Franchise Cricket

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Birmingham Phoenix have signed England all-rounder Rehan Ahmed for the 2026 season of The Hundred.

Ahmed, 21, impressed in helping runners-up Trent Rockets reach last year's final, taking 12 wickets and scoring 189 runs across the competition.

This year, the leg-spinner and top-order batter also helped Leicestershire win the County Championship Division Two title, taking 23 wickets at 19 and averaging 50.66 with the bat, including five centuries.

Before joining Rockets, he represented Southern Brave in The Hundred.

Each of the eight Hundred franchises can sign four players in a window until the end of January, with one allowed to be a retention of any member of a side's 2025 squad.

The three remaining direct signings must be from overseas or England contracted players, and franchises will be able to offer multi-year contracts.

Ahmed - who has played five Tests, six one-day internationals and 12 T20s for England - is the first signing of the window.

The Hundred will then hold a player auction for the 2026 season, with salaries also significantly increased, following private investment into the competition.

Knighthead Capital Management, founded by Birmingham City co-owner and chairman Tom Wagner, paid £40m for a 49% share in Phoenix.

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England pair Jamie Overton and Luke Wood led Adelaide Strikers to a three-wicket victory against Sydney Sixers in the Big Bash League.

Chasing 160 to win, Strikers fell to 117-5 before Overton (30 off 20 balls) and Wood (18 not out off 14) held their nerve to consign the hosts to their second defeat of the tournament.

Overton and Wood also shone with the ball, taking 2-22 and 3-26 respectively.

Josh Philippe was Sixers' highest scorer with 46 off 28 but only one other batter passed 20.

Strikers' chase was given impetus by Liam Scott's half-century, before Overton and Wood took over.

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England all-rounder Liam Livingstone made 76 off 48 balls to help Abu Dhabi Knight Riders inflict a first defeat on Desert Vipers with a tense one-run win in the International League T20.

After being asked to bat first, Knight Riders slipped to 9-2 with England's Phil Salt out to the first ball of the game, before Michael Pepper fell in the next over.

Livingstone came to the crease and shared 34 with Alex Hales (25 off 18) and 68 off 59 with Alishan Sharafu.

He was happy to play second fiddle in both partnerships but Sharafu's dismissal off the penultimate ball of the 15th over was a signal for Livingstone to go through the gears.

He made 41 off 16 balls in a stand of 68 with Sherfane Rutherford before he was dismissed from the penultimate ball of the innings as Knight Riders posted 181-5.

Vipers, who had already confirmed their place in the knockouts with a six-game winning streak to start the group phase, made a positive start with Max Holden and Fakhar Zaman sharing 97 for the first wicket.

However, both fell in quick succession and Vipers still needed 68 from 36 balls.

Hasan Nawaz and Sam Curran hit three sixes to keep Vipers in touch but both were dismissed alongside Shimron Hetmyer to leave last year's beaten finalists 152-5 in the 18th over.

Khuzaima Bin Tanveer hit a six from the final ball of that over to leave 18 needed from 12 balls but West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell conceded just five from the 19th over.

Ajay Kumar started the final over with an above waist height no-ball that was also hit for four by Dan Lawrence, reducing the equation to nine needed off six.

However, he recovered brilliantly and conceded three from the next three balls.

He then had Tanveer caught at deep mid-wicket, before conceding two from the fifth ball to leave three needed from the last ball.

Tom Bruce missed a slower ball and Vipers could only scramble a bye to finish one run short and suffer their first defeat.

Despite the win, Knight Riders remain bottom of the table on net run-rate, but they are now one of four teams on four points.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

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Hobart Hurricanes made a winning start to their Big Bash title defence, beating Sydney Thunder by four wickets in a repeat of last season's final.

However, whereas in January's trophy match the Hurricanes chased 183 with 35 balls to spare, their tournament opener at Bellerive Oval went down to the penultimate delivery.

Chasing 181, Mitch Owen (32 off 14), who scored a century in the 2025 final, Nikhil Chaudhary (41 off 31), and Ben McDermott (38 off 24) had got the Hurricanes off to a flyer, but regular wickets disrupted the second half of their innings.

They headed into the final over with four runs required from six balls, which became one from two after three consecutive dot balls from Daniel Sams, before captain Nathan Ellis got his side over the line with a single.

England bowler Chris Jordan, who had earlier taken 2-36 as Sydney Thunder posted 180-6, finished unbeaten on 16 (13).

Sam Konstas, who lost his place in the Test side before the Ashes, made a scratchy 28 (25) at the top of the order for Thunder, with his wicket triggering a mini collapse from 69-1 to 79-4. Cameron Bancroft top-scored with 61 (44).

Hobart Hurricanes are bidding to become the third team after Perth Scorchers (twice) and Sydney Sixers to retain the title.

• Big Bash fixtures and table

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Sharjah Warriorz picked up their second consecutive International League T20 win with an 11-run victory over second-placed Gulf Giants.

Warriorz recorded their first win on Sunday after three straight defeats and backed it up with another impressive batting performance by posting 174-6.

Tom Abell top scored with 68 off 41 balls, while fellow English batter James Rew added 39 off 33 at the Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium.

Chasing 175 to win, the Giants slipped to 38-4 before a stand of 79 between former England international Moeen Ali and Afghanistan all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai gave them hope.

However, Azmatullah fell for 41 off 26 to United Arab Emirates left-armer Wasim Akram, who took 3-34 overall, and the Giants' chase stalled.

Moeen holed out for a 41-ball 45 off Matheesha Pathirana, who took 3-19, and the Giants closed on 163-9.

Despite victory, the Warriorz remain fifth in the six-team table, with the top four sides advancing to the play-offs. The Giants have now won three and lost three of their six matches so far.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

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Melbourne Renegades opener Tim Seifert hit the first century of the 2025-26 Big Bash League to help his side beat Brisbane Heat by 14 runs.

New Zealand international Seifert clattered nine fours and six sixes in making 102 off 56 balls after the Renegades were put into bat at GMHBA Stadium in Geelong.

The Renegades were 82-3 in the 10th over before Seifert put on a stand of 121 with 19-year-old Australian Ollie Peake - who made 57 off 29 - leading their side to post 212-5.

Pakistan left-arm fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi was removed from the attack by the umpires shortly after Seifert reached his hundred for bowling two balls above waist height in the same over.

Chasing 213 to win, Heat opener Colin Munro smacked 55 off 32, but wickets fell around him, with Brisbane slipping to 108-6 off 13 overs shortly after Munro was dismissed.

An onslaught by Jimmy Peirson, who hit 50 off 22, and Hugh Weibgen (38 not out off 20) helped Heat threaten an unlikely win, but Peirson's dismissal by Renegades captain Will Sutherland in the 19th over ensured they fell short on 198-8.

• Big Bash fixtures & table

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England's Sam Curran made an unbeaten 52 off 33 balls to extend Desert Vipers winning start to six matches with a five-wicket victory over Dubai Capitals in the International League T20.

Chasing 167, Vipers were 53-2 when Curran came to the crease and he shared partnerships of 32 with Hasan Nawaz (31 off 17) and Dan Lawrence (20 off 15) and 47 with Shimron Hetmyer (18 off 17).

Vipers needed three from the final over but lost Hetmyer on the first ball but Curran won the game with a six off the fourth ball.

It secured history for Vipers as the first team to win their opening six games.

Capitals, who sit third with two wins in five games, had posted 166-4 with Leus du Plooy making 54 off 44 balls and England's Jordan Cox an unbeaten 49 off 30.

Sunday's other game saw Sharjah Warriorz beat MI Emirates by six runs to record their first win.

MI needed 175 to win and made a positive start with Muhammad Waseem (44 off 29) and Jonny Bairstow (31 off 23) sharing 68 for the opening wicket.

However, they suffered a middle-over collapse and slipped to 101-5 with Sikandar Raza and Junaid Siddique both claiming two wickets.

Nicholas Pooran settled the ship but they needed 25 from the last over and, despite three sixes, fell short.

Warriorz earlier posted 174-3 with Johnson Charles making 77 off 53 balls.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

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Cooper Connolly fired 59 in 31 balls to help Perth Scorchers to a five-wicket victory over Sydney Sixers in the opening match of the Big Bash League in Australia.

Rain delayed the start and the match at Perth's Optus Stadium was reduced to 11 overs.

Pakistan's Babar Azam made his BBL debut for the Sixers, but the opener struggled on a bouncy surface and only managed two before being caught by Laurie Evans off Brody Couch.

Fast bowler Couch, who took 2-12 from his two overs, also removed Sixers wicketkeeper Josh Philippe for 28 to help reduce the visitors to 41-4.

Jack Edwards hit an unbeaten 46 from 21 deliveries - firing two sixes in his eight boundaries - to help Sixers post 113-5.

Connolly came to the crease with the Scorchers 0-1 after Mitch Marsh's third-ball duck, but while wickets fell at the opposite end at regular intervals, he took the game away from the Sixers with some heavy hitting, firing five sixes and three fours.

The 22-year-old, who helped the Scorchers to the 2023 BBL title in his first season, finally fell to Ben Dwarshuis with his side needing nine runs to win from nine balls.

But the hosts eventually clinched victory with five balls to spare, finishing on 117-5.

• Big Bash fixtures & table

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Shayan Jahangir's 99 off 54 balls helped Dubai Capitals to a nervy nine-run win over the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in the International League T20.

Capitals wicketkeeper Jahangir struck 10 fours and five sixes but the USA international agonisingly fell one run short of a maiden T20 century when he was bowled by Andre Russell in the final over.

England batter Jordan Cox made 29 and West Indies international Rovman Powell hit four sixes in his unbeaten 38 off 24 to help the Capitals post 196-5 off their 20 overs at Abu Dhabi's Sheikh Zayed Stadium.

The Knight Riders were miles behind in the chase until former West Indies all-rounder Russell started an onslaught. Keeping hold of the strike, he needed 26 off the final over and got the equation down to 11 required off the last three balls.

But Capitals left-arm fast bowler Muhammad Jawadullah just about held his nerve as Russell, who finished unbeaten on 53 off 33, could not find the fence again, with the Knight Riders closing on 187-8.

England opener Phil Salt was the next highest scorer for Abu Dhabi, with 33 off 29, while Afghanistan left-arm wrist-spinner Waqar Salamkheil took 3-34.

The Capitals move up to third in the six-team league after their second victory, while the Knight riders remain fifth, having now lost four matches in a row.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

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Sam Curran cracked an unbeaten 67 off 43 balls as Desert Vipers claimed an eight-wicket victory over Gulf Giants in the International League T20.

The Giants had batted first but were soon in trouble at 67-5 with skipper James Vince among those to fall cheaply.

Liam Dawson added some respectability to their total after he top scored with an unbeaten 38 from 14 balls, including three sixes.

Khuzaima Tanveer finished the pick of the Vipers bowling with 4-10 ably supported by Curran (1-27) and Noor Ahmad (2-22) but a total of 157-7 did not look particularly daunting.

Chris Wood removed Vipers opener Fakhar Zaman for 14 while Hasan Nawaz made just seven but at 35-2 Curran and Max Holden took the game to the Giants' attack.

Curran clubbed five fours and three sixes in an aggressive knock as he top scored for the Vipers, while Holden finished on 64 not out off 41 balls as they cruised home with 19 balls to spare.

The Vipers have now won five consecutive matches on the bounce and are top of the standings with 10 points while the Giants stay second on six points.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

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The 15th edition of Australia's men's Big Bash League starts on Sunday, immediately after the women's competition ends on Saturday.

The T20 franchise tournament clashes with Australia's home Test summer as usual and will run until 25 January.

There are 44 matches in total - 40 in the group stage and four in the knockouts.

Eight teams are taking part: Adelaide Strikers, Brisbane Heat, Hobart Hurricanes, Melbourne Renegades, Melbourne Stars, Perth Scorchers, Sydney Sixers and Sydney Thunder.

Hobart Hurricanes are the defending champions after beating Sydney Thunder by seven wickets in last year's final.

The eight sides play each other twice in the group stage, with the top four progressing to the knockouts, which work as follows:

20 January - Qualifier: First v second (08:15 GMT)

21 January - Knockout: Third v fourth (08:15 GMT)

23 January - Challenger: Loser of Qualifier v winner of Knockout (08:15 GMT)

25 January - Final: Winner of Qualifier v winner of Challenger (08:15 GMT)

• Full Big Bash League 2025-26 fixtures and schedule

Listen to commentary on selected Big Bash matches on BBC Sounds.

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Fast bowler Luke Wood and all-rounders Jamie Overton and Rehan Ahmed are among 13 English players set to feature in the Big Bash League.

All three were in England's squad for their last T20 series against New Zealand and will look to use the tournament to boost their chances of being included for February's T20 World Cup.

Overton returns to Adelaide Strikers and is joined by Wood, who previously played for Melbourne Stars in the 2022-23 season.

Ahmed will make his Big Bash debut with defending champions Hobart Hurricanes, who have also signed Chris Jordan.

All-rounder Sam Curran will also look to boost his World Cup hopes when he joins Sydney Sixers once the International League T20 finishes. He should be available for four to six group matches and the knockout stages.

Left-arm seamer Reece Topley has signed as a temporary replacement for New Zealand's Lockie Ferguson at Sydney Thunder and will represent them before going to play in the SA20.

English players involved in Big Bash 2025-26

Adelaide Strikers: Jamie Overton and Luke Wood

Brisbane Heat: Tom Alsop

Hobart Hurricanes: Rehan Ahmed and Chris Jordan

Melbourne Stars: Joe Clarke and Tom Curran

Perth Scorchers: Laurie Evans and David Payne

Sydney Sixers: Sam Curran and Jafer Chohan

Sydney Thunder: Sam Billings and Reece Topley

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Pakistan duo Babar Azam and Shaheen Afridi are set to make their debuts in the Big Bash League, alongside a host of Australia and overseas stars.

Batter Babar will play for Sydney Sixers, while left-arm quick Shaheen has been signed by Brisbane Heat.

Compatriots Shadab Khan (Sydney Thunder), Haris Rauf (Melbourne Stars) and Hasan Ali (Adelaide Strikers) are also among the standout overseas names.

Australia white-ball stars Tim David and Nathan Ellis (both Hobart Hurricanes), Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis (both Stars), plus David Warner and Sam Konstas (both Sydney Thunder) are set to feature in the whole tournament.

The availability of Steve Smith (Sixers), Travis Head (Strikers) and Mitchell Starc (Sixers) and the rest of Australia's Ashes players is set to be decided once the series against England ends in early January.

Seamer Josh Hazlewood will likely miss the tournament as he recovers from injury, while Pat Cummins is not registered with a side.

India's Ravichandran Ashwin was also set to make his tournament debut but had to withdrawn due to a knee injury.

Selected non-England players involved in Big Bash 2025-26

Adelaide Strikers: Hasan Ali, Alex Carey, Travis Head, Matt Short, Chris Lynn

Brisbane Heat: Shaheen Afridi, Colin Munro, Xavier Bartlett, Spencer Johnson, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Michael Neser, Matthew Renshaw

Hobart Hurricanes: Rishad Hossain, Nathan Ellis, Tim David, Riley Meredith, Mitch Owen, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster, Matthew Wade

Melbourne Renegades: Hassan Khan, Muhammad Rizwan, Tim Seifert, Jason Behrendorff, Brendan Dogged, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Nathan Lyon, Adam Zampa

Melbourne Stars: Haris Rauf, Scott Boland, Hilton Cartwright, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stones, Mitch Swepson

Perth Scorchers: Finn Allen, Ashton Agar, Cooper Connolly, Josh Inglis, Mitch Marsh, Jhye Richardson, Ashton Turner

Sydney Sixers: Babar Azam, Sean Abbott, Ben Dwarshuis, Josh Philippe, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc

Sydney Thunder: Shadab Khan, Lockie Ferguson, David Warner, Sam Konstas, Tanveer Sangha, Cameron Bancroft

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Jonny Bairstow struck an unbeaten 49 as MI Emirates raced to a seven-wicket victory against Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in International League T20.

Bairstow's side reached their target of 123 inside 14 overs, with the England international hitting seven fours in his 38-ball innings.

The Emirates opener added 64 with Tom Banton (29), while Kamindu Mendis (10) ended the encounter with a match-winning six.

The Knight Riders opening partnership of Phil Salt (17) and Alex Hales (6) failed to fire after being put into bat, while United Arab Emirates batter Alishan Sharafu top-scored with 38.

Liam Livingstone was caught by Banton off the bowling of Mendis (3-21) for just two, while Emirates lost their last five wickets for 12 runs.

Three of the tail fell to Afghanistan seamer Fazalhaq Farooqi, who finished with figures of 4-14 and whose dismissal of Ajay Kumar saw the Knight Riders bowled out for 122 with three balls to spare.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

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Beth Mooney's 72 led Perth Scorchers to an 11-run victory in the eliminator match against Sydney Sixers, securing them a place in the Women's Big Bash League final.

Scorchers will face Hobart Hurricanes on Saturday after Mooney's 66-run opening partnership with Katie Mack (40) set-up a first innings score of 183-8, having been put into bat at the North Sydney Oval.

Mack was caught by Lauren Cheatle in the eighth over off the bowling of Ash Gardner and after that Mooney anchored the Scorchers effort.

The Australia international hit 11 fours and one six in a 44-ball innings while wickets fell around her, with Paige Scholfield (14) the third-highest scorer for the Perth side.

Mooney was finally dismissed in the 19th over, the sixth batter to fall when she was trapped lbw by Darcie Brown, before Gardner returned to remove Alana King and Lilly Mills in the final over and secure figures of 3-25.

King starred for the Scorchers in the second innings, first breaking an opening stand of 58 between England's Sophia Dunkley and Ellyse Perry by having the latter caught by Ruby Strange for 29.

Chloe Ainsworth bowled Australia captain Alyssa Healy for just one before Strange removed Dunkley for 40, as Sixers lost two wickets in the space of five balls to find themselves 74-3 in the 10th over.

Australia leg-spinner King, on the way to figures of 3-17, then had the dangerous Gardner caught by Sophie Devine for 26 and Darcie Brown stumped by Mooney for 14.

Melie Kerr made 42 from 29 to offer Sixers some hope, but the New Zealand all-rounder was caught by Maddy Darke off the second ball of Mills' final over as Sixers closed on 172-6 to miss out on a place in the final.

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Sharjah Warriorz remain winless in the International League T20 after they lost by six wickets to Gulf Giants.

The tournament's bottom side have now lost their opening three fixtures, with Giants chasing down a target of 159 with two balls to spare.

Opener Johnson Charles and Dwaine Pretorius were joint top-scorers for the defeated side, each making 36, and the latter put on an unbroken stand of 38 with Adil Rashid as Warriorz closed on 157-6 having been put into bat.

United Arab Emirates spinner Aayan Afzal Khan took 3-17 for Giants, picking up the wickets of Charles, Kusal Mendis (23) and the big-hitting Tim David (19).

In reply, the second-placed side looked to be cruising to victory, with James Vince (35) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz putting on 78 for the first wicket.

By the time Vince was caught by Wasim Akram off Sikandar Raza, Giants were almost half-way to their target in the eighth over, but from that point their scoring slowed.

Rashid bowled his podcast co-host and former international team-mate Moeen Ali for 14, while Gurbaz's input ended on a 36-ball 50 when he was removed by Raza.

Azmatullah Omarzai (28) and Gerhard Erasmus (15 not out) then worked steadily towards their target, and while the former was caught in Tim Southee's final over, Sean Dickson hit the winning run two balls later.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

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Ben Duckett, Jamie Smith and Gus Atkinson are among 18 England internationals on the longlist for this year's Indian Premier League auction, but Ben Stokes and Harry Brook will not be involved.

Stokes and Brook were unable to enter for the 2026 season having skipped last year's mega auction.

Batter Duckett and wicketkeeper Smith, regulars in England's white-ball sides but currently part of the struggling Ashes campaign, have not previously played in the IPL.

Bowler Atkinson was signed by Kolkata Knight Riders in 2024 but withdrew prior to the tournament to manage his workload.

All three are registered at the highest base price of 200 lakh rupees (£167,000).

All-rounder Liam Livingstone, who won the title with Royal Challengers Bengaluru last year but was released, is also in the most expensive bracket.

Jordan Cox and fellow wicketkeeper Tom Banton, pace bowler Josh Tongue and veteran Jonny Bairstow are among the other England players registered.

Australia all-rounder Cameron Green, South Africans David Miller and Quinton de Kock, India batter Venkatesh Iyer and New Zealand all-rounder Rachin Ravindra are some of the other leading players involved.

The auction takes place on Tuesday, 16 December with 77 slots available across the 10 squads, including 31 for overseas players.

The participation of eight England players, including Jofra Archer and Jos Buttler, has already been confirmed following the retention and trade window.

• View full IPL shortlist, external

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Desert Vipers continued their unbeaten start to the International League T20, beating MI Emirates by just one run in a dramatic finish.

Chasing 160, Muhammad Waseem (24), Tom Banton (34) and Nicholas Pooran (31) set a solid platform for Emirates before Kieron Pollard (23) and Tajinder Singh (17 from seven deliveries) upped the pace to leave their side needing 18 runs from the last 15 balls of the innings.

However, fortune turned dramatically in Vipers' favour as they took four wickets for two runs in the space of nine deliveries, with David Payne finishing on 4-29 after three batters fell in his 19th over.

Needing 12 from the last three balls, Rashid Khan hit a six and saw a four go through the wicketkeeper's legs to bring Emirates back into contention.

But he failed to find a winning two off Khuzaima Bin Tanveer's last delivery of the innings and was run out by wicketkeeper Vriitya Aravind.

The result means Vipers' unbeaten streak extends to four matches, while Emirates have won one and lost two of their first three fixtures.

Having put Vipers into bat, Emirates didn't take a wicket until the 11th over, when Fakhar Zaman was caught by Banton off Allah Ghazanfar for 35.

The opener departed with his side on 90-1, having put on 51 with Max Holden after Andries Gous retired hurt on 21.

Holden top-scored for Vipers with a steady 42 from 37 deliveries, but was retired out with four overs to go, one ball after Pooran had decided not to complete an easy stumping to dismiss the English batter.

Compatriots Sam Curran and Dan Lawrence made 19 and 15 not out respectively as Vipers closed on 159-4.

• ILT20 fixtures & table