victory against the defending champions defeating them by 6 wickets in the 13th match of the competition. Having won three of their four matches, DC has started off their journey in the 2021 edition in an impressive fashion. They are currently second in the table and will look to continue their good run in the tournament. The presence of Ricky Ponting as the head coach has augured well with the newly appointed skipper Rishabh Pant. Speaking at a virtual press conference after the victory against the Mumbai Indians, Pant said that the presence of Ricky Ponting has helped him a great deal and the seniors have also helped him in his mini captaincy tenure so far. "I think, yes, as a wicketkeeper I keep on reading the game and it helps me a lot. With seniors around and Ricky Ponting in our management, I think my captaincy is going great," said Rishabh a virtual press conference. The second wave of COVID-19 is again wrecking havoc in India. It has been testing time for players to keep their mental shape especially when one is not allowed to step outside the hotel or the ground. Speaking on the challenges of travelling during these tough time, Pant said, "I think it's slightly challenging because of Covid. But as a team, we are not focusing on outside things. BCCI has done really well to give us a good bubble and travelling thing. We are focusing more on cricket." Winning the toss it was the Mumbai Indians who opted to bat first and that worked in favour of DC. After a very good start courtesy a Rohit Sharma special, the defending champions collapsed to 84/6 from 76/2. Ishan Kishan and Jayant Yadav stitched together a vital partnership which eventually propelled them to 137 in their allotted 20 overs. Delhi Capitals lost an early wicket in the form of Prithvi Shaw. Shikhar Dhawan didn’t look his usual fluent self but managed to score 45 which set the platform. Eventually, it was Lalit Yadav and Shimron Hetmyer who took DC to a last-over victory.

England head coach to select team after national selector removed in restructuring

England men’s cricket team’s national selector Ed Smith was removed on Tuesday as a part of the restructuring and now the head coach Chris Silverwood will have the onus of selecting the side. Silverwood will work with respective captains of the Test and limited-overs sides, Joe Root and Eoin Morgan. Smith will be leaving at the end of this month. Ashley Giles, managing director of the England team has said that the restructure is in the best interests of helping England men’s teams be successful. “The current process of selecting England teams has been in place for over 120 years,” said Giles. “Even though this system has its merits, with advances in technology and a greater information-gathering resource at our disposal than ever before, the restructure is in the best interests of helping England men’s teams be successful,” he added. Giles further said that the restructure gives Silverwood the ultimate responsibility of picking up the team. “The new structure also makes lines of accountability much clearer, with Chris Silverwood, as head coach, taking ultimate responsibility for picking England senior men’s squads,” the former spinner further added. Smith on the other hand thanked the ECB and said that it was privilege to work with the English team. “It has been a huge privilege to work with great people trying to help England cricket and I am excited about watching England's continued development,” he said.