Cricket News

A classy hundred by Joe Root put England Lions in control against New Zealand after the second day at Grace Road

Mike Hesson, the New Zealand coach, believes that the Ross Taylor captaincy controversy might have helped him become a "better" coach

Hamish Rutherford warmed-up for the Test series next week with an aggressive hundred against England Lions as the second-string bowlers failed to impress at Grace Road

New Zealand appear to be moving towards sticking with the 11 players used in the home series against England when the return contest starts at Lord's next week

A lot has happened to Joe Root in the last six months: international debuts in all three formats and a handful of match-winning contributions

Neil Wagner provided compelling evidence for his inclusion in New Zealand's Test team by bowling them to victory on the final day of their opening tour match against Derbyshire.

Like passers-by caught up in a shootout between two gangs, it was Derbyshire's misfortune to find themselves in the middle of a fierce battle for a Test place between two eager New Zealand seamers

If anyone thought the support act had delusions of grandeur, they can think again. There is no hubris from Brendon McCullum as his New Zealand team start their tour of England

Dean Brownlie and BJ Watling spent useful time in the middle as the New Zealanders began their tour against Derbyshire

New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum and his predecessor Ross Taylor have been released early by their IPL franchises and will join the tour of England ahead of schedule

New Zealand slipped into London almost unnoticed on Tuesday, minus their captain and senior batsman, but are determined to leave their mark on an English season where the main attraction is their trans-Tasman rivals.

Joe Root has been named captain of the England Lions team to play New Zealand in a four-day game in Leicester from May 9.

Graeme Swann is itching to return to action after declaring that his elbow has "never felt better" following the surgery he had after being ruled out of the Test series in New Zealand

Doug Bracewell has recovered from a foot injury that kept him out of the recent England tour of New Zealand, and is fit and ready for the English challenge that awaits

Kevin Pietersen has been ruled out of the Test series against New Zealand after it was decided he needed further time to recover from his knee injury

Luke Ronchi, the former Australia wicketkeeper, has earned his first call-up to a New Zealand squad after being picked for the one-day series against England and the Champions Trophy in June

England's managing director, Hugh Morris, has stressed there will be no relaxation on the insistence that Test cricket is the priority in the next central contracts to appease players with IPL ambitions

MS Dhoni, India's captain, has suggested that a lack of availability rather than talent will continue to be a barrier for England players wishing to participate in the IPL

New Zealand are headed towards fielding a second-string side in their first Test against England next year

New Zealand's tour of England next year is likely to overlap with the 2013 IPL season, forcing some of their senior players to choose which series to take part in