Nottinghamshire can travel to NatWest Blast Finals Day with a virtually impregnible lead at the top of Division Two after dominating Northants on the opening day

David Hopps at Trent Bridge28-Aug-2017Riki Wessels offered most resistance•Getty Images

Whether that Nottinghamshire touch this summer will turn to gold will only become apparent this weekend at NatWest Blast Finals Day, but certainly they returned to Championship action after the mid-season break against Northants at Trent Bridge with their exuberance undimmed.A 50-point cushion over Northants, who lie third, with six matches remaining, promises immediate promotion from Division Two and most likely as champions – not that they would be so unprofessional as to admit it – and the Royal London One-Day Cup is already won. What chance three trophies in the venerable, chimney-potted pavilion come September to mark Peter Moores’ first season in charge?Nottinghamshire’s 213 was obviously a sturdy total on an extravagantly seaming pitch, but it looked gigantic once Northants took guard. Northants might be many neutrals’ favourite T20 side, a team of considerable heft, but the manner in which they capitulated to 141 all out – itself a recovery from 59 for 7 in 20 overs – suggested they do not remotely envisage grinding out a serious promotion challenge throughout September.As for Notts, assuming the pitch retains its character, they can anticipate the best part of two days off before heading to Edgbaston and switching their thoughts back to T20.For the first time this season a toss at Trent Bridge was contested: both counties eager to bat. The ground gleamed white under sunlit pale blue skies, the colour scheme of a coastal cottage, but a mottled brown pitch resembled the after-effects of an especially high tide. Even as Northants made inroads, they just seemed to be marking time before Notts got hold of the ball. Both attacks bowled splendidly.Azharullah bowled with commendable pep and skill for a season’s-best 5 for 63 for Northants and Richard Gleeson surfed some late waves for four wickets, but their efforts in bowling out Notts in two sessions were to no avail when Northants themselves fell in less than one.Notts’ innings was based around two half-centuries: another worthy affair at the top of the order from Steven Mullaney, fifth out for 58 when Rory Kleinveldt cut a ball back to bowl him, and 69 in 80 balls from Riki Wessels which was drawn increasingly from the limited-overs songbook.Mullaney coped with conditions as admirably as anybody, his streakiest moment coming with his ninth boundary which flashed through the slips to bring up his fifty. Wessels, a T20 opener given licence at No. 6 in the Championship, changed tack after Notts lost their sixth wicket, that of Chris Read, and took five boundaries off Kleinveldt’s next over before indulging in several unsuccessful ramp shots against the seaming ball. A last-wicket stand of 32 with Harry Gurney completed Notts’ escape before he skied Gleeson to be last out.If Cheteshwar Pujara, the Indian Test batsman, had returned to county cricket to extend his education in English conditions ahead of India’s tour next summer, the loss of his off-stump as he drove at Azharullah was a degree level question which he flunked by some distance. Samit Patel and Brett Hutton were bowled shouldering arms to Azharullah and the clamour for Alex Hales to be selected for England’s Ashes tour party as a middle-order batsman was briefly silenced when the same bowler dismissed him for 4, on the drive.The call for Hales carries some validity, but even allowing for bursts of brilliance in limited-overs cricket, he will need to add further substance in the Championship to the double century he made against Derbyshire three weeks ago.Northants can’t have been helped by Ben Duckett’s broken finger, nor by the late withdrawal of Max Holden, who had been secured from Middlesex for a second loan period only to be immediately summoned back to London by his director of cricket, Angus Fraser, because of injury concerns surrounding three senior batsmen, all of whom were ultimately passed fit.That entailed an unexpected call-up for David Murphy, a wicket-keeper batsman who has been laid low for much of the season with a back disc problem and who has already announced his intention to retire at the end of the season to take up a law post in London.Murphy and his fellow opener, Rob Newton, fell to catches at the wicket, Jake Ball yorked Alex Wakely, Luke Wood sent Richard Levi’s off stump many a mile and when Rob Keogh, Adam Rossington and Kleinveldt fell within nine balls, Northants were seven down and had still to avoid the follow-on. They did so with Josh Cobb to the fore in an unbeaten 46, but they have quite a task to turn this game on its head.

A round-up of the third day’s action at the JLT One-Day Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Oct-2017
ScorecardShaun Marsh set up Western Australia’s strong start with a knock of 88•Getty Images

Shaun Marsh maintained his sublime start to the domestic limited overs competition as Western Australia eased past Victoria by 38 runs at the WACA Ground in Perth.Peter Siddle played his first competitive match since suffering a back injury in last November’s Perth Test against South Africa, and claimed two top order wickets in a promising return. But it was Marsh who had the biggest say in proceedings, gliding to 88 to set a platform for the Warriors’ middle order to take advantage of in raising a total of 283.Cameron Bancroft, the captain Mitchell Marsh and Jon Well all played helpful supporting roles, before WA’s bowling attack contributed evenly to restrict the Bushrangers in their chase.Sab Gotch and the former WA opening batsman Marcus Harris both made useful scores, but the steady loss of wickets through the middle of the innings kept the Warriors ahead of the game, leaving too much for Siddle and the rest of the bowlers to do, much as he tried to close the deficit. The result leaves WA unbeaten after their first two home games of the tournament.
ScorecardFile photo – Tom Cooper struck his ninth List A century•Getty Images

Five wickets for Joe Mennie and a century to Tom Cooper took South Australia to an 83-run caning of Queensland in the domestic limited-overs match at Allan Border Field.The Redbacks, who had lost their opening fixture against the Cricket Australia XI, struck early with the new ball against the Test batsmen Usman Khawaja and Matt Renshaw to leave the Bulls to 4 for 44, from which point the hosts never looked likely to threaten South Australia’s middling total of 240.Cooper’s innings formed the spine of the Redbacks’ batting, after they too lost early wickets upon being sent in to bat by Khawaja. The visitors were a decidedly wobbly 5 for 99 before Cooper took control of proceedings, aided by a patient Cameron Valente who had made a hundred in the opening match.Mennie contributed a quickfire 14 with the bat before going to work with the ball, claiming consistent wickets through the middle of the Queensland innings to bundle them out with a full 13 overs to spare. The win ensured South Australia had one win and one loss after two games of the tournament.

Both the World XI coach and captain Faf du Plessis were effusive in their praise for the experiences they had in Lahore, and the security measures in place

Danyal Rasool16-Sep-2017World XI captain Faf du Plessis spoke movingly about his experience in Pakistan; the generosity of the people of Pakistan and seeing how much the series meant to them was the standout features of the tour, he said. Though the visitors were defeated by 33 runs in the 3rd T20I to lose the series 2-1, it was clear from the way du Plessis and team coach Andy Flower spoke at the press conference that the goodwill that has emanated from this tour will not be sullied by the outcome.But in a move that is even more likely to endear the World XI to Pakistani hearts, du Plessis jokingly praised Lahore’s cuisine as his fondest memory of the tour. Lahoris take their food seriously, and it looked like du Plessis had found out why.”The food was very good, top-drawer food. But seriously, I just loved seeing the emotions on people’s faces, that’s something that stood out for me, how much it meant for the people of Pakistan. That goes way beyond what you do on the cricket field,” he said. “You look around the field and every person says thank you very much for coming, and you see the generosity comes from a deep place in their hearts. That’s the most special thing to be a part of.”Flower thanked Pakistan’s people for their hospitality and said it had made the World XI feel right at home. “We’ve been extremely well looked after, we go home on Saturday with memories that I hope the boys will cherish for the rest of their lives,” Flower said. “This tour is another reminder of the fact that cricket transcends boundaries. The way Pakistani people and the crowd, particularly at this ground, cheered for us at the end of the second game which we won, and beat their national side, they made us feel right at home.”We had said that this was more than just the cricket tour, the public showed their appreciation and the players interacted with the crowds at
the hotel and at the ground, and the security agency proved that they can provide a safe and secure environment. I really hope this tour will inspire the young people in Pakistan; they’ve seen some of the best players across the world live in action and this might be the beginning of the cricketing journey of the next Hashim Amla or Faf du Plessis. One thing which I think we should all remember is that these are baby steps and I’m sure that Pakistan board will take one safe and steady step at a time.”Faf du Plessis swivels after failing to time a pull•AFP

Du Plessis also echoed Flower’s thoughts about the importance of not getting carried away with one tour. “It’s really important you take each thing one at a time and plan specifically for every tour,” he said. “So whatever is the next step, [you need to put in] the same amount of energy and time and resources to make sure that it is planned as smoothly as this was. If you do out all those things, then definitely another step, another step, another step, to hopefully bring cricket back into Pakistan.”With five South African players part of the visitors’ playing XI for each of the three games, there was speculation about the possibility of South
Africa coming to Pakistan for a tour, but du Plessis has repeatedly batted away suggestions that something of the sort is in the works. At the first press conference after landing in Lahore, he said he would have retired by the time South Africa seriously consider touring Pakistan next; now, he spoke of how a South Africa tour of Pakistan was not something in his control.”That won’t be my decision. I can just relate my experiences over here, but there will have to be a complete different set of things put in place for South Africa to come and tour here. What I can say is the fact that we’ve been in Lahore here now and we did feel safe. I’m sure if there was an opportunity to come here and they saw all the procedures that are put in place and the feedback we as a players give, then that could be option.”

Nixon, twice the winning coach with Jamaica Tallawahs in the Caribbean Premier League, enjoyed a long and successful playing career with the club

George Dobell16-Oct-2017Leicestershire have appointed Paul Nixon, their former captain, as the new head coach.Nixon, twice the winning coach with Jamaica Tallawahs in the Caribbean Premier League, enjoyed a long and successful playing career with the club. He played in the County Championship winning sides of 1996 and 1998 and the T20 winning sides of 2004, 2006 and 2011. He made his Leicestershire debut in 1989 and was captain 2007 and 2008.He faces a tough task at Leicestershire, however. The club finished bottom of Division Two in the County Championship without a win with his predecessor, Pierre de Bruyn, sacked after barely a year in the role.”We are delighted that Paul has agreed to rejoin us as our head coach,” Leicestershire chief executive Wasim Khan said. “Paul is dedicated, passionate and knowledgeable, and has been a huge part of successful changing rooms both as a player and coach.”Paul will get the very best out of the players. He has a positive outlook, a great attitude, and is a winner. All of those attributes make Paul the perfect person to take Leicestershire County Cricket Club forward.””I am immensely proud and honoured to be returning to Leicestershire as head coach,” Nixon said. “The club has always been close to my heart and I have lived in the city of Leicester for 30 years, so I know how much it means to everyone here.”There are a lot of good people at the club. We have a lot of loyal Members, supporters and sponsors, and I want to bring the good times back to Leicestershire.”I enjoyed lots of success as a player with the Foxes. We won the County Championship twice and got to five T20 Finals Days in nine years, winning on the three occasions we got to the Final. I’d like to thank the club for believing in me. I know that I can make a positive impact in my new role and I can’t wait to get started.”

The PCB has decided to postpone the semi-finals and final of the National T20 Cup because of the “prevailing situation” of religious unrest in Pakistan

Umar Farooq in Rawalpindi25-Nov-2017The PCB has decided to postpone the semi-finals and final of the National T20 Cup because of the “prevailing situation” of religious unrest in Pakistan, saying new dates would be announced later. The next round of the Quaid-e-Azam trophy has also been called off.The prevailing situation, as the board called it, began on Saturday, when police attempted to disperse a sit-in by a religious group at an interchange in Rawalpindi. They were unsuccessful in doing so, and the protests spread throughout the country. Educational institutions were closed on Monday and Tuesday in Lahore, where the recent T20Is against Sri Lanka and an ICC-sanctioned World XI took place. Access to social media sites Facebook, Twitter and YouTube was suspended across the country.”Due to the prevailing situation, the PCB management has decided to postpone the semi-finals and final of the National T20 Cup and Super 8 rounds of the Quaid-e-Azam trophy for now,” PCB’s media manager Shakeel Khan said. “The management will announce new dates later.”The semifinals were originally scheduled to be held on November 26, but they were called off as the protests began to widen and escalate. Teams had found themselves confined to their hotels, and roads leading to the Rawalpindi stadium had been blocked.The stadium is situated in a central location in Rawalpindi, Islamabad’s twin city, and the impact of the police operation disrupted life in both cities. As many as 8500 elite police and paramilitary troops in riot gear were taking part in the operation on Saturday by encircling the area. Protesters resisted fiercely, resulting in major disruptions, and all roads leading from Islamabad to Lahore and Karachi were closed off.Lahore Whites are scheduled to compete with Faisalabad in the first semifinal, while FATA face Lahore Blues in the other clash.The National T20 Cup has faced several hindrances this year. Earlier, it had clashed with the ICC World XI’s trip. When it was rescheduled, its dates clashed with the Bangladesh Premier League and the now-postponed Global T20 League in South Africa. Even then, smog in Faisalabad and Multan meant it had to eventually be relocated to Rawalpindi once and for all.The scheduling of the National T20 Cup created uncertainty on other fronts as well. In August, the board revoked the No-Objection Certificates of 13 players participating in the Caribbean Premier League and the English domestic season, asking them to return home and fulfill national and domestic commitments. However, a few days later, PCB chairman Najam Sethi said the National T20 Cup had been postponed and the players could return to their franchise sides and counties after undergoing fitness tests.

With Chris Gayle, Evin Lewis, Brendon McCullum, Shahid Afridi, Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard, Johnson Charles and Shakib Al Hasan set to take the field on Tuesday, expect some fireworks in the BPL final between Dhaka and Rangpur

The Preview by Mohammad Isam11-Dec-2017

Big picture

The chances of the BPL final being a one-sided affair are fairly high. If even one of Dhaka Dynamites’ departments – either the top-order batsmen or the spin bowlers – fire full throttle, then Rangpur Riders will struggle in the finale. At the same time, if Chris Gayle, Brendon McCullum or Johnson Charles repeat what they did earlier in the playoffs, Dhaka could very well be out of the contest quite early.Evin Lewis, Joe Denly, Shahid Afridi and Sunil Narine have struck 56 sixes among them, and have batted at a strike-rate of 144.61. Every time they have fired with the bat, Dhaka have cruised to victory. Afridi and Narine also form part of Dhaka’s three-man spin attack including the captain Shakib Al Hasan, and the trio has been relentless through the season. Shakib is the tournament’s leading wicket-taker while Afridi already has two four-wicket hauls. Narine, meanwhile, has been the tournament’s most frugal bowler after Rashid Khan, conceding at five per over in 11 matches.Gayle, Charles and McCullum have come late to the party, but they have peaked at the right time for Rangpur. Gayle and Charles have both scored hundreds in the qualifiers while McCullum hammered nine sixes in his whirlwind 78 in the second of those matches. Gayle has a bit of an ankle injury concern but according to Mashrafe Mortaza, it is nothing he can’t shake off.All in all, it promises to be an intriguing battle between the two teams’ spin bowlers and their top orders. Dhaka are the clear favourites, but momentum can act in funny ways.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)
Dhaka Dynamites WWWLW
Rangpur Riders WWLWL

In the spotlight

Abu Hider, the left-arm pace bowler, has won Shakib’s praise for doing a good job in their spin-heavy attack. Hider has taken 15 wickets at an average of 18.20.Nazmul Islam is an uncapped left-arm spinner who has a unique celebration style, but apart from that, he has been Rangpur’s most effective bowler in the middle overs. He may play a crucial role when Dhaka bat.

Team news

Dhaka is likely to stick to their XI that crushed Comilla Victorians in the first Qualifier. There is no merit in meddling with a successful bowling attack although they might try to make room for Mohammad Amir.Dhaka Dynamites (probable): 1 Mehedi Maruf, 2 Evin Lewis, 3 Joe Denly, 4 Kieron Pollard, 5 Shakib Al Hasan (capt), 6 Shahid Afridi, 7 Mosaddek Hossain, 8 Sunil Narine, 9 Jahurul Islam (wk), 10 Abu Hider, 11 Mohammad SaddamAfter the win in the second Qualifier, Rangpur are unlikely to make any changes for the final.Rangpur Riders (probable): 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Johnson Charles, 3 Brendon McCullum, 4 Mohammad Mithun (wk), 5 Ravi Bopara, 6 Nahidul Islam, 7 Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), 8 Sohag Gazi, 9 Isuru Udana, 10 Nazmul Islam, 11 Rubel Hossain

Pitch and conditions

The Mirpur pitches have been mostly under covers due to the steady drizzle of the last few days. There has been some improvement in the bounce of the pitches, according to some players. Rain is likely to stay away on the evening of the final.

Stats and trivia

• Sunil Narine’s economy rate of 5.00 runs per over this season is the lowest among bowlers to have bowled at least 40 overs in a single T20 tournament.
• Brendon McCullum and Johnson Charles added 151 runs for the second wicket in their last game – now a new BPL record for that wicket – breaking the 150-run stand between Shahriar Nafees and Dawid Malan in 2016.

Quotes

“We have a good bowling attack, and apart from the three spinners, [Abu Hider] Rony and Mosaddek [Hossain] has also bowled well this season. Our batting too has found consistency now. I think we have the overall consistency and momentum, and we will try to win the final.”
“Among the four teams in the playoffs, we were the least favourite.”

New Zealand were too slow to adjust to the nature of the Sydney pitch according to Ross Taylor who thought a total of 140 would have given them a fighting chance

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Feb-2018New Zealand were too slow to adjust to the nature of the Sydney pitch according to Ross Taylor who thought a total of 140 would have given them a fighting chance.Three wickets in the first four overs – including two from Billy Stanlake’s opening two deliveries – set back New Zealand’s innings to such an extent that they could only limp to 9 for 117 with Australia cantering to a rain-adjusted target to take the opening points of the Trans-Tasman tri-series.The start of Stanlake’s spell was the most eye-catching period of the match as he pushed the speedgun over 150kph, dismissing Colin Munro first ball then producing an unplayable delivery to take Martin Guptill’s off stump.Munro is given licence to attack at the top of New Zealand’s limited-overs line-ups, but didn’t give himself a sighter against Stanlake when he top-edged a short ball and, while Guptill could do little about his delivery, Tom Bruce then top-edged another short ball to long leg in Stanlake’s second over.”We probably didn’t assess conditions well enough, Australia bowled very well and there was a little in the wicket but we weren’t able to soak that up,” Taylor said. “Don’t know it was 160-170 wicket but if we’d scrapped our way to 140 we might have been a chance.”With New Zealand’s two top-order strikers gone in two deliveries, boundaries were hard to come by to the extent that there was just one in the Powerplay after the opening over – and that was an edge fine of slip by Taylor – as captain David Warner gave Stanlake three of his four overs on the bounce.”I thought he bowled very well and those were two big wickets with his first two balls set the tone for their innings and our batting,” Taylor said. “He’s bowled very well in the Big Bash, it wasn’t a quick wicket here but he bowled well with good pace and will be one to watch in the future for sure.”Kane Williamson soaked up 21 deliveries for his 8 before getting a leading edge into the covers and Taylor was left to hold the innings together. Tom Blundell was promoted up the order to try and ensure the innings went deep to allow Colin de Grandhomme, who finished as the top-scorer with 38 off 24 balls, the freedom to attack later on.Taylor edged Ashton Agar’s final delivery to depart for 24 off 35 balls – New Zealand’s second-slowest 20-plus score in T20Is – while de Grandhomme clubbed three of the four sixes New Zealand managed, but Taylor rejected any suggestion that the difficulty in clearing the rope was because of the transition from the small grounds in New Zealand.”You just have to back yourself that you are doing the right thing at the time, try to eliminate the dot balls. Each time we lost a wicket we had to hold back and take it as deep as possible. I think it was more the wicket than the size of the boundary… the slower balls stuck in the wicket.”

Taskin Ahmed, Soumya Sarkar and Liton Das are among the five players that have been dropped from the ODI squad that toured South Africa in 2017

Mohammad Isam07-Jan-20181:12

Isam: Sarkar, Taskin among big names dropped

Bangladesh have made five changes to their ODI squad for the first two matches of the tri-series against Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe, including the addition of Mustafizur Rahman. Taskin Ahmed and Soumya Sarkar have been dropped from the ODI squad that played in South Africa.The other players dropped are Liton Das, Mominul Haque and Shafiul Islam, while those added into the squad – together with Mustafizur – are Anamul Haque, Mohammad Mithun, Abul Hasan and Sunzamul Islam. Soumya and Taskin have been dropped for the first time from an ODI series (due to performance) while Liton lost his place soon after regaining it in South Africa.Soumya made just two fifties in his last 15 ODIs since September 2016, and averaged 24.30 in 11 innings in 2017. Taskin, meanwhile, had started 2017 well but took just two wickets in 61 overs in South Africa.Anamul and Mithun have been preferred ahead of Liton and Soumya mainly due to their domestic runs in the last few seasons. Since his last international match in November 2015, Anamul has made the most runs in all domestic formats. His recent double-century in the National Cricket League first-class competition put him ahead of other heavy scorers.Mithun, since his last ODI in June 2014, has also been one of the top ten run-scorers across formats in domestic cricket. His role in Rangpur Riders winning the BPL worked in his favour. Anamul and Mithun are among the three wicketkeepers in the squad though Minhajul Abedin, the chief selector, said that Mushfiqur Rahim remains Bangladesh’s first-choice wicketkeeper.Hasan, meanwhile, was a surprise pick if one considers how some of the other fast bowlers like Abu Jayed and Abu Hider have done in the last few seasons. But like Mithun, Hasan’s BPL performance boosted his chances.Squad for first two ODIs: Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Imrul Kayes, Anamul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah, Nasir Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Mohammad Mithun, Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain, Abul Hasan, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Mohammad Saifuddin, Sunzamul Islam.

Luke Feldman nearly set a new record for the highest score by a Queensland No. 11 in Sheffield Shield cricket

Alex Malcolm08-Mar-2018An exceptional, unbeaten century from Charlie Hemphrey and a career-best half-century from No. 11 Luke Feldman has helped put Queensland in control of the rain-affected Sheffield Shield clash at the Gabba.Hemphrey and Feldman put on 87 for the last wicket in the Bulls first innings. Hemphrey reached his third first-class hundred while Feldman nearly set a new record for the highest score by a Queensland No. 11 in Shield cricket. He brought up his maiden first-class fifty up with his third six from just 37 balls before falling next delivery.Western Australia’s reply featured a lot of starts but no one could capitalise. D’Arcy Short made 38 at the top of the order before chipping one to mid-off. Josh Inglis finished 39 not out as WA declared nine down and 52 runs behind. All five Bulls bowlers picked up at least a wicket, with legspinner Mitchell Swepson bagging three.The Bulls openers added 58 without loss to give the home side a platform to try and set the Warriors a total that could force a result on the final day.

Luke Fletcher is ready to start taking wickets for Notts again and put memories of his horrific head injury behind him

Jon Culley26-Mar-2018It was a moment that left a permanent imprint in the minds of teammates and opponents, not to mention several thousand spectators in the stadium and many, many more watching on TV. It will be on playback in quite a few of those minds, too, when the man at the centre of one of county cricket’s most horrific incidents begins his run-in for the first time since in a competitive match.Luke Fletcher’s doctors told him that he had dodged a bullet when a ball smashed back down the pitch by the Birmingham Bears batsman Sam Hain struck him full on the skull in a T20 match at Edgbaston last July.So horrifying was the impact that had that blow merely ended his career he might have considered himself lucky. In the event, by some good fortune as freakish as the injury itself, all it cost him was a few stitches and the rest of the season off.Yet Fletcher insists that when he next comes to bowl in a competitive match for Nottinghamshire he will do so without even a hint of trepidation. It has never crossed his mind that perhaps, having been lucky once, he should walk away. He has already bowled in pre-season games and would be ready to face the raw aggression of T20 tomorrow.”I’m from a quite down-to-earth, grounded, hard-working background,” he said. “My dad worked down the pit for 30 years and he had some bad injuries but his attitude was dust yourself off, enjoy the break and then get back on to it. So not any stage did anyone say that I shouldn’t do that, nor did I think it.”I just see this as my job, to go out and play cricket, to run in and bowl. It’s either this or go back to frying chicken at Hooters.”It was a freak injury, he says, yet in the same breath he believes there is every chance it will happen again. He imagines a day when protection for bowlers and umpires will be commonplace. For the moment, though, like his colleagues, he will run in bare-headed.”Hopefully it will not be commonplace but to be honest I reckon it will,” he said. “Definitely in T20 and maybe in later overs in one-dayers, or even early on.”Batters come so hard throughout the whole innings now. They are just trying to hit every single ball out of the park. And, if you are in the way, you are copping it.Luke Fletcher is helped from the field after being struck by the ball•Getty Images

“Bowlers and umpires are in a very vulnerable position these days because the ball comes back so fast you don’t have time to react. I can see the day when bowlers and umpires are wearing protective headgear.”Fletcher was discharged from hospital the next day but that was only the start of a long road back to being declared medically safe to resume a normal life.”I could not do anything for two months,” he said. “I had a build-up of pressure in my head and any exercise would have added to the pressure so I pretty much did nothing until the end of the season. I didn’t get into training until I came back with the lads in November and not full training until this year.”I couldn’t drive for six months, which was the killer. It was classed as a traumatic brain injury and you have to report it to the DVLA. You can only drive again when you have a report from your surgeon to say everything is back to normal.”The club got me a bike and I was cycling in every day. It was more dangerous than driving – I came off it a few times on black ice. Seriously, though, they were worried I might have a fit at the wheel and you have to think about other people on the roads.”That inconvenience apart, Fletcher’s biggest concern was boredom. Much as he enjoys the company of his now two-year-old son Freddie, he was not used to being around him quite so much.”I had never had a six-month injury so I didn’t know how I would react to it. The strangest thing was not actually having to be anywhere, not having to see anyone, not having to turn up to anything. I found that quite weird really.”For the first couple of weeks it helped that people kept coming round. Nick Peirce [the ECB’s chief medical officer] came a few times. I got calls asking if I wanted to get involved with some commentary stuff.”It probably stopped me thinking about things too much, although I was never worried because I felt all right. It’s the people around me, my family, my partner Kirsty, who have been more worried.”Now his focus is on picking up where he left off. He had taken 36 Championship wickets at 22.4, reasserting that he was an important component of Nottinghamshire’s attack, when his misfortune struck.Happier times: Luke Fletcher celebrates Notts’ Royal London Cup triumph•Getty Images

“We had just won a Lord’s final the week before and things were going well for me and the team in the Championship,” he said “I had seen the opportunity to have a big season and suddenly it was all over.”I had got myself into pretty good shape before last season, so it was disappointing. But I’m only 29 and I think I’ve got a lot of overs left in me yet.”He is better acquainted with the gym, too, than once might have been the case.”When you are young, there are a lot of distractions,” he said. “You go out and enjoy yourself. But my life is different now and in the last couple of years I’ve worked out what I need to do to give myself the best chance to help the team.”I’ve struggled in the past with my weight and probably will all my life. I’m not the most natural athlete but I’ve got a good engine. I’ve done a lot to get back in shape, a lot of running and sessions on the bike.”There are exciting things happening in the game with the new T20 franchises and I hopefully I’ll be putting my hat in the ring for that. I’m just looking forward to getting started again.”