Rob Keogh and Adam Rossington partnership puts Northants in charge before late wickets fall

ECB Reporters Network11-Sep-2019Northamptonshire 325 for 7 (Keogh 132, Rossington 63) lead Leicestershire 308 (Rhodes 61*) by 17 runs
Three late wickets ensured Leicestershire remained in the game after a century from Rob Keogh had threatened to leave Northamptonshire firmly in control of the Specsavers Division Two Championship match at the Fischer County Ground.Adam Rossington, Luke Procter and then Keogh all fell in the final hour as Northants, having been 304 for 4, closed on 325 for 7, a lead of just 17 with three wickets in hand.Resuming on 276 for 8, the Foxes had George Rhodes and Will Davis to thank for picking up a third batting bonus point, Davis driving three boundaries through the off side before a misunderstanding with Rhodes saw him unable to regain his ground at the non-striker’s end in time to beat Keogh’s throw from midwicket.Alex Evans, making his Leicestershire debut, lasted only three balls before going leg before to an in-swinger from Brett Hutton, leaving Rhodes, also making his debut after moving from Worcestershire, unbeaten on a first-class career-best 61.After an expensive first over, Evans, a 19-year-old seam bowler at Loughborough University, bowled impressively, and was rewarded when Northants opener Rob Newton left a delivery which seamed back in and hit the top of off stump. Davis then struck in the first over after lunch, Ben Curran edging a flat-footed drive to wicketkeeper Harry Swindells.Keogh and Alex Wakely added 55 for the third wicket before Wakely was unfortunate to be caught behind the wicket down the leg side, flicking at a wide delivery from Evans.Richard Levi was bowled by a Chris Wright delivery that came back sharply, but Keogh continued to bat with impressive assurance and positivity, hitting ten boundaries in reaching his half-century off just 69 balls. He received solid support from Northants skipper Rossington in adding 148 for the fifth wicket, with Keogh hitting a further seven boundaries in going to his century off 134 deliveries.Rossington also passed 50, and the pair appeared in total control until Rossington walked down the wicket to Evans and lifted a full delivery high to deep backward square, giving Wright a simple catch. Offspinner Colin Ackermann then turned one out of the footholds to bowl Procter before Keogh played a weary shot at a wide delivery from Davis to give Rhodes a catch at point.

Nathan Lyon recalls nerve-shredding final moments of Old Trafford Test

Daniel Brettig09-Sep-2019Nathan Lyon’s spinning finger made a good metaphor for the Australian spin bowler’s nerves by the end of the Old Trafford Test, its callus split in two, held together by superglue, painkillers and a fierce desperation to win the Ashes.As his teammates all looked achingly towards one of the ground’s big screens for confirmation of the final wicket with less than an hour’s play remaining, Lyon’s head was turned in the other direction – he could be forgiven for not bearing to look. After Edgbaston, where Lyon had dominated England with a second innings display redolent of the 2017-18 series in Australia, he and the team had looked set for a straightforward steamrolling. The story that has unfolded since has taken it out of Lyon in ways he has never had to deal with before.First, he drew level with Dennis Lillee’s Australian wickets tally at Lord’s, then struggled to go past him, a sensation shared by none other than Shane Warne in 2000. Next, came Headingley with all its many traumas. Lyon fumbled the critical run out chance, was denied the crucial lbw, and sank to the floor in desolation when Ben Stokes fashioned victory in the following over. With that result arrived a torrent of abuse, referencing some of Lyon’s more unkind comments about England in 2017 and the fact that he had effectively dropped the Ashes.At Old Trafford, the crowds took to ironically cheering him whenever he caught the ball before ambling in for his next delivery, meanwhile hurling all sorts at him from closer range. For a team that had already weathered the persistent booing of David Warner and Steven Smith, this underlined, as the captain Tim Paine said, “It’s a nice place to play cricket but it is bloody difficult in England if I am honest.”Also read: A scream, a win and an urn dearly earnedCertainly Lyon, his spinning finger cut open in the first innings then only barely held together in the second, could relate. “I split my finger in the first innings but in Test cricket you have to find a way to compete,” Lyon said. “It’s probably like a singer losing the vocals probably. I was pretty proud of that bowling effort, to take 20 wickets on that pitch.”You hear it [the crowd] for the first over or two then it just becomes white noise, if that makes sense. I know that’s hard to believe but when you’re a professional sportsman – your job is to come out and bowl well, compete against whoever you’re playing. To be honest with you, I didn’t really feel it or hear it at the back end, so it doesn’t worry me. We’re sitting up there, we’re going to have a couple of beers tonight and celebrate because the urn is coming home. I’m not sure what the 9000 people in that stand are doing tonight.”What Lyon was doing after Headingley was grieving the defeat, his role in it, and trying to deal with a myriad of personal issues back home, one of which has been an ill uncle. But somewhere, perhaps from Paine’s early advice to him in the aftermath of defeat, or perhaps from a text message sent to him by Smith – relating his own learnings from his one-year ban from cricket – Lyon found a way to drag himself back into a frame of mind capable of doing a job in Manchester.”Obviously you’re devastated. I wear my heart on my sleeve and playing cricket for Australia means everything for me, it’s not about personal success for me,” he said. “But I’ve had some family issues over the past – my uncle’s quite sick. You realise quite quickly it’s just a game. It does impact a lot of people. Mistakes happen. I didn’t meant to drop the run out or anything like that but I had him plumb next ball. That’s just the game of cricket. You’ve got to pick yourself up and it’s just the way you bounce back.”I would’ve loved to win five-nil, don’t worry about that. That means a lot of parties. But you’ve got to give credit where credit’s due. Both sides have played some really decent cricket. You’ve got to respect the opposition. We’re playing against some absolute superstars of the game. You look at Archer, Root, Stokes – that’s just three and we could sit here all night and talk about them – but they’re absolute superstars of the game. I think this series is rivalling the ’05 series, as a spectator back then you were riding the waves with the Australian cricket team. The sport in this country, England, alone over the past five months has done wonders for cricket.”You get the chance to come out here and play cricket for Australia and represent your family, friends and everyone back home. I guarantee when I get my phone back I’ll have a fair few messages from mates staying up – I think it’s about 3.30am back home. It’s quite a special moment that a sport can bring a nation together. I daresay that the boys in that change room up there, where we’re going to celebrate tonight, have brought a nation together.”Nathan Lyon doffs his hat as Steve Waugh looks on•Ryan Pierse/Getty Images

In both the first innings and on the final day, Lyon was not the dominating figure of the last Ashes series or Edgbaston, rather a supporting character to the unstinting brilliance of Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, with help at vital times from Mitchell Starc and, finally, Marnus Labuschagne. Their collective performance was enough for Lyon to make the sort of blanket statement that comes with winning Ashes series.”Everyone is going to think this is a big statement but I think the bowling squad in that change room there is the best in the world,” Lyon said. “I believe that and I’m very confident that we are the best in the world. To have the fast-bowling stocks that we’ve got as the Australian Cricket Team at the moment we’re very lucky. But in saying that the boys are working their backsides off. There’s no surprise they’re out there reaping the rewards they deserve.”You’ve got Pat Cummins, the best bowler in the world in my view but then Josh Hazlewood, jeez, if he’s not second I don’t know what is. That’s my personal view. But then you’ve got Starcy, Patto, Sidds, Michael Neser as well. We had an hour to do our skill [get the last wicket] and, to be honest with you, I was quite confident in our skill, we’d be able to get the job done.”It’s about positive thoughts and backing the bowlers, even the decision from Tim Paine to give Marnus a bowl was a very brave and ballsy decision but it paid off. Marnus is a guy who wants to do well for the Australian cricket team, he wants the ball in his hand. Hats off to him, spinning into the rough into a left-hander. Personally, I’d rather bowl to a right-hander on those wickets. Hats off to Marnus and hats off to Tim.”But for all that bravado there were nerves, of course there were. Lyon knew from his square position that Craig Overton’s lbw was not going over the top of the stumps, but the interminable moments before the final confirmation arrived were torturous given all that had come before, as the words in the team huddle emphasised. “‘Is it out? Is it out? What do you reckon Josh? Is out out? Is it sliding’?” Lyon recalled.”I felt pretty confident from point. I know I can’t see the line or anything but I can see the length and I knew it wasn’t going over the top, so I was pretty confident. But I was nervous. All I was hoping was three reds or umpires call and it was out. It’s a dream come true. I’ve wanted this. Personally and as a team, it’s pretty special that the urn’s coming home.”As a kid growing up, and as soon as i got my baggy green – the biggest goal in my career has been to win the Ashes away. We’re 2-1 up and I want to go 3-1 up and when we hold the urn up at The Oval, it’s going to be an amazing feeling. Yeah we’re going to enjoy this tonight and take in this moment, but there’s still a lot of work to do if we want to become a great cricket side and get to where we want to go to.”

Ben McDermott, Jordan Silk and George Bailey hit half-centuries to lead a comfortable chase

Andrew McGlashan23-Oct-2019Nathan Ellis claimed his maiden five-wicket as Tasmania hauled themselves off the foot of the Marsh Cup table by overturning a star-studded New South Wales side at North Sydney Oval.Ellis, who made his Western Australia debut at the start of the competition, claimed 5 for 38 as New South Wales were bowled out for 237 with almost seven overs remaining.They had been set back early in the day when Riley Meredith continued his good time in Sydney by removing David Warner and Steven Smith inside the first six overs to follow the five-wicket haul he claimed in the Sheffield Shield match.On a small ground with a fast outfield New South Wales needed their international attack – featuring Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood in their first matches of the season – to pull the game out of the bag, but Ben McDermott warmed up for his return to Australia’s T20I set-up with a crisp half-century.McDermott began the chase by taking 12 off Mitchell Starc’s opening over with three drives and in all 46 off his 58 runs came in boundaries before he was bowled attempting a reverse sweep off Nathan Lyon.He had formed a brisk opening stand of 61 with Caleb Jewell to set Tasmania on their way in the chase until Jewell was bowled off his pads by Hazlewood as he walked across the crease. Hazlewood returned to trap Beau Webster lbw to give New South Wales a glimmer with Tasmania 3 for 113.From there, however, the stand-in captain Jordan Silk – covering from the injured Matthew Wade – and George Bailey eased towards the target with a stand of 118 in 21 overs. Bailey, who was left out of the Sheffield Shield match, moved to fifty from 59 deliveries and Silk matched that with a top-edged six off Cummins who recorded none for 62 off his 10 overs.Tasmania had put New South Wales into bat on a ground where it is difficult to defend. Meredith struck in his second when Warner toe-ended a pull back to the bowler and then again in his next when Smith clipped straight to square leg, to the disappointment of himself and the crowd that had come to watch in anticipation.Silk produced an excellent piece of fielding with an under-arm flick to run out Moises Henriques after Daniel Hughes called a risky single and Hughes became Ellis’ first wicket when he was given caught down the leg side.Matthew Gilkes gave another glimpse of his talent with some glorious shots in a better than run-a-ball 43 before driving a catch to cover. The lower all managed to chip in alongside captain Peter Nevill but couldn’t transform the innings as Ellis hit the stumps four times, the delivery take Cummins off stump being especially eye-catching.The defeat all-but ends New South Wales’ hopes of reaching the final.

Batsman to remain with the squad, with the Test series starting on November 21

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Nov-2019England batsman Joe Denly has been sidelined after damaging a ligament in his ankle during practice. The 33-year-old picked up the injury on Thursday, prior to the first of the five T20Is against New Zealand, and will play no part in the series. The England management has not named a replacement for Denly, who is also in the squad for two Test matches, starting November 21.Denly arrived in New Zealand after helping England to a share of the Ashes series earlier this year, scoring 94 as a makeshift opening batsman at The Oval. It has been speculated that he would be moved down to No. 3 to enable Test captain Joe Root to bat at his preferred No. 4 spot, but that plan now depends on how he pulls up after treatment and rehabilitation.England do have other options at the top of the order. Dominic Sibley is uncapped, but also a specialist who was the only one to score more than 1000 runs in Division One of the 2019 Championship. The 24-year old has been compared to Alastair Cook for the manner in which he grinds out his runs.Outside of keeping his Test place, Denly might have also been hoping to break into England’s first XI in T20I cricket. With a view to building for the T20 World Cup next October, they saw the five-match series against New Zealand as a testing ground for new talent, coming to the country having rested “seven players”, according to captain Eoin Morgan. With the likes of Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali and Jason Roy given time off, Denly had the chance to impress the team management but will now have to wait his turn.England won the first match of the series on Friday with another fringe batsman, James Vince, scoring a stroke-filled half-century. Denly’s injury made way for the hard-hitting Lewis Gregory to make his T20I debut, although he wasn’t required to bat or bowl. Tom Banton, whose strokeplay is reminiscent of Kevin Pietersen’s, is also available as reserve batsman with the T20I squad.

England can only muster two wickets on day three as BJ Watling’s unbeaten century puts New Zealand on top

The Report by Alan Gardner23-Nov-2019BJ Watling embodies many of the traits that make New Zealand such an accomplished Test side. Skilful but unflashy, hard-working and unflappable under pressure, impressive as an individual but wedded to the team’s cause. The going has been tough in Mount Maunganui’s maiden Test, but it was no surprise that Watling got going in response to leave New Zealand on top at the end of day three.England have not won a Test in this part of the world in more than a decade, and although they began the day with designs on a first-innings lead, Watling’s unbeaten, 298-ball effort left them in no doubt as to the size of their challenge if they are to put one over on the No. 2-ranked side. A century stand between Watling and Colin de Grandhomme ground down the resolve of England’s attack, who could only manage two wickets in the day – one of them coming via Joe Root’s occasional offspin.Watling did give up one chance, dropped at slip on 31 by the usually reliable Ben Stokes, but otherwise applied himself adroitly in conditions that lent themselves to his preferred mode of unobtrusive accumulation. He brought up his eighth Test hundred, and second in consecutive innings, with a leg-side nurdle halfway through the evening session, and briefly allowed himself a moment in the sun as the first man to reach such a milestone at Bay Oval. Then it was back on with the helmet and on with the job at hand.

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By that stage, Watling and Mitchell Santner had taken New Zealand into the lead, and they were able to extend their partnership through to the close as England endured a long, hot day in the dirt. While Santner faced numerous uncomfortable moments in the face of a peppering from Stokes, he dug in for more than 100 balls to further stymie England.There were questions about Root’s tactics, having opted not to use Jofra Archer at the start of the day and then delaying taking the second new ball. Stokes was curiously ignored during the afternoon session, too, and he seemingly underscored the point by taking a wicket with his first delivery when called on after tea – Dom Sibley pulling off a brilliant one-handed catch to send back de Grandhomme for 65.BJ Watling celebrates his eighth Test century•Getty Images

England’s frustrations were epitomised by Archer, who occasionally threatened to produce the fire-breathing form of his debut home summer – at one point sending the speed gun above 150kph – but remained wicketless after the DRS overturned an lbw decision against Watling late in the day. Archer was also convinced he had trapped Watling shortly after he had reached a 149-ball half-century, only for England to burn their second review as ball-tracking adjudged it to be going over the stumps.New Zealand’s sixth-wicket partnership, which eventually realised 119 runs, began in watchful fashion, after the dismissal of Henry Nicholls had left them 197 for 5. But Watling and de Grandhomme turned the screw during the afternoon as they extended their association into three figures and Root shuffled through his options.Some occasional signs of low bounce – notably when Nicholls was given out lbw against Jack Leach only to successfully review – were not enough to unsettle Watling, who again found a valuable ally in the more assertive de Grandhomme. Their rapid century stand at Colombo’s P Sara Oval in August set up a series-levelling win against Sri Lanka in New Zealand’s last Test outing, and the pair were soon setting the tone again here.De Grandhomme took 14 balls to get off the mark, before taking up the cudgels. He was briefly troubled by Sam Curran’s inswing after lunch, but responded with a brace of fours when the bowler overpitched. He then took on Archer’s short stuff, hooking for six with two men back and bringing up a 73-ball half-century with a pull for two off the same bowler. He was on 62 when Rory Burns could not cling on to a rasping chance in the gully, Burns suffering a split thumb in the process.Having claimed the key wicket of Kane Williamson on the second evening, and seen Nicholls struck on the helmet by Archer in the closing exchanges, England’s ambition would have been to chisel out a couple more New Zealand batsmen during the first hour – in the end, that was as many as they could manage in the day.Just 11 runs came from the first eight overs, delivered by Curran and Stuart Broad, and Archer’s introduction did little to alter the course of proceedings beyond the loss of a review when seeking another lbw verdict, this time against Nicholls. New Zealand’s fifth-wicket pair were happy to tick over, and it wasn’t until Root decided to investigate the possibilities of spin that things livened up.First Leach won a leg-before decision against Nicholls, only for DRS to show that the impact was fractionally outside the line of off stump. Root then brought himself on from the other end, saw Watling dropped at slip by Stokes from his second ball, and trapped Nicholls in front with his fourth. For England’s captain, that was about as good as it got.

The tour will also include three ODIs and two T20Is

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Jan-2020Bangladesh will host Zimbabwe for a one-off Test as well as three ODIs and two T20Is starting February 22. This will be the first time the two sides play a Test series that doesn’t have at least two Tests.The Test will be played at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur, less than two weeks after Bangladesh play the first Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi from February 7.The ODI series against Zimbabwe will run from March 1 to 6 in Chattogram, while the two T20Is – on March 9 and 11 – will be held in Mirpur. A week later, the same venue will host the World XI v Asia XI matches as part of the 100th birth anniversary celebrations of ‘Bangabandhu’ Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the father of the nation.Zimbabwe will also play a two-day practice match ahead of the Test, but the venue for that hasn’t been announced.The two sides last played a Test series in 2018, also in Bangladesh, which ended in a 1-1 draw.

In a mid-game TV interview, the Melbourne Stars coach said he had tested how soft the pitch was before play which the rules do not allow

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Jan-2020The Melbourne Stars coach David Hussey has been fined A$ 2000 after claiming during an in-play TV interview that he walked on the pitch while wearing spikes before the match against the Adelaide Strikers at Adelaide Oval.The match officials viewed footage of the interview – which was conducted during the ninth over of the Stars’ innings – and originally charged Hussey with attempting to gain an unfair advantage. Hussey claimed it was a joke and was cleared of the initial charge and instead accepted a sanction under actions contrary to the spirit of cricket.In a cross with the commentary box, Hussey had been asked about the impact the Stars’ spinners had earlier in the match and said: “There was a lot of spin. Early on, you aren’t meant to walk on the cricket pitch, but I did with some spikes and the spikes went in and I thought a little bit of moisture in there so the spin might help.”When pressed by Brendon McCullum, he added: “You just want to see what the pitch is like, Brendon. You want to dot every I and cross every t and try to get the competitive advantage over the opposition.”In a statement, Cricket Australia said what Hussey described during the interview was deemed to be contrary to Section 6.3.4 of the BBL playing conditions, which state: “Prior to the start of play, only the captain and team coach may walk on the pitch to assess its condition. Spiked footwear is not permitted at this time.”Hussey challenged the initial charge under Article 2.18 (attempting to gain an unfair advantage) at an independent code of conduct hearing in Melbourne on Friday on the grounds his comments were made in jest but accepted the subsequent charge and sanction under Article 2.23 which covers “… conduct that either: (a) is contrary to the Spirit of Cricket; (b) is unbecoming of a representative or official; (c) is or could be harmful to the interests of cricket; or (d) does or could bring the game of cricket into disrepute.””I would like to apologise for my comments made at our match against the Strikers on Wednesday,” Hussey said. “These comments were made in jest and in a light-hearted moment with the commentators. I never intended to suggest that I had in any way broken the rules of the game. I realise that my comments, broadcast to our fans and supporters, may have undermined the Spirit of Cricket and for this I apologise.”

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ESPNcricinfo staff09-Feb-2020

“Every time you tried to speak it echoed around the ground. Showed you how empty it was” – Sodhi

Andrew McGlashan at the SCG13-Mar-2020Australia captain Aaron Finch reflected on the “unique” experience of playing international cricket in an empty stadium on a dramatic day of coronavirus developments for sports in Australia and around the world.Late-night Cricket Australia talks on Thursday led to the announcement early on Friday morning that the ODI series against New Zealand would be played without any spectators.The toss and post-match interviews were conducted via Spidercam as that expensive piece of technology earned its keep for the day.”It was unique, playing cricket in front of half a dozen people, the journos, but all in all think it was a pretty good result compared to what is happening around the world with sporting events being cancelled. It was great to get out here and put on a really good show for the fans at home,” Finch said.He added that once the game actually started, the cut and thrust was still there in the middle, which ensured players didn’t drift along in the silence.”Once you get out there you have world class bowlers running in at you your heart rate gets up as it does generally in an international game. In the field when you have got Martin Guptill who can be as brutal as anyone in the powerplay starring you down everyone felt pretty good.”Before play it was announced that Kane Richardson had been isolated from the squad and tested for COVID-19 after reporting a mild sore throat. His results came back negative in the evening and he was with the team as they secured victory.”We were reassured early that it would be highly unlikely that it would be,” Finch said. “It was mainly down to the Australian standard of having to go for a test, especially after a long flight from South Africa the other day. It was great to see him around.”On a day where stump mics were barely needed to hear what the players were saying, Ish Sodhi said it had been a strange experience. “It was very different, every time you tried to speak it echoed around the ground. Showed you how empty it was. It was a little bit bizarre.”In terms of the cricket itself, Australia overcame a batting wobble to put a solid score on the board on a slow pitch before defending it impressively. It will be the same pitch used for the second match – a day game – on Sunday and it is unlikely to be much easier.”It will be interesting to see how it plays,” Sodhi said. “It obviously got slower but I’m sure the groundsman will do some work to get it up for the next game. Definitely a bat first wicket, get runs on the board and hopefully it becomes harder to score later on.”Sodhi’s fellow legspinner Adam Zampa produced the moment of the day with his superb googly to defeat Kane Williamson as New Zealand’s chase lost its way, which was enough to draw some mutual admiration.”It was a lovely delivery to watch and I’m a big fan of legspin bowling,” Sodhi said. “It was a time when we didn’t need to lose a wicket but kudos to him.”Finch, who gave Australia’s batting performance “half a tick”, praised the hard work Zampa has put in to bring more consistency to his game.”He’s getting better and better, the confidence he brings each game now he is starting to understand his field and his plans a lot more than he probably did in the past when he would try a lot of variations all the time,” he said. “Think he’s really clever about how he tries to set up batters. A lot of that is down the work he puts in, he’s someone who trains for hours, bowls for hours in the nets and he’s reaping the rewards.”

On opportunities for young girls in the sport in Australia, Johnson said there was a need for more 50-over cricket

Andrew McGlashan30-Jun-2020Across the space of three days in 2011 playing for Queensland, Sammy-Jo Johnson dismissed Alyssa Healy twice.It wasn’t long after she had been told there wasn’t a place for her with New South Wales. Now, nine years later, the stars have aligned to bring her back to Sydney as she pushes her case for Australia selection.Her partner, Brian, found work in Sydney and after he had done so much to support Johnson’s career, it was a chance to repay the favour. And it just so happened that New South Wales had vacancies in the pace department following the retirements of Rene Farrell and Sarah Aley.”As a young teenager the dream was to play for the [NSW] Breakers,” she told ESPNcricinfo. “I don’t think I’ve really come to terms with it. I don’t regret playing for Queensland; I’ve loved the opportunity, I’ve had nine years and they’ve helped me become the person I am today. I wouldn’t be where I am without Queensland Cricket. But it is nice to come back – this was a dream, now I get to do it when I’m at the top of my game and hopefully, it might give me a chance to put on that green and gold shirt.”ALSO READ: All the Australian state squads for the 2020-21 seasonHowever, the journey has been far from easy. Her father died in 2012, there followed two years where she didn’t represent Queensland and jobs were lost, leaving the battle to scrape together a living and find somewhere to live. It appeared as though the cricket career could fade away.”You come across adversities – everyone goes through different things – and experiencing what I did at the ages I did has made it so much easier when you are in a professional environment, because you know when you have a bad day. I’ve always got the outlook that there is more to life than cricket, but you enjoy it while you can,” she said. “Every day I get to put on the kit of whatever team I’m playing for, I just enjoy it, have fun. I’m a pretty laid-back person. I’ve also said it’s not a right, it’s a privilege to put on a shirt and that’s what I live by.”Early doors I thought this is awesome – I want to play for my country – then life hits you smack bang in the face and you go, ‘hang on, am I good enough?’ You go through some ups and downs, start second-guessing your skill. I was driving three-and-half hours each way from Lismore to Brisbane three times a week to train, off the back of not a lot of money in women’s cricket. The love and passion for the game is what drives most of us, because anyone [of] my age realises it’s not about the money. We do it because we love the game and play with our mates.”Johnson has pushed hard for that international debut over the last two years, earning regular Australia A selection and performing impressively for the Brisbane Heat in the WBBL. Where she plays her Big Bash cricket next season still remains to be confirmed due to the contract embargo currently in place, but her last two summers have brought 38 WBBL wickets while in 2018-19, she also hit 260 runs at a strike-rate of 139.78.Sammy-Jo Johnson celebrates her half-century•Getty Images

“My first [Australia A] tour was to India so that was very eye-opening,” she said. “I was actually very nervous because I’d never been to the subcontinent. You start second-guessing yourself a little – am I fit enough, am I strong enough? – but I played really well, and really enjoyed the experience. That set me up for WBBL 4. I just had self-belief and it’s funny what a bit of self-belief can do for you.”Last year, Johnson closed up the gardening business she co-owned so she could focus more on her cricket and that international ambition. She is currently employed part-time with Rebel Sport, a job that allows her the freedom to focus on training and playing when needed.”Trying to play cricket at this level, traveling, touring, it got too hard trying to run the behind the scenes stuff,” she said. “If I really want to give playing for Australia a red hot crack, I needed to commit those extra hours that I’m spending on paperwork and admin, into recovering and making sure I’m ready for my next session or game.”I think [Australia] is the hardest team in the world to get into at the moment because they are so successful and everyone plays their role. You don’t want people to get injured, but I feel like it’s your only foot in the door at the moment – which is good because you want that competition. If I can keep churning out consistent performances with the ball and bat I’m hoping going to give the selectors no reason not to pick me.”However, there is another challenge to moving to the next level: playing enough cricket. That is particularly relevant approaching a 50-over World Cup, which is due to take place next February and March in New Zealand, with the Women’s National Cricket League consisting of eight round-robin matches per team and a final. In May, when domestic cricket was briefly threatened with cuts amid Cricket Australia’s problems, Australia’s wicketkeeper Healy spoke out about the imbalance in the game, and Johnson believes the WNCL should be expanded to a full home-and-away season campaign of 12 matches.”We train for so many months of the year and we’ve only just got to eight WNCL games,” she said. “Myself and all the players in other states want to be playing more cricket. The WBBL is fantastic, I think we have the right number of games for that and it now has its own window. I hope off the back of the T20 World Cup final that women’s cricket will only get bigger, but for the young kids coming through it’s not just about 20-over cricket. There’s a one-day World Cup next year and we need more 50-over cricket so the girls can continue to show their skills to put pressure on for the Aussie team.”Come the new season, Johnson will be taking every chance she has to do just that.