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Sussex’s former England allrounder has announced his retirement from first-class cricket with immediate effect

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Apr-2019Luke Wright, Sussex’s former England allrounder, has announced his retirement from first-class cricket with immediate effect. The 34-year-old, who captained Sussex between 2015 and 2017, has signed white-ball only extension to his contract.Wright was not selected for Sussex’s opening Championship fixture – a seven-wicket defeat to Leicestershire – and after indications from the club’s head coach, Jason Gillespie, that his involvement was likely to be reduced he decided to focus on the shorter formats – beginning with the Royal London Cup, which starts next week.The trend for players switching to white-ball only deals has been growing – Notts seamer Harry Gurney last month following the example of team-mate Alex Hales – and Wright hopes it will help add a few more years to his career.”I worked hard on my red-ball cricket over the winter, but once it became clear that I was going to have a lesser role in the four-day team, it made sense for me to commit my long-term future to the white-ball game only,” Wright said. “I’m hoping to carry on playing for the next five to six years and therefore I’m delighted to be committing my future to Sussex with this contract.”I’m hugely proud of my first-class record – it’s something that has often surprised people who think of me as having been a white-ball specialist – and I was lucky to join Sussex under Peter Moores and Chris Adams ahead of a period of unprecedented success for the county.”I’ll miss first-class cricket greatly and would always advise any youngsters making their way in the game that four-day runs are always the most rewarding. Dizzy [Gillespie] and Browny [Sussex captain Ben Brown] have my full support going forward and I believe in what they’re trying to achieve with this exciting young team.”A World T20 winner in 2010, Wright played more than 100 times for England in limited-overs internationals, although they arguably never saw the best of him. He has subsequently carved out a reputation on the T20 circuit, featuring in the Big Bash and IPL and becoming one of a select band of players to make more than 300 T20 appearances.Gillespie said: “I’m delighted that we’ll be benefitting from Luke’s skills and leadership in the shorter forms of the games for the years to come. He’s in great shape and I’m sure he’ll be playing for a long time yet.”I sat down with Wrighty at the end of last season and he was keen to work over the winter to try and cement his role in the four-day side. He missed out on selection for the first game with a couple of the other lads given an opportunity and he has been very selfless in making way for other players to come through.”Luke’s been brilliant for Sussex in first-class cricket for many years and his record reflects what he has achieved in that form of the game.”

Latest update comes after BCCI called it a “non-issue”; Dhoni likely to use the same gloves going forward, with the insignia covered by a tape

Nagraj Gollapudi07-Jun-2019The ICC has rejected BCCI’s request to allow MS Dhoni to wear wicketkeeping gloves with the dagger insignia. ESPNcricinfo understands the ICC sent it its response on Friday afternoon (UK time) explaining that Dhoni had breached two clauses of the clothing and equipment regulations: one relating to display of “personal messages” and the other concerning the logo on his gloves.The latest update followed a statement by Vinod Rai, the chairman of the BCCI’s Committee of Administrators, saying that the Indian board would not escalate the matter if the ICC insisted on following the regulations but had requested for some “flexibility” on the matter. It is expected to end a story that had run through most of Friday in India’s news cycle.The ICC raised the red flag after noticing the insignia of a dagger on the back of Dhoni’s green gloves during India’s tournament opener against South Africa on June 5. Dhoni is an honorary lieutenant-colonel in the Parachute Regiment of the Indian Territorial Army. The dagger is similar to the regimental emblem.It is believed that Dhoni is likely to continue to wear the same gloves but cover the insignia with tape.ESPNcricinfo understands that, in its email to the BCCI, the ICC explained that Dhoni had violated the G1 clause in of its clothing and equipment regulations. The clause reads: “Players and team officials shall not be permitted to wear, display or otherwise convey messages through arm bands or other items affixed to clothing or equipment (“Personal Messages”) unless approved in advance by both the player or team official’s Board and the ICC Cricket Operations Department. Approval shall not be granted for messages which relate to political, religious or racial activities or causes.”ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Dhoni also flouted the specific rule related to the display of logos on wicketkeeping gloves in the clothing and equipment regulations for the World Cup. The diagram in clause 19.47 shows that only two manufacturer’s identifications are allowed on the back of each glove. “No visible logos permitted other than those identified in the diagram,” the note accompanying the illustration says.Though the matter gained traction in India and even prompted the intervention of the country’s sports minister, the BCCI called it a “non-issue” earlier in the day. “We will play the game by the rules of the ICC in letter and spirit,” Rai told ESPNcricinfo. “If there is a specific norm that has to be followed, we will not break that norm. However, if there is any flexibility available, we have sought permission for the ICC to allow the player to wear the gloves.”The matter was discussed in the CoA meeting held in Mumbai on Friday, which was attended by Rai’s two other colleagues – Diana Edulji and Ravindra Thodge – as well as the BCCI chief executive officer Rahul Johri.Making the issue more complex was the Indian government’s support for Dhoni’s gloves. India’s sports minister Kiren Rijiju told the news agency ANI: “The government doesn’t intervene in affairs of sports bodies. But when the issue is related to the country’s sentiments, then the interest of the nation has to be kept in mind. I would like to request BCCI to take up the matter with ICC.”As per the rules, Dhoni would be reprimanded if he wore the gloves with the insignia on Sunday, when India face Australia in their second group match. The second offence, in case it took place within 12 months, would attract a fine of 25% of the match fee. A third offence would mean a 50% fine of the match fee, and a fourth would see the player losing 75% of his match fee.There is precedent for the ICC’s decision. In 2014, Moeen Ali was asked to remove wristbands bearing the slogans “Save Gaza” and “Free Palestine” during the third Test against India in Southampton. The ECB said Moeen’s actions were humanitarian rather than political, but the ICC’s view was that it was inappropriate for the field of play. No further action was taken. In January 2017 South Africa’s Imran Tahir was reprimanded by the ICC for a wicket celebration during a T20 match against Sri Lanka in which he revealed a t-shirt under his playing kit with an image of the late Junaid Jamshed, a one-time Pakistani pop icon and religious preacher who had died weeks before in an air crash.

Paul Collingwood promoted to join three-man team of assistant coaches to support Trevor Bayliss at World Cup

George Dobell21-Feb-2019England look “99.9%” certain to appoint one head coach to succeed Trevor Bayliss. While the director of England men’s cricket, Ashley Giles, had previously hinted he was open-minded about splitting the role into two, covering limited-overs and Tests, he has now decided that appointing one coach will provide the “stability in culture and voice” that the teams require.That head coach will be supported by three assistant coaches, however, who will all be capable of stepping up to take charge at certain times to ensure the head coach can be rested as required.Giles has already taken the first steps towards implementing that structure by confirming that Paul Collingwood will join Chris Silverwood, the bowling coach, and Graham Thorpe, the batting coach, as part of the three-man assistant panel that will support Bayliss until the end of the World Cup in July.”I’ll put my cards on the table,” Giles said in Barbados on Thursday. “My feeling’s now 99.9% that we should have one coach.”One coach gives us stability in culture as well as voice. But I see it as one guy in charge – and prepared for time off – and three assistant coaches, not just one, that work together and help share the burden. We’ll see the start of that shape going into World Cup.”Paul Collingwood will be involved in the World Cup, but he is not replacing Paul Farbrace [who leaves for Warwickshire next month]. I think having one assistant puts a lot of pressure on that person.”While Giles insisted that no appointment was imminent – he confirmed he may hold “conversations” in the coming weeks, but that a formal process would not start for some time to avoid distracting from the World Cup or Ashes campaigns – he did hint that he would, in a perfect world, prefer an English candidate and suggested that Silverwood was a strong contender.”Spoons [Silverwood] is a candidate, yes. Seeing what he did as head coach of Essex was remarkable. They were a bit of a shambles when he came and, in two years, he’d turned them round completely. And he’s got a nice way about him. He’s a tough bloke, with a fair amount of discipline, but he communicates really well. We know he’s capable.”Being a head coach is a very different role from being someone we often call connectors. Paul Collingwood is a really good example of someone who connects really well with the dressing room. Some guys are really strong at that but don’t naturally lead well because it takes a different set of skills. But I think Chris Silverwood could do it.”What we don’t want is this massive distraction of a process during the World Cup or the Ashes. Chris Silverwood, Paul Collingwood and Graham Thorpe are really highly thought of because they do their jobs really well and they’ve got to continue that. But the whole focus for the team has to be on this summer and my job is to remove some of that interference.”The nationality of the head coach doesn’t matter. We need the best bloke to do it. But it would be nice at some point for us to have an English head coach. We’ve had one absolute head – I was white-ball head – in 20 years and he [Peter Moores] has done it twice. That’s not great for our coach development. But the coach doesn’t have to be English. We’ve got to get the right man for the job.”Giles also admitted that, such had been England’s focus on white-ball cricket in recent years, there may have to be a recalibration to ensure Test cricket received the attention it deserves.”We’ve still got a long way to go as a Test team,” he said. “There’s been a lot of focus on our white-ball cricket and that’s been the right thing to do but, given the importance to Test cricket and the World Test Championship to us, we do need to swing that pendulum back nearer the middle.”

She is self isolating at home after experiencing mild symptoms

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Mar-2021Harmanpreet Kaur has tested positive for Covid-19, the update coming after she had experienced mild symptoms and was tested. ESPNcricinfo understands that the India T20I captain experienced a fever for four days before testing positive on Monday. She is currently self-isolating at home.Kaur did not play any part in the recent T20Is at home against South Africa as a result of a hip-flexor injury, which she picked up during the fifth ODI in the longer-format series preceding the T20Is. In Kaur’s absence, Smriti Mandhana led India to a 2-1 series defeat. Earlier, Mithali Raj had led India to a 4-1 loss in the ODIs, in which Kaur hit 160 runs in four innings at an average of 53.33, including a 54 in the fourth ODI.Kaur is the second high-profile India Women cricketer to have tested positive for Covid-19 after pace bowler Mansi Joshi tested positive last October. As a result of that, Joshi had to miss the Women’s T20 Challenge in the UAE, where she was to represent the Velocity side, led by Raj.Separately, a number of former Indian cricketers, who were part of the Road Safety Series in Raipur, have tested positive for Covid-19: Sachin Tendulkar, Yusuf Pathan, S Badrinath and Irfan Pathan have returned positive tests.

Fifties from Dinesh Karthik and R Ashwin weren’t enough to prevent India A from slipping to a 43-run defeat

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Oct-2018Shahbaz Nadeem celebrates a wicket•AFP

An unbeaten 87 from Hanuma Vihari and three top-order wickets from Shahbaz Nadeem helped India B make a winning start to their Deodhar Trophy campaign, as they defended 261 to beat India A by 43 runs. Nadeem, the left-arm spinner, took the new ball and struck with successive balls in his second over to send back Prithvi Shaw and Karun Nair, both lbw.India A’s top order continued to flounder until R Ashwin joined Dinesh Karthik at 87 for 5. The Tamil Nadu pair added 123 to bring parity back to the contest: at one stage, India A needed 52 from 47 balls with five wickets in hand.But Mayank Markande broke the partnership, having Ashwin stumped for 54 (76b, 5×4), and Nadeem dismissed Karthik in the very next over, having him caught and bowled one short of a hundred. Karthik’s 114-ball innings contained 11 fours and a six.India A’s lower order then collapsed against the legspin of Markande, who finished with figures of 4 for 48. The last five wickets only added eight runs to India A’s total.Ashwin had a good match with the ball too, finishing with figures of 2 for 39 in nine overs as India B, who chose to bat first, limped to 261 for 8 after threatening to post a much bigger total. Forties from Mayank Agarwal and Shreyas Iyer set up Vihari and Manoj Tiwary (52, 58b, 1×4, 2×6) to put on 99 for the fourth wicket. At one stage, India B were 194 for 3 with 12.4 overs remaining.The run-out dismissal of Tiwary, however, sparked a collapse. No one from No. 6 downwards got into double figures even as Vihari tried to keep the scoreboard moving at the other end. Following Tiwary’s dismissal, Vihari scored 39 off 30 balls to finish unbeaten on 87 (95b, 9×4). At the other end, India B’s lower order and extras combined to score only 28 off 45 balls. Even so, India B’s total of 261 for 8 proved more than adequate.

Dan Lawrence and Varun Chopra totalled more half-centuries than Essex had managed all season as a hapless Middlesex attack again failed to defend a big total

ECB Reporters Network16-Aug-2018
ScorecardDan Lawrence struck an outstanding 86 as Essex recorded only their second win of the Vitality Blast campaign against basement boys Middlesex at Lord’s.The 21-year-old, who like his teammates has struggled in T20 this year chose Lord’s to strike his first half-century of the campaign, plundering four sixes and seven fours in a 45-ball effort.His heroics enabled Essex to chase down Middlesex’s 210 for 3 – their record score against Essex – in the format.For Middlesex it was a familiar story of their bowlers having no capacity to defend a big total given them courtesy of superb half-centuries from Paul Stirling (78) and Eoin Morgan (77).It meant a seventh successive defeat for Daniel Vettori’s side, who must now beat Sussex at Hove tomorrow night to have a chance of avoiding the South Group wooden spoon.Stirling responded: “It is pretty gutting. We have put up a few good scores recently and not managed to get over the line with the ball. There have been some signs of improvement in little places here and there, but collectively it has not got us the win.”

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Dawid Malan struck boundaries off his first two deliveries, but then edged Sam Cook through to Adam Wheater.Thereafter Stirling dominated the Powerplay with a mixture of craft, ingenuity and brute force, two sixes and seven fours carrying him to fifty off 29 balls. The Irish international and John Simpson added 66 before the latter was caught and bowled by Simon Harmer.Stirling struck another incredible flat six over square cover, but was soon acting as the foil to Morgan’s stunning innings. Morgan began slowly before three sixes in an over off Paul Walter helped catapult him to 50 off 30 balls.Stirling eventually holed out at long off, but Morgan’s response was to strike three maximums in an over for the second time, Matt Coles the bowler on the receiving end.James Fuller, promoted to No 5 then weighed in with 25 off 11 balls as he and Morgan shared a stand of 58 from the final 23 deliveries.Aussie paceman Peter Siddle (1-33) was the pick of the visitors’ attack though many were left to wonder why Ravi Bopara bowled just the one over.Needing 211, Essex soon lost Wheater to a stunning catch by Stevie Eskinazi off Fuller’s first ball. New batsman Walter hit Steven Finn for an enormous straight six, but he extracted almost immediate revenge when another attempted big hit found the safe hands of Malan at mid-off.Despite the wickets runs came quickly, Lawrence hoisting Fuller for six and Varun Chopra too clearing the ropes at long-on, Finn again on the receiving end as the visitors reached 60 by the end of the PowerplayThe 50-stand came in 25 balls and the 100 was up inside 10 overs. Lawrence was the main aggressor and his fifth four coupled with two sixes carried him to 50 in just 24 balls, only the second Essex batsmen to achieve the feat in the 2018 Blast.Then came a huge moment in James Franklin’s first over when Chopra on 35 carved a ball outside off in the air towards the boundary at square cover where young George Scott spilled the chance. Chopra made the most of the reprieve, moving through to his own 50 off 31 balls as the century stand was realised.The hosts needed a breakthrough and James Harris, returned at the Pavilion End to bowl Chopra for 51, leaving Essex 137 for 3 in the 14th.
Lawrence though motored on depositing another six into the grandstand off Franklin.At the other end the experienced Bopara was missed off a skier by a combination of Fuller and Franklin and as Middlesex’s out fielding fell apart he was dropped again by Finn in the deep.Lawrence departed before the end, bowled around his legs by Finn, but Bopara (31) and Ashar Zaidi (20) saw Essex home with four balls to spare.

Allrounder hints at pulling out of BBL stint with Hobart, in the wake of the ECB rule-change that raises World Cup hopes

Barny Read01-Dec-20182:03

‘It’ll be hard to squeeze into this England team!’ – Archer

Jofra Archer has hinted that he may consider pulling out of this winter’s stint with Hobart Hurricanes in the BBL, in the wake of the ECB rule-change that has raised the possibility of him making England’s squad for next year’s 2019 World Cup.Speaking to ESPNcricinfo in the UAE, where he has been taking part in the T10 League, Archer insisted he was taking nothing for granted about his potential fast-tracking into the England set-up, but added that he needs to take time to assess his new priorities.”I’m a bit excited, however that doesn’t guarantee I’ll be selected this year or for anything upcoming as yet,” said Archer. “If it happens, it happens, but I don’t want to think too far down the line. I’ve still got lots of cricket to play even before then so it makes no sense dwelling on that.”Archer, who was born in Barbados and began his England qualification in 2015, had not expected to be available for international selection until 2022 at the earliest. All that has now changed, with the ECB reducing their residency period from seven years to three, even though the requirement to spend 210 days a year in the UK still has the potential to undermine his World Cup prospects.The ECB’s new rules kick in from January 1, 2019, in time for England’s tour of the Caribbean in the new year. However, Archer’s retention by Hobart Hurricanes – the team with which he burst onto the world stage in last year’s BBL – means that he is unlikely to have completed his 210-day quota until mid-March. With his stint with Rajasthan Royals in the IPL also coming up in the spring, he could be short of opportunities to bed into the England set-up before the provisional World Cup squad is submitted on April 23.”It is [exciting to be available for World Cup selection] but on the other side, because I’ve done so well in the Big Bash and the IPL which are coming up, if I’m doing well at them it’s something to argue about coming into the World Cup. As long as I look after my performances they should look after me with selection.”Nevertheless, in a Twitter post soon after the ECB announcement, Archer admitted that he “would love to debut in front of my family,” a reference to the England tour of the West Indies that gets underway in Barbados in January. The only way for him to feature in that squad would be to pull out of his Hobart deal, and spend the winter at home in the UK to complete his 210 days.”I’m not too sure [about skipping the Big Bash],” he said. “I haven’t been to Australia as of yet. I don’t know how the CEO would react. I haven’t asked yet. Obviously everything just happened only two days ago, so there’s still some time to do some thinking and to really see what takes priority.”England’s one-day captain Eoin Morgan – who had previously played down Archer’s hopes of featuring in the World Cup – is also taking part in the T10 League, but despite staying in the same hotel, Archer said that the two have not yet spoken about his situation.”I think [Morgan]’s the captain, I don’t think he’s the one who picks the team,” he said. “It doesn’t make any sense chasing it, as it’s only been two days. There’s still lots of time before the air changes. I’m still not fully qualified as yet, I still have to do my days. If it happens, it happens but I probably won’t try to overthink it too much.”[England] are the No.1 team in the world and even if I am in the squad and not the team I think it would be a great experience to be around all those players.”I just try not to think about it too much. England are doing really well in the Tests and ODIs, they’re doing well in everything and I think it will be hard to squeeze my way into the team.”Nevertheless, in Archer, England may have found the final cog in an already well-balanced bowling attack that is currently only lacking an out-and-out pace option.He is also a more-than-capable batsman and has already has an idea of where he’d like to bat in England’s allrounder-laden line-ups.”In the Tests I’d probably just like to bat just after Sam [Curran]. Either before or after Sam. Both of us are attacking and I think we could really do some damage if we do get together,” he said.”In the ODIs maybe seven or eight as well. I’m not too sure how it will go but I think whenever I do get the chance to bat I can just show what I can do and hopefully with a lot of performances I could squeeze my way up the order a bit.”England’s gain is West Indies’ loss when it comes to Archer, who moved to Sussex after becoming disillusioned with West Indies cricket when he was overlooked for the U19 Cricket World Cup in 2014.And though the ECB’s announcement drew ire from Cricket West Indies chief executive Johnny Grave, who accused England of “poaching” one of the country’s players, Archer suggested that those comments have been made three years too late.”I saw the [Grave] article yesterday. I don’t really have too much to say on it to be honest. I left three years ago so what he’s saying now he should have said probably three years ago,” Archer said.”There weren’t any opportunities [with West Indies] which is why I left. I want to say ‘no hard feelings’ but my dream is to play international cricket and with the possibility of it happening soon I think I made the right decision within myself.”And even if Archer falls short of breaking into the England fold, there is another big personal positive for him, it means he can spend more time with his family in Barbados.”Being qualified means I can spend a bit more time at home. This is three to four years now that I’ve only spent two or three weeks at home the whole year. Sometimes it’s not enough not seeing your family for so long so there’s at least some good things out of qualifying this year,” he said.Jofra Archer interview was courtesy of Cricingif, exclusive digital partners of Sindhis in the T10 League

Manenti and Nathan McAndrew added 108 for the seventh wicket to turn the game around

AAP26-Sep-2022South Australia’s new-look bowling line-up delivered in style to pick up a comfortable 62-run one-day opening-round win over Queensland.Last season’s strugglers bowled out Queensland for 217 off 46.5 overs at Allan Border Field having been sent into bat and posting 8 for 278.Henry Thornton enjoyed the best return with 3 for 55 but it was a strong all-round display from the Redbacks attack who tied down the home side during the middle part of the innings.Thornton, along with former New South Wales paceman Harry Conway and offspinner Ben Manenti, all debuted for South Australia, with Joe Mennie, Daniel Worrall and Kane Richardson departing since last summer.Related

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Sam Truloff top-scored for Queensland with 49 but found himself tied down for long periods, while Matt Renshaw contributed a quickfire 43 coming in at No.5.Conway picked up 2 for 37 from 8.5 overs, Wes Agar was frugal throughout for 1-30 from his 10 overs, while Manenti also impressed with 2 for 37 from his allotted overs.It was some debut from Manenti, who previously had a single one-day Cup match with Tasmania to his credit. Manenti, the son of Australia’s women’s world champion rugby sevens coach John Manenti, also top-scored with a rapid-fire 60 from 45 balls.In concert with Nathan McAndrew (55 from 42), Manenti helped add a decisive partnership of 108 for the seventh wicket and change the momentum of the contest.South Australia were reeling at 6 for 148 with their recognised batsman all back in the pavilion. But McAndrew and Manenti scored at better than a run a ball to find the kind of momentum that was missing from Queensland’s effort with the bat under lights.South Australia’s key batters all found a way to get out just as they look settled. Opener Jake Weatherald made 37, Alex Carey posted 20 and captain Travis Head looked set for a big score before he was stumped off the bowling of part-time spinner Renshaw for 47.Renshaw, after working on his bowling during the winter, picked up 2 for 30 while newly capped Test legspinner Mitch Swepson impressed with 2 for 42.

Former England offspinner will travel to UAE for first week of Lions training camp

Matt Roller04-Nov-2022Graeme Swann will spend the next week working with three of England’s best young spinners in the UAE after his success as Trent Rockets’ spin-bowling coach in the Hundred.Swann’s involvement with England has been limited since his sudden retirement from international cricket in 2013 and he has often expressed his frustration that he has not spent more time working with young spinners developing through the English system.Related

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But he was a popular member of support staff in the Hundred this year, working closely with Samit Patel, Matt Carter, Rashid Khan and Tabraiz Shamsi as the Rockets won the title, and ECB announced on Friday that Swann would spend a week working as a mentor during the Lions’ three-week training camp, which starts on Sunday.There are three frontline spin bowlers involved in the Lions training group in Rehan Ahmed, the Leicestershire legspinning allrounder, Sussex offspinner Jack Carson, and Nottinghamshire allrounder Liam Patterson-White, while Dan Lawrence is also an occasional offspinner with three Test wickets to his name.Ian Bell, Swann’s former England team-mate, is also part of the Lions coaching staff and will work with the training group’s batters, along with Surrey assistant coach Jim Troughton. Jon Lewis and Durham’s Neil Killeen will work with the seamers and Kent’s Min Patel will be the main spin-bowling coach.”In Ian Bell and Graeme Swann, we have two people with so much international experience,” Mo Bobat, the ECB’s performance director who will lead the tour, said. “It’s brilliant to have them as part of the group, and I know everyone will be looking forward to working with them.”It’s a really exciting staff team for a trip that I think will be of huge benefit to all of our players. There’s a wide range of experience to call upon, from across the game, and I’m looking forward to seeing everyone come together this weekend.”

England’s limited-overs captain and the explosive South Africa batsman are among five additions to the auction list

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Dec-2018Eoin Morgan, England’s limited-overs captain, has been added to the player list for Tuesday’s IPL auction, alongside four other late inclusions: South Africa’s Rassie van der Dussen, uncapped Australian Riley Meredith, and Indians Mayank Dagar and Pranav Gupta.

Zaheer Khan links up with Mumbai Indians

Former India fast bowler Zaheer Khan has been named Mumbai Indians’ mentor. Zaheer, who retired from international cricket in 2015, had played for and captained Delhi Daredevils in the IPL till 2017.
Mahela Jayawardene and Shane Bond will stay on at Mumbai Indians as head coach and bowling coach respectively this season.

Morgan will be entered at the highest base price of INR 2 crore (USD 280,000), putting him in the same bracket as IPL veterans such as Brendon McCullum, Lasith Malinga and Shaun Marsh. Van der Dussen is priced at INR 50 lakh (USD 70,000), Meredith INR 40 lakh (USD 55,600), with Dagar and Gupta listed at the lowest reserve price of INR 20 lakhs (USD 27,800).The late additions, bringing the overall number of players involved in the auction to 351, came after franchises expressed an interest in their involvement to the BCCI.ALSO READ: All you need to know abou the IPL auctionVan der Dussen, who was on the original long list, put his name back into the auction pool after making his third consecutive Mzansi Super League fifty on Sunday, a knock that sealed the inaugural title for his team, Jozi Stars. He was the highest run-getter in the tournament.He won the inaugural Global T20 Canada with Vancouver Knights, whose head coach Donovan Miller then called him up for his CPL team St Kitts & Nevis Patriots. Van der Dussen is highly rated for his batting in the middle overs, particularly for his ability to hit big at the end, skills that he honed through crossfit and kickboxing, among other things. His rising fame in the format and recent form could well make him the subject of a bidding war.Of the two Indian players to enter the fray, batsman Gupta is one of six Jammu & Kashmir players in the pool, while allrounder Dagar is a former India Under-19 player and Virender Sehwag’s nephew. He was picked up by Kings XI Punjab last year.Meredith, a rookie seamer, has only played in two T20 games, both for Hobart Hurricanes in February this year.Morgan went unsold in the auction for the 2018 IPL but has previously played for four franchises, most recently in 2017 with Kings XI Punjab. He takes the number of England players interested in the proceedings in Jaipur to 19.Several, including Jonny Bairstow, Alex Hales and Sam Curran, will hope to attract bids, although the question of limited availability could deter franchises. Centrally contracted England players such as Morgan and Bairstow will be expected to return on April 25, ahead of preparations for the World Cup – meaning they would miss the last three weeks of the IPL.