Cricket

England's preparations for the second Test against the West Indies at Trent Bridge have been thrown into disarray as opener Ben Duckett awaits the imminent birth of his first child. Duckett, who delayed his arrival at England's training session on Tuesday to be with his fiancée, Paige, is expected to start the match on Thursday morning. However, plans are in place for any change in the situation, with spare batter Dan Lawrence primed to swap in if Duckett is pulled away before the toss.England captain Ben Stokes confirmed that Gus Atkinson will share the new ball with Chris Woakes following the retirement of James Anderson at Lord's. Atkinson, who took 7 for 45 and 5 for 61 on debut last week, is a notable promotion for the 26-year-old. Despite his relative lack of first-class experience, Stokes has full faith in Atkinson's ability to open the bowling.Stokes believes that opening with Atkinson will have a positive knock-on effect on the rest of the bowling attack, especially with the Dukes ball behaving differently in English conditions in recent years. "He just had all the attributes of a very, very good bowler. A lot of it is to do with the Dukes ball, how it has behaved," Stokes said. "There has not actually been that much movement in the air with the new ball. It's generally been off the surface, hitting the seam, and Gus is a very good exponent of that."England will be hoping that Duckett is able to play in his home Test, but they are prepared for any eventuality. Stokes has made it clear that family comes first and that Duckett will have the full support of the team whatever decision he makes.

Chris Jordan is poised to make a triumphant return to the England T20I squad for the upcoming World Cup, set to be announced on Tuesday. The experienced all-rounder, who last played for England in 2023, will fill the void left by the injured Jamie Overton.Jordan's recall is a testament to his versatility and recent batting prowess. Since the start of the 2023 Vitality Blast, he has averaged 30.05 and struck at 160.53 in T20 cricket. His ability to contribute valuable cameos with the bat, coupled with his exceptional fielding and death bowling skills, makes him a valuable asset to the team.Ben Duckett, a left-handed batter, has also earned a spot as England's spare batter. Tom Hartley, an uncapped spinner, is expected to edge out Rehan Ahmed as the second frontline spinner behind Adil Rashid.Jordan's inclusion comes at the expense of Chris Woakes, who has yet to feature for Punjab Kings in the IPL this season. Jofra Archer, despite his ongoing elbow injury, is also expected to be named in the provisional squad. The ECB hopes that the upcoming T20I series against Pakistan will provide Archer with a platform to return to international cricket ahead of the World Cup.England's top four is likely to comprise Jos Buttler, Phil Salt, Will Jacks, and Jonny Bairstow, all of whom have impressed in the IPL. Buttler, Jacks, and Bairstow have all scored centuries for their respective franchises, while Salt has amassed three half-centuries in his first eight innings.The provisional squad will be finalized after England's four-match T20I series against Pakistan, which begins on May 22. The World Cup is scheduled to take place in the Caribbean and the United States from June 28 to July 16.

Warwickshire's hopes of salvaging a draw against Nottinghamshire were boosted on the third day of their Vitality Championship clash at Edgbaston, as rain washed out the first two sessions and limited play to just 35 overs.Resuming on 71 for 3, Warwickshire advanced their first innings to 175 for 5, with Ed Barnard anchoring the innings with a studious 69 (142 balls). The former Worcestershire player reached his half-century in 100 balls and shared a crucial 84-run partnership with Jake Bethell (38 not out).Nottinghamshire's bowlers, led by Dillon Pennington (3 for 40), toiled hard on a placid pitch that offered little assistance. However, Barnard's resolute batting and Bethell's newfound patience frustrated their efforts to force a result.The visitors had earlier posted a formidable 400 all out, thanks to a brilliant double-century from Ben Duckett (218). Despite the excellent bowling conditions on the second afternoon, Warwickshire's bowlers were unable to replicate their success on the third day, as the cloud cover lifted and the pitch behaved well.With the follow-on target set at 251, Warwickshire need just 76 more runs to reach safety on the final morning. If they can achieve that, a draw, which has always been the most likely outcome, will become a certainty.However, Nottinghamshire still harbor a glimmer of hope. If their seamers can make early inroads tomorrow, they could put the home side under pressure and potentially force a result.

Nottinghamshire's batting lineup showcased resilience and determination on the opening day of their Vitality Championship Division One clash against Warwickshire at Edgbaston. Ben Duckett's masterful unbeaten century of 197 anchored the innings, guiding his team to a respectable 367 for 8.Duckett's innings was a testament to his maturity and composure. He faced 230 deliveries, constructing his knock with patience and precision. His innings featured a wide array of strokes, including 23 boundaries and a six.Despite Duckett's heroics, Nottinghamshire's batting display was inconsistent. Ben Slater (65) and Jack Haynes (74) also made significant contributions, but no other batter managed to reach double figures. Warwickshire's attack, led by the experienced Oliver Hannon-Dalby, kept the pressure on throughout the day.Hannon-Dalby, in his 200th appearance for Warwickshire, was the standout performer with figures of 19-3-58-4. His accurate bowling and ability to extract movement from the pitch proved challenging for Nottinghamshire's batters.The match began with Nottinghamshire captain Haseeb Hameed opting to bat first. However, he departed early, caught at cover off Hannon-Dalby. Slater was fortunate to survive an early chance when he was dropped by Jake Bethell at third slip.Duckett and Slater then combined for a 146-run partnership, providing a solid foundation for Nottinghamshire. Slater played with increasing fluency, hitting 10 fours in his innings. However, Hannon-Dalby's return to the attack proved decisive, as he dismissed Slater with a superb away-cutter.The loss of Slater triggered a collapse, with Nottinghamshire losing three wickets for 15 runs. Will Young and Joe Clarke, who had shared a record partnership against Somerset last week, managed just five runs between them.Duckett found a reliable partner in Haynes, who struck 11 fours in an attractive knock. However, the introduction of the new ball brought another cluster of wickets. Hannon-Dalby trapped Haynes lbw, while Hasan Ali dismissed Lyndon James and Calvin Harrison.With Nottinghamshire eight wickets down, Duckett needed nine runs for his double century. He reached the milestone with an audacious ramp shot over the wicketkeeper's head off Will Rhodes. However, bad light forced an early close, leaving Duckett stranded on 197 overnight.

India's captain, Rohit Sharma, has strongly refuted comments made by England batter Ben Duckett, who suggested that England's "Bazball" approach had influenced Yashasvi Jaiswal's aggressive batting style. Rohit's response, delivered at a press conference on the eve of the fifth Test in Dharamsala, was a clear reminder of the impact of Rishabh Pant's fearless batting."There was a guy called Rishabh Pant in our team, probably Ben Duckett hasn't seen him play," Rohit stated.Jaiswal has emerged as India's leading run-scorer in the series, amassing 655 runs in four matches at an impressive average of 94.57 and a strike rate of 78.63. Duckett's comments, made after witnessing Jaiswal's boundary-filled innings in the Rajkot Test, implied that England's aggressive style had inspired the young Indian batter."When you see players from the opposition playing like that, it almost feels like we should take some credit that they're playing differently than how other people play Test cricket," Duckett had said.Rohit's response was not the only criticism of Duckett's remarks. Former England captain Nasser Hussain also condemned the player's comments."He's not learned from you. He's learned from his upbringing, all the hard yards he had to put in growing up. If anything, lads, look at him and learn from him. I hope there's a little bit of self-introspection going on. Otherwise, it becomes a cult - and, at times, Bazball and this regime has been described as such, where you cannot criticise within or externally," Hussain said on Sky Sports.Rohit's firm stance and Hussain's criticism highlight the importance of acknowledging the individual talent and hard work of players, rather than attributing their success solely to external influences.