County News: MH and less cricket would mean less cricketers

 

22/02

Mental health help given to 239 county pros, report reveals

NICK FRIEND: The Cricketers' Trust says players from all 18 counties have accessed support since 2021, while the charity's new president, Alec Stewart, has issued a warning about the impact "less cricket" would have on squad sizes

Players from across all 18 first-class counties utilised the services of the Cricketers' Trust over the last five years, an impact report by the players' welfare charity has revealed.

In total, 239 players past and present accessed mental health support – 172 male, 67 female – between 2021 and 2025.

The Trust, which is the charitable wing of the Professional Cricketers' Association, spent £489,000 on mental health provisions alone, and £1,050,000 on all services. Forty-five per cent of issues dealt with by the Trust were linked either to low moods, anxiety, emotional support or stress.

Between 2024 and 2025, meanwhile, there was a 33 per cent increase in therapy sessions accessed, from 667 in 2024 up to 889 in 2025. Those rising figures are partly a consequence of the growth in the professional women's game, which has upped the number of PCA members, but they also speak to an openness around asking for support.

"If you put your hand up and need help, that is a sign of strength," said Alec Stewart, speaking on Thursday as he was presented as the Trust's new president, replacing David Graveney. "Back in the day, it was just pulling your socks up, getting on with it if you may have a mental problem or whatever it may be. Whereas I'm saying, use it as strength.

"To admit that you're not perfect is a massive strength. And if you need assistance, the Trust is there for you."

Stewart, who returned earlier this year as Surrey's director of cricket, is hopeful that his own standing in the game can help to "expand where the Trust is and what it can offer".

"It's not about giving back," he added. "It's actually about looking forward and making sure that there are less cases because people are being educated against being rescued."

He also praised the charity's aftercare support for the Thorpe family, following the passing of Graham, his longtime friend and teammate. "Amanda (Thorpe's widow) and the girls, even Henry from his first marriage and Amelia from the first marriage, they are receiving the support when they need it," said Stewart. "And that is so important. Otherwise, you end up being left on your own. The county have done what they can do. ECB did what they could do. But I know that the Trust have gone above and beyond."

n the last five years, they have also supported eight individual cases that required residential rehabilitation to treat addiction, all for past players. Of those, two were for alcoholism, with the others around gambling and substance abuse.

Cricket's relationship with alcohol became a talking point over the winter, amid criticism of England's mid-Ashes trip to Noosa and then, at the end of the series, with the revelation of an incident involving Harry Brook in Wellington, the night before a match in the preceding ODI series.

The Trust has funded proactive sessions around alcohol (as well as driving safety and gambling) for all contracted academy players, supported by the Graham Gooch Foundation, as part of efforts to educate young players around the "responsibility for athletes and cricketers to make the right choices at the right times", explained Ian Thomas, a Cricketers' Trust trustee.

"I think that's what our education was about. It was about people understanding the importance of their roles as ambassadors and role models," he added.

"I think the important thing for us is to make sure that we give players the opportunity to understand the importance of their roles, the dangers of substances, including alcohol. All we can do is provide them with the education. They have to make the right choices. And unfortunately, humans are humans and they will make mistakes. And that's what we saw this winter."

Stewart added: "Listen, the game is far more professional (than in the past). You know, we talk about elite sport. Well, I'll tell you now, alcohol will not improve anyone's performance. So, this is why the education is so important.

"People aren't going to just live like monks and be completely teetotal. But people need to understand the time to have a drink and the time not to. And that is a given in any walk of life. Whether you're a journalist, if you've been on it all night, you might not write so well the next day. It's no different than players. So, there is a time and a place.

"But the higher the level you are, the more scrutiny you're under. And therefore, the sacrifices are greater. And therefore, be very selective in what you put into your body, whether that is food, whether that is drink or whatever. It's a short career. And therefore, make good choices.

"We will all make mistakes, 100 per cent. But if the education is there and you know what is right and what is wrong, it is then down to that individual to choose which way that person wants to go. So, do I think there's a drink problem? No. Do I think there is alcohol in the game? There always has been. We've all played club cricket as a 15-year-old, 20-year-old, whatever it may be.

"If you score a fifty, score a hundred, take five wickets, you're expected to buy a jug of beer. That's how it was back in the day and it still is. So that's sort of where it started. But when you're talking elite sport, then there is enough knowledge now – strength conditioning coaches, nutritionists – and common sense says alcohol will not improve your performance. So, choose when to have a drink and when not to."

The state of the domestic schedule has also been a longtime debate for the English game, with last summer's review into the future of the programme broadly resulting in no change, minus a slightly shortened T20 Blast campaign.

As The Cricketer reported extensively, players have long called for a minimum number of days between games – three for first-class matches, two for List A games, one for T20s – for reasons both relating to high-performance and physical or mental welfare.

Those calls were rejected, though, with the Championship remaining at 14 games, including a period after The Hundred next summer when teams will play three four-day games, with just two days in between at either end.

As laid out by Stewart, much of that situation has been caused by The Hundred's monopoly over August. "We've lost a month of the season, and we've still got three other competitions," he said, adding that the issue is less about the amount of cricket in the schedule but when it's played.

"It is full on," he said. "Some people call it the county grind. I don't like that term. You're doing your job. And therefore, when you're at work, you work hard. And then when you get downtime, then relax. We have squeezed, so it is harder. But again, if it is planned properly, then it is manageable.

"Should there be less cricket? If there is less cricket, you need less players. So, you've got to get that balance right. If you go to fewer games, I don't need a staff of 28. So therefore, people are going out of the game, which isn't what you want. You want it to be an attractive game, an attractive profession.

"So, get the balance right, which isn't there at the moment. The fact that we've got six four-day games in the first seven weeks of the season, that is a big ask. Should you be able to play your best team every single time? Ideally, yes. Realistically, that won't happen. You can't expect your quick bowlers to play six games in seven weeks.

"Then there's a big gap. Then you have the T20. And I'm all for blocking the T20 up, because it's a different format of the game. But then come July and August, there's no four-day cricket at all in July. And there's only two four-day games in August. That isn't going to change because of The Hundred. So, the actual amount of cricket, I think we can manage it. But when it's played is the tough thing, because The Hundred isn't going to move – and it shouldn't move.

"But we can't play Championship cricket when The Hundred is on. So, we have to accept it and play within those restrictions, if you wish to call it that. Should it be 10 games, should it be 12 games, should it be 14 games in a Championship?

"Just say it went to 10 – you lose two games to weather, which happens. You then have two games where you win or lose by an innings, which can happen. Is there enough cricket then for people to learn their skills, to be ready and prepared to go up a level?

"So, it's easy to say we play too much, but we've got to break it down to say, is it too much? And if you're not an international player, then it probably isn't. It's just trying to get the balance right of when we play. But now The Hundred is here to stay and that is going to fund the game. Then it is what it is, so work around it."

13/02

How Sussex ended up in a world of financial trouble

Head coach Paul Farbrace describes ‘shambles’ at club as collective failure of oversight from hierarchy leads to huge losses

Will Macpherson

For Paul Farbrace, the Sussex head coach, the deep financial trouble the club currently finds itself in has a simple cause.

“We didn’t have the right checks and balances in place,” he tells Telegraph Sport, “and there was no pause button when things started to go wrong”.

It became clear that things had started to go wrong, according to Farbrace, midway through last summer. Interim chief executive Mark West sounded the alarm in the autumn and, according to sources at the England and Wales Cricket Board, it was clear a few weeks before Christmas that the club had a “cash black hole” that would arrive in January. After a loss of £297,000 for 2024, upcoming accounts will show a loss north of £1m. The result is a three-year loan from the ECB, with a tight business plan imposed on them, as well as point deductions, including starting on -12 points in the County Championship.

This is just the latest gut-punch for Sussex fans.

Under Rob Andrew, the former England fly-half who was chief executive for seven years, belts were tightened so the business was solvent, but the cricket fell to pieces. During a cost-cutting exercise many players left and youth was promoted in unprecedented fashion, leading to just three Championship wins in three seasons, including a chastening last-placed finish in 2022. Fans and former players were up in arms.

In came Farbrace, who embarked on an ambitious five-year plan, leading to a fourth-placed finish in 2025, a fine effort having been out of the top flight for a decade.

But much of the optimism built up in his first three years in charge has been replaced by fear from fans and former players after news of the financial troubles. Last Friday, a large group of former players, sponsors and club grandees wrote an open letter calling for the board, which it described as “a material barrier to recovery”, to resign en bloc. They set up a petition, which has since been signed by more than 400 people, around a quarter of the membership.
‘Staggering failure of oversight by board and executive’

The board did not resign, but the chairman Jon Filby stepped aside on Sunday after almost four years. As a result, a standing-room-only members’ meeting on Monday was not as fractious as many expected. Some of the signatories of the letter, including triple title-winning captain Chris Adams and former England keeper Matt Prior, attended. On stage were West, interim chairman Martin Richards, and Farbrace, not those pulling the purse strings. One member told Telegraph Sport he left with as many questions as answers.

The answer appears to be a staggering collective failure of oversight by the club’s board and executive.

Farbrace had been given licence to improve the first team, including signing four new players on long-term deals starting this season, while Pete Fitzboydon, who left as CEO last year, pursued a “growth strategy” off the field. Fitzboydon tried things, such as bringing the cricket-themed bar Sixes to the county ground in a bid to increase footfall, and turning the county ground into an outdoor cinema for a weekend in August. But when he left in mysterious circumstances, there was little sign for fans of the trouble ahead, with Filby hailing his contribution, saying: “Pete certainly leaves us in a better place”.

The process to replace Fitzboydon has not been swift. A leading candidate was flown from New Zealand for an interview, only for it to emerge they could not start for months, ending the conversation. West will stay in post, and appears to have built a good rapport with ECB, where ironically Andrew was part of the team to enforce the spending plan. His mandate is to stop the bleeding. “He’s the grown-up in the room,” said one source.

There has been a straightforwardness to West’s early days in charge. He sits among staff in the office, and has said bluntly that the club is in trouble because “the cost controls weren’t as robust as you would like”. He also pointed to rising costs and changes to fans’ spending habits amid the cost of living crisis. “Then there were some misses, things like events that didn’t come off,” he said. The club also seems to have taken its eye off the ball when it comes to sponsors.
‘Club run by well-intentioned fans, not those with the right business acumen’

Filby will forever be a popular man at Hove, a Sussex diehard since he was in short trousers. “Whatever anyone’s views are of him as a chairman, he lives and breathes Sussex cricket, watched every ball, and is a good man,” says Farbrace. But as the financial issues emerged, his popularity as chairman dipped. It must have been a wrench to step down, but there appeared little choice after a loss of control in the club’s spending in pursuit of progress.

As one source told Telegraph Sport: “The club has been run by well-intentioned fans, not those with the right business acumen. They just said yes, and have ended up spending half a million quid more than they can afford on the cricket, and other things”. After Andrew’s austerity, the change in strategy went too far.

“People will point the finger at Jon Filby, or Pete Fitzboydon,” says Farbrace. “But it’s not one individual’s mess-up. Rob [Andrew] was CEO, he did a brilliant job of nailing down costs and bringing things back to the bare minimum. But we had young players playing.

“Pete’s job was growth. The board saw an ideas man who was prepared to try and grow the business. He improved facilities, hospitality, the office areas, tried to raise money.

“Those were the right ideas, but we didn’t have the right checks and balances in place, and there was no pause button when things started to go wrong. We all knew in the middle of last summer that things were starting to go wrong, that our costs were far in excess of our income. When you have turnover of about £6m, and you are going to lose £1m-plus in a trading year… you can’t do that.

“We all have to own it, whether in the exec team or on the board. I’m not going to stand here and say the cricket is going well, the rest of the club is a shambles. That is not how it works at a small club like this. We can’t afford to splinter.”

Farbrace will need to slash his cricket budget from almost £2m to £1.6m. While the core of the squad is locked down for at least one more season, club captain John Simpson, Fynn Hudson-Prentice, Tom Clark, and England Lions quick Henry Crocombe are among a slew of out-of-contract players. Only overseas players signed before the mess – Daniel Hughes and Jaydev Unadkat – will come this year.

Farbrace says a county has already “respectfully and professionally” approached him “asking if we would be interested in losing one of our players”. The answer was no, but come June 1, out-of-contract players can officially speak to other counties. “It won’t be long until more clubs are circling round wondering, ‘Who can we pick off?’” he says.

His priority is tying down vital assets; even at 37 Simpson appears chief among them, having been a revelation since moving from Middlesex when they were in a desperate financial mess.

Redundancies – both voluntary, with immediate effect, and involuntary – have already begun across the off-field business, and Farbrace is even offering to make himself a martyr.

“I am one of the best paid employees at the club,” he says. “This will be my fourth year. So next season with a group of senior players, you could have a slightly less experienced coach who wouldn’t be on such a big salary. That would save a decent chunk of cash, taking me out of it. I don’t want to leave… but I would sacrifice myself to keep the group together.”

Farbrace’s five-year plan continues, with the ambition of finishing in the top two of the Championship this season. He says his players have been left “nervous and angry” about on-field sanctions they did not contribute to, and accepts that spending restrictions may require “re-evaluation” next year, but is intent that there will not be a fire-sale like in the Andrew years. There will still be a preseason tour, to South Africa, which the club asked members of the Players Club, a small collection of super-fans who pay a premium membership, to fund. The request for extra funds late last year was a red flag about the club’s finances, and some of the signatories of the letter are disgruntled Players Club members.

Some fans wonder how on earth this has happened at a time when each county, in theory, is sitting on close to £25m of capital raised by the sale of eight Hundred franchises a year ago. The ECB is insistent this is not to plug leaky business models, it is to build for the future. For Sussex, that means the next phase of Hove’s redevelopment, transforming the hospitality areas in the South-West Stand, which they hope will help bring in non-matchday income. Under Andrew, they built 37 flats, the Tate Residences, which brings in steady rent. Last summer, they received around £400,000 of “unfettered” Hundred money, which went on cash-flow. Twice a year, they will receive interest payments (minus inflation) from the ECB as long as their Hundred money is unused.

“I don’t blame the ECB for not chucking money at us to save us,” says Farbrace. “You can’t chuck money at a club losing a million a year. We have to show we can run our business properly.”

With Filby gone, the changes at the club are unlikely to stop. On Wednesday, board member and club legend John Barclay followed him. At next month’s AGM, a tranche more, including interim chairman Martin Richards, see their terms end, meaning at least six of the 12 places on the board will be available. Board members are volunteers but as per the agreement with the ECB, an independent agency is conducting a review into the skills required on the board.

Farbrace was disappointed that so few board members, including Richards, attended Monday’s meeting. “This might be controversial, but the club’s executive felt let down on Monday when only three board members turned up for the members’ forum,” he said. Prior posted on X on Wednesday: “[I am] hearing that a number of board members have been completely blindsided by what has happened – did they ever even meet and speak about what was going on!?”

The agitators want all of them gone even sooner than the AGM. The signatories of the letter are an impressive, wealthy and powerful group of local people steeped in the game. Some were around at the turn of the century, when a coup in 1997 set Sussex on their way to a golden generation, including their first three County Championship titles ever. Exactly what their plan is remains unclear, but it seems certain some will end up on the board.

Farbrace is keen for the club to build bridges with disgruntled former players such as Prior, Adams and Ian Gould, another signatory. He says Prior addressed eight senior players on a Zoom call last weekend.

“This is the time to get those blokes back involved in the club,” he says. “Let’s have calm communication, really good conversation that is constructive for Sussex cricket. Let’s rebuild it together. Not everyone deserves a kicking, or for this to be personal, so let’s work together.”

The whole episode raises wider questions for clubs of Sussex’s standing: not Hundred hosts, but well-supported and ambitious. Under Andrew, they were stable off the field but very unsuccessful on it. Since, they have surged on the field but floundered off it. Can they do both at once? It seems a bind that Essex are also struggling with, but Somerset show it is possible. It starts by being prudent, which Sussex’s leadership clearly have not been.

The Grumbler doing what the Grumbler does best...

11/02

Willow on the way out

09/02

Sussex Chairman Quits

I can confirm, on behalf of the Club, that Jon Filby has stepped down with immediate effect from his role as Chair of Sussex Cricket.

 Jon has served as Chair since April 2022 and has given a significant amount of time and energy to the Club during a difficult period. On behalf of Sussex Cricket, I would like to thank him for his service.

The Vice Chair, Martin Richards, will act as Chair on an interim basis until the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in March. An independent Board Review, as part of the ECB Framework and CPA Agreements, will commence imminently, alongside a planned process to recruit and appoint new Directors, including a new Chair.

I also want to respond directly to the open letter published this week and to the strength of feeling it reflects. We fully understand the emotions behind it. Poor financial performance has left the Club in a position where we have had to seek support from the ECB and now face sporting sanctions. We know many former players, sponsors and members care deeply about Sussex Cricket, and we hear their concerns clearly.

I can only apologise, on behalf of the Club, for the position we are in. But I would ask everyone who cares about Sussex to allow us the opportunity to put things right. It will mean change, but it also requires stability, and we will be far stronger together. We will not shirk the challenge ahead, and we welcome all forms of constructive dialogue.

Alongside these governance steps, work to address the Club’s financial position is already under way, with further actions being progressed to place Sussex Cricket on a more sustainable footing.

On Monday evening we will hold a Members’ Forum. Martin Richards, Paul Farbrace and I will be present. The purpose of that forum is to provide members with insight into the challenges the Club faces, how we are addressing them, and to hear concerns and answer questions. We expect that conversation to be robust, and we welcome it.

Sussex Cricket has a proud history and an incredibly loyal supporter base. Rebuilding trust will take time, but we are determined to do so and put the Club on a more stable footing for the future.

 Mark West

Interim CEO

Sussex Cricket  

07/02

Calls for resignations at Hove and  here too

05/02

Player Departure Pending at Sussex

Wormsley to be Lord's partner venue

04/02

Nick Howson

Kent have announced that three members of the South Asian Cricket Academy (SACA) have joined the club.

Sav Perera, Ismail Mohammed and Chinmay Mullapudi have joined with immediate effect in the hope of impressing ahead of the upcoming summer.

They join the club's academy+ programme, which is designed for players who have outgrown a traditional academy setup but have yet to secure a rookie contract.

The initial plan is for players to transition into the second XI under the guidance of elite coaching at Canterbury.

Director of cricket Simon Cook, said: "Our academy+ programme is an important part of our talent development pathway, designed for players who have outgrown the Academy but find themselves in a space where they aren't quite ready for a full‑time contract or are temporarily blocked by our current squad make‑up.

"We support academy+ players by providing facilities and coaching, giving later developers the platform, guidance, and high‑quality training they need to keep progressing, whether that leads to opportunities here at Kent or the chance to showcase themselves to other clubs.

"The initiative also provides a vital platform at the top end of our pathway system. We're excited to welcome Savin, Ismail and Chinmay into our Academy+ programme for 2026."

The news provides another opportunity for Perera, a Sri Lankan-born former Middlesex academy player, another opportunity to secure a full-time contract.

The former England Under-19 international told The Cricketer last month he believed he had played second-team cricket for 14 counties without being offered professional terms.

Top-order batter Mohammed played two List A matches last summer, both for a First-Class Counties Select XI against the Pakistan Shaheens at Beckenham. He spent much of the rest of the season playing for Nottinghamshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire's second XIs.

Left-arm seamer Mullapudi is also a regular on the second XI circuit, playing for Sussex, Gloucestershire, Middlesex and Hertfordshire last term.

"Each of them are outstanding cricketers in their own right and thoroughly deserve their chances," said Tom Brown, the SACA founder and managing director. "I have little doubt that they will seize their opportunities with both hands and relish the chance to prove their credentials to the Kent coaching staff."

02/02

Minus 12 in Hove

Sussex hit with points deductions amid fears of £800,000 losses

Limits on player salaries are among the restrictions imposed by the ECB on the club with the CEO blaming an ‘unsuccessful growth plan’

Will Macpherson

Sussex will start the new season with points deductions in all county competitions, having received an emergency loan from the England and Wales Cricket Board.

Sussex were forced to go to the ECB asking for support having been plunged into financial difficulty. In their last set of published accounts, for 2024, they lost £297,000, but the 2025 losses are anticipated by insiders to be higher than £800,000.

The ECB have placed Sussex in what it calls a “three-year financial framework agreement in order to access exceptional funding”. This will mean funding is advanced to stabilise the club’s finances, in exchange for a number of terms.

Sussex were handed the following sanctions:

• A 12-point deduction in the County Championship, a two-point deduction in the Vitality Blast and a two-point deduction in the MetroBank One Day Cup
• A suspended points deduction of the same level for the 2027 and 2028 seasons, should any of the conditions of the agreement be breached
• A suspended fine of £100,000 should any of the conditions of the agreement be breached
• Governance reforms, including an external review into the skills of the board, and giving ECB oversight to the club’s board meetings and any relevant subcommittees
• Restrictions on men’s player salaries for the next three seasons
• A reduction in the operating loss for 2025-26 and a need to provide the ECB with budgets and business plans for the next three financial years with the club to show sustainable year-on-year operating profits by 2027-28

Mark West, Sussex’s interim chief executive, said in a statement: “Since taking on the interim role at the end of last season, it has become clear that a combination of unsuccessful growth plans and wider economic pressures have contributed to the position the club finds itself in today.

“The points deductions will be an unexpected blow to the players and supporters, but we accept the ECB’s decision. We are sorry – it hasn’t been good enough. Our responsibility now is to put things right and ensure the club is in a stronger position going forward.

“As we look ahead to the new season, our focus is on making the club sustainable: we cannot expect to rely on central funds in the same way in the future – and any monies must be used in line with the ECB’s financial guardrails.”

West took over on an interim basis after the departure of Pete Fitzboydon, who had been CEO for two years. In a statement at the time, chairman Jon Filby thanked him, saying he “certainly leaves us in a better place”. Fitzboydon had himself taken over from Rob Andrew, who is now managing director of the professional game at the ECB.

Such sanctions are unusual. In 2023, Middlesex were placed in special measures, resulting in a £50,000 fine and a suspended points deduction. A decade ago, Durham received a £3.8m bailout from the ECB, which meant they were relegated, given a 48-point deduction, and stripped of Test-hosting status.

“Professional Counties are allocated significant funding every year through the County Partnership Agreement, and it is essential that all counties have viable business plans to ensure their financial sustainability,” said Richard Gould, the ECB CEO.

“The aim of approving exceptional funding through this agreement is to provide Sussex with the time to correct their underlying issues and for the ECB ensure that all counties are treated fairly.”

The ECB statement added: “This is intended to provide short-term stability while the club delivers the changes required to operate on a more sustainable footing”.

Sussex have been upwardly mobile under head coach Paul Farbrace, finishing fourth in Division One last year, while being active in the player market. This winter alone they have signed four players from other counties.

The club’s financial plight comes at a time when counties that do not host a Hundred team, like Sussex, should have access to around £25m of funds raised by the sale of stakes in the eight teams in the competition a year ago.

However, the ECB have placed “guard rails” on this money so it is used on paying down debt and making each county more financially sustainable, rather than writing off operating losses. Sussex have to make a business case to the ECB to access the funds.

29/01

Ex-Sussex and Durham player keen to build on Repton silverware success

Five of the Derbyshire school's boys played county 2nd XI cricket last year

Former Sussex and Durham star Martin Speight has a seven-year plan for all his players at Repton School on what he calls “a carousel of cricket”.

The wicketkeeper/batsman has been at the Derbyshire school for two years, and he said: “It’s great to have a full cycle with our cricketers, when you can influence them from a young age. I want to get to the point where if someone comes in at sixth form, great, but you are not reliant on that.”

Results from last summer appear good, but Speight is not resting on his laurels as he works alongside Chris Simons and Adam Holt.

“The 1st XI won 14 and lost nine, eight of which we lost in the last over, which we will need to look at,” said Speight. “Our catching was our biggest weakness even though we practise it every Wednesday and it’s normally a super-strength.

“Also, sometimes we found sides that were more physical than us. I taught at a Rugby School before, and it wasn’t a problem there. People hit the ball harder than us this season, they ran quicker, and were just a bit more physical than us.

"That is the way the game is going – counties expect players to belt it out of the park now. So now we are going to develop a strong culture for conditioning and strength work, and we have two coaches looking at that. We will also be working hard on the mental skills of cricket.”

Clearly they are doing something right, though, as five of the boys played county 2nd XI cricket. “And our junior teams did very well, the under-12s, 13s and 14s.

“Also, our girls won the under-17 national cup, and our 15s girls lost in both national semis. They get exactly the same coaching as the boys. Chris oversees the girls’ section. He is a full-time coach/administrator and development officer and does incredibly well. He’s been here five years now, and he is also works for Derbyshire CCC in his spare time.”

Work has already started ahead of next summer, with 50 hours a week of coaching offered, a mixture of individual and group sections. Speight starts at 6.30am. He goes to the prep school three mornings a week, and spends all day Friday there with Holt. Academy courses are also run in the holidays.

Speight is also a celebrated painter, of course, and was pleased to see his fellow keeper/bat-artist Jack Russell painting the school this year in the One Day Cup.

“I finished painting the school last year, and it’s now outside headmaster’s study. I have done a couple of Harry Brook, who I coached at Sedbergh. I have him one for his birthday present, holding his bat up and looking at the sky when he scored 317 in the Test at Multan in October 2024. He then gave me the scorecard, which he signed, so I need to add that to the picture.”

Speight still follows the fortunes of Sussex and Durham, and Yorkshire; as well as Brook, he has coached Matt Revis, George Hill and Dom Bess.

28/01

Northants posted:

Calvin Harrison has been named in England Lions’ T20 and 50 over squads for their upcoming white-ball series against Pakistan Shaheens.

Harrison will link up with the squad ahead of the opening T20 game on Friday 20th February.

Selectors have named a 17-player squad for the three-match T20 series, with a 16-player squad announced for the five 50-over matches.

T20 squad

Jordan Cox (Essex – captain)

Sonny Baker (Hampshire)

Luc Benkenstein (Essex)

James Coles (Sussex)

Sam Cook (Essex)

Scott Currie (Hampshire)

Calvin Harrison (Northamptonshire)

Eddie Jack (Hampshire)

Saqib Mahmood (Lancashire)

Ben McKinney (Durham)

Tom Moores (Nottinghamshire)

Dan Mousley (Warwickshire)

Matt Revis (Yorkshire)

Will Smeed (Somerset)

Nathan Sowter (Durham)

Mitch Stanley (Lancashire)

Asa Tribe (Glamorgan)

50 over squad

Dan Mousley (Warwickshire – captain)

Sonny Baker (Hampshire)

Luc Benkenstein (Essex)

Sam Cook (Essex)

James Coles (Sussex)

Scott Currie (Hampshire)

Calvin Harrison (Northamptonshire)

Eddie Jack (Hampshire)

Ben McKinney (Durham)

Liam Patterson-White (Nottinghamshire)

Matthew Potts (Durham)

Matt Revis (Yorkshire)

James Rew (Somerset)

Mitch Stanley (Lancashire)

Asa Tribe (Glamorgan)

James Wharton (Yorkshire)

ECB Men’s Performance Director, Ed Barney, said: “It’s exciting to have such a strong England Lions squad selected. This group brings a real blend of proven performers, exciting talent who have performed over the winter and retains an eye on future best.

“With limited 50-over cricket on offer, this series combined with tours over the remainder of 2026 will give players the opportunity to develop and deliver as we build towards the 2027 ICC Men’s World Cup in South Africa.”

England Lions Head Coach Andrew Flintoff will lead a coaching staff that will include Troy Cooley’s first tour since returning to the ECB as Men’s Elite National Pace Bowling Lead. The coaching team – which will attend either all or part of the tour – includes Neil McKenzie, Sarah Taylor, Neil Killeen, Moeen Ali, Amar Rashid and Ben Stokes.

The tour will be the first time that England Lions have played an away white-ball series since they travelled to Sri Lanka in February 2022. The Lions will also host South Africa A and Sri Lanka in white-ball cricket this summer with white-ball tours also planned for next winter.

Tour schedule – England Lions v Pakistan Shaheens

1st T20: Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi – Friday 20 February 2026

2nd T20: Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi – Sunday 22 February 2026

3rd T20: Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi – Tuesday 24 February 2026

1st 50-over match: Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi – Friday 27 February 2026

2nd 50-over match: Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi – Sunday 1 March 2026

3rd 50-over match: Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi – Wednesday 4 March 2026

4th 50-over match: Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi – Friday 6 March 2026

5th 50-over match: Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi – Monday 9 March 2026

Uni Cricketers Banned

21/01

"I just want the feeling of getting signed": The story of Sav Perera, the England Under-19 opener still trialing at 26

NICK FRIEND - INTERVIEW: No one in the country has hit more second-team red-ball centuries since 2022, and few can have trialled for more counties than the left-hander, who played at an Under-19 World Cup and has never been signed but won't give up

"Wow," says Sav Perera, pausing for thought. The question that stops him in his tracks is this: when did you last bat without pressure?

For, that is the life of a trialist, and few – if any – have trialled more than him.

If you're trying to chase something, and if each game is about proving yourself, every innings becomes an audition. How does that square with still enjoying the game? Every failure – in a game predominantly of failures – is a missed opportunity. Runs mean everything. And yet, a century on a particular day isn't, on its own, enough. Instead, a score is just a basic necessity – equivalent to the food that keeps us alive – merely maintaining your relevance as someone on the outside, desperately banging on the door.

"I'll tell you what," he decides. "I don't think I ever have."

At 26, he's reached the average age at which a professional cricket career ends in the United Kingdom, but his hasn't started. His ambition, though, remains undimmed, and his desire stands out among any number of cricketers.

For, if Perera didn't want it so much, he wouldn't still be doing this: commuting between his home in west London and his club side, Cavaliers and Carrington, to churn out 3,718 Nottinghamshire Premier League runs in the last four years; driving up and down the country, year upon year, to bat for anyone who'll pick him, often six days per week; spending this winter in Perth because, after finishing the English summer with an unbeaten 160 against Northamptonshire's second team, he just wanted to ride that momentum in a manner that netting indoors with the South Asian Cricket Academy simply can't replicate.

In many ways, Perera, who came through Middlesex's youth system, is a fascinating case study for English cricket. Once upon a time, he was England's left-handed opening batter at an Under-19 World Cup, captained by Harry Brook in 2018. Tom Banton was his partner, with Brook at first drop – "we knew he was going to play for England, but we didn't know how good he could be" – and Will Jacks at No.4. Others in that squad – Dillon Pennington, Ethan Bamber, Luke Hollman, Adam Finch, Jack Davies, Tom Scriven – are domestic regulars these days.

Perera, meanwhile, is one of just four players across England's last six World Cup squads – that's 90 teenagers – never to hold a professional contract. "I think it was just wrong place, wrong time," he reflects. "I would look at it as like, if you're playing for England Under-19s, you're good enough to play. That's almost a guaranteed contract, for at least a year, or a rookie. But I've not had that."

Yet, seven years on, if you polled a decent sample of people on the fringes of the county game, a fair percentage would tell you that there is no better player not to have had a deal. More than one, asked by The Cricketer, would go further, that Perera is better than several of those already contracted. "Yeah," said a domestic quick. "He's gun." If that is the case, then why is it this way?

Since the start of the 2022 season, he has hit nine red-ball hundreds in county second-team cricket, reaching three figures once in every six innings. If you're unfamiliar with how that matches up across the circuit, perhaps this can help: no one in the country can improve on that record.

He is one ahead of Josh Blake, Surrey's reserve wicketkeeper, and Dane Schadendorf, the newly-retired former Nottinghamshire man, both with eight. Beneath them: Will Luxton, Zen Malik, Andy Umeed, Robin Das, Harry Duke, Joe Weatherley, Ben Geddes, Ethan Brookes, Chris Benjamin, Kashif Ali, Ben Martindale. All have one thing in common: county contracts. His nearest non-contracted rival is five back. In 2025 alone, Perera hit tons against four different second teams. That there aren't grander names on that list is, predominantly, because you're not kicking around the second team for long if you're peeling off hundred after hundred.

In anyone's book, this feels like an oversight, but he grapples with the idea of misfortune – and, let it be said, neither the reason for, nor the content of, this conversation was to issue a come-and-get-me plea or a woe-is-me tirade.

"Have I been unlucky?" he wonders, repeating the question put to him. "I feel that, but as soon as you start feeling those things, it is so easy to let everything take over, whereas you just have to keep pushing."

But bad luck has manifested itself both tangibly and otherwise. Had he not jammed his pinky in the outfield when sliding to prevent a boundary late one afternoon for Glamorgan's second team as far back as 2022, this piece likely wouldn't exist. He was on the verge of signing a contract with the Welsh county, only for an innocuous stubbed finger to be, in fact, a break bad enough to warrant immediate surgery and incur a seven-month absence. "That's the closest I've been," he reflects. "Literally, a week away. That was my contract gone and my season done."

So, with that, he retracts his earlier analysis: "You know how you asked if I feel unlucky? I think right now, I've got my hundreds and I'm feeling a bit unlucky. But I think that was as unlucky as it gets. I've never really dwelled on it. I'm still here, just doing what I can do, seeing if anything comes along when I get back."

In reality, though, it's not as if Perera can do much more. He overhauled his white-ball game when his strike rate was used as a stick to beat him with, for being a red-ball specialist isn't long for this world. When he was told to back up one hundred with another, that's what he did. "Even on the back of three hundreds, you feel like you have to do more," he explains, "which isn't the worst thing. But then, the mental side of that is, 'How come I have to prove myself again?'

"For me, I think the unluckiest thing, I'd say, is being in the right place at the right time. I think I've scored most of my hundreds probably in the wrong place at the wrong time, where if those were at a different time when the counties were actually interested, things could have been different."

That doesn't feel quite right, though, and it speaks to a series of events that show the need for a reform of second-team cricket. It's not news to learn that trialling is ruthless, but the idea that quality performances can be passed off – often because you were only ever drafted in to plug a gap – undermines the idea of a pathway.

As counties have sought to save money in recent years, so too has the broader standard of second-team cricket dropped, which simultaneously works against players in Perera's shoes. Suddenly, these runs are worth less, the big innings less automatically instructive.

Yet, if trust in the process is dwindling – 'why hasn't anyone else signed him?' shouldn't be the basis for another club's decision – it's an inevitability that talent will be missed, particularly when the attitude towards free-agent recruitment is so often, in the words of one longtime former trialist, "about looking for an excuse rather than what you're good at".

"I mean, it is tough," Perera admits, "especially when you're on trial, and you do well. Let's say you get a hundred, right? And then, you're hoping. With how the county setup is right now, one hundred is probably not enough. But then, to prove myself, I've actually done it consistently. And that's where that barrier comes in. Like, okay, I've done what's needed to be done.

"So, almost, the ball is in the county's court now. But then to not get feedback from counties, even after all the hundreds, around what I could work on, what that missing piece is for me to go on and get the contract – it'll be, 'We'll get back to you,' or, 'We'll let you know,' and that's the last time I hear from them."

Not that Perera is a stranger. Rather than have him reel off the counties he's played for, it's easier – and more fun – to run through a list of them all. Derbyshire. "Yep." Durham. "No, I've not done them." Essex. "Yeah." Glamorgan. "Yes." Gloucestershire. "Yeah." Hampshire. "Hampshire? No, I haven't done them." And, on it goes. In total, he reckons he's played second-team cricket for 14 counties along the way, a genuinely remarkable figure.

But it's hard, trying to fit in, while bouncing from new dressing room to new dressing room, particularly when the underlying truth is that you're playing for someone else's contract. "Every other week, I'm having to introduce myself, walk into a new environment, get to know the coaches, get to know how they play. On top of all of that, I'm there to perform, and I need to do all of that. That side of it is hard, and it's a challenge. I have to be up for that."

In that context, SACA has provided a friendlier home, as a shopwindow for the best unattached South Asian talent in the country; Perera, born in Sri Lanka before moving to the UK as a teenager, has been there since the start. Far closer to a traditional team-sport atmosphere than trialist life, it's little surprise that he describes it as "so much freer and easier to perform in".

Among others, from that structure came Yadvinder Singh, signed by Worcestershire at 28, and Arafat Bhuiyan, picked up by Kent at 26, Perera's age. So, even if recent history tells us that counties are far likelier to hand a rookie contract to one of their own teenagers than an oven-ready batter in his mid-twenties, you can only admire the willpower to carry on trying.

"I'm still probably going to push for a couple more years," he says, "because I just want that feeling of actually getting signed. I don't want to work so hard, do all the right things and give up when maybe the opportunity was just around the corner."

The irony would be if that opening came now, with a portfolio to his name, almost exclusively, of runs under pressure.

Miles away from the "surreal" experience of watching Brook, his former captain, in Perth's Ashes Test over the winter, his runs have been piled on less exotically: New Malden, North Mymms, Sywell, Attenborough, Ombersley and just about everywhere in between. According to Cricket Archive – a detailed record, if likely incomplete in this case – Perera has played 166 matches during the English summers since 2022, notwithstanding a season-ending broken finger: the county grind a doddle by comparison.

In that sense, he couldn't be readier, battle-hardened by the pursuit of a goal always seeming to veer away from him. At this juncture, you'd do well to find many players for whom this would mean more, who'd treat the opportunity with such respect.

"All my life, I have been so under pressure – every ball, every game – where it feels like, if I don't score runs, then that's me done. But once you get the contract, there's a bit of time and space; it's one game after another. Whereas, for a trialist, it's one game. Because I've been there and done that, consistently and time and time and time again, I would just love to have that feeling."

When someone wants something so much, you can only wish them well.

17/01

The much-needed tranquillity of Derbyshire is a chance Shoaib Bashir can ill afford not to take

OSCAR RESS: The off-spinner, an unused member of England's Ashes squad, has signed a two-year deal with the Division Two club

"He's a current international with immense potential, and we've worked hard to make this deal happen," said Mickey Arthur, Derbyshire's head of cricket, when marking the addition of Shoaib Bashir.

Despite Arthur's positivity - although he was hardly going to outline the obvious risks - this feels like a far better move for Bashir than Derbyshire.

When you factor in his uneven county record, a rawness not normally attached to the signing of a current international, and a confidence-deflating winter, it's a bold move from the club. 

His England central contract, which covers at least half of his two-year stint at the club, at least mitigates some of the financial risk.

But, with the club on the cusp of promotion from Division Two last season, it could prove to be an unhelpful addition. 

However, in the same breath, it's a lifeline of sorts for Bashir. 

While Andy Hurry, Somerset's director of cricket, revealed there was a contract offer on the table, events in Australia have laid the platform for an uncertain future.

Derby should provide some much-needed tranquillity after a whirlwind period since his Test debut in February 2024. It was a life-changing two years, constantly underpinned by external pressure, caused by the uniqueness of his selection after he was picked based on promise, rather than meaningful performance.

He now has the opportunity, away from the bright lights of international cricket, to be a normal 22-year-old professional cricketer again. He needs to bowl lots of overs and be given the platform to make mistakes, with the stakes of those errors being lower.

Under the guidance of Arthur, renowned for his ability to develop young players and with decades of experience at the highest level, he should be able to work on his game, improve and, most importantly, learn his craft.

Arthur can also be a harsh taskmaster. It will, undoubtedly, be worlds apart, in terms of leadership style, from Brendon McCullum.

Jeetan Patel, England's spin bowling coach, has been accused of not progressing Bashir's game sufficiently; you don't imagine that same accusation being levelled at Arthur.

That intensity has the potential to go one of two ways. Arthur, infamously, upset several members of Australia's Test team in 2013 when he asked them to do 'homework'. 

The unwavering positivity and backing from England (before the Ashes) made Bashir, in his own words, feel "10-foot tall". 

"I feel like I am very well backed here," he said after taking a five-for against Zimbabwe last summer. "I feel backed in county cricket too, but England cricket is my happy place. I walk into this England team and feel 10-foot tall because of the backing I get."

Derbyshire won't be an unpleasant environment for him, but no team bans negativity quite like England. The environment, even if the current regime is broken up over the coming weeks and months, will be very different.

The pressure will be on him in a slightly more existential way. Sure, he will be tasked, on the field, with taking wickets, winning matches and helping the county take that step into top-flight cricket. But without the same constant external scrutiny. 

It will arrive when the safety of a two-year deal begins to count down. The emphasis will then shift to staying in professional cricket, assuming his international prospects continue to dwindle.

This is a player who forged his path back into the professional game, with the help of Berkshire, after being let go from Surrey's academy. That is all well and good as an 18-year-old, with the promise of improvement, but it becomes so much harder the second time as a 24-year-old. 

He will need to show at some point over the next two seasons that he is capable of being kept on and trusted.

And that starts with getting into the team ahead of, or alongside, Jack Morley. The left-arm spinner managed 27 Division Two wickets - more than Bashir's career County Championship tally - including two five-wicket hauls, last season. He has significant support from Arthur, who dubbed him a future England bowler last season, and was involved in the ECB's first spin camp in July 2025.

While the pair could feasibly play together, neither are strong with the bat. Morley averages 7.65 from 30 first-class innings, Bashir 8.26 from 54.

The Ashes, when the tourists never played a front-line spinner, displayed the systemic issues with spin in English cricket. One outright spinner being picked as a specialist in the County Championship is hard enough, let alone two.

The club have also handed a very lucrative deal to Mohammed Abbas as one of their overseas players. Home conditions will surely be tailored to get the most out of him.

Whatever role he fulfils, Derbyshire know that they have not signed the finished product. He will need support, guidance and, without a doubt, a bit of love. Nineteen Tests deep, he remains a work in progress.

This might yet prove to be a masterstroke for both the club and player. The security of the deal will naturally help Bashir, especially in the short term. But as that safety begins to wane, he will need to prove that he is capable of taking this latest opportunity.