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Breakthroughs at a premium in follow-on as batter’s fourth century of season thwarts hosts

ECB Reporters Network03-Jul-2024

Joe Clarke made his fourth century of the season and blunted the threat posed by Lancashire’s James Anderson to ensure that Nottinghamshire drew their Vitality County Championship match with Lancashire at Southport.Clarke passed fifty for the seventh time in 14 first-class innings this season and had put on an unbroken 136 for the fifth wicket with Lyndon James to steer the visitors to 270 for four when the players shook hands at 4.50 with James unbeaten on 43 and Clarke on 115 not out, bringing his first-class aggregate for the season to 795By contrast to his astonishing spell on Tuesday morning, Anderson had figures of 1 for 25 from eleven overs in two spells on the final day at Southport but the eight points the sides collect for the draw enable both of them to pull a little further away from Division One’s relegation zone.Anderson took his only wicket of the second innings with his 17th ball of the day when Will Young pushed a trifle tentatively forward and edged a catch to Matthew Hurst. The same combination had dismissed Young nearly 24 hours previously but Clarke and Jack Haynes then steadied the ship and Haynes hooked Tom Bailey for a six onto the Southport to Liverpool railway line narrowly missing a fast-moving train by seconds.In the next over, though, Haynes was caught behind off Chris Green, thus giving the Australian offspinner his maiden first-class wicket for Lancashire on his Championship debut.James Anderson only managed one wicket in the second innings•Getty Images

No more wickets fell until lunch by which time home spectators could reflect on a session in which they had been treated to the sight of Nathan Lyon bowling in tandem with Anderson, a combination that has taken 1230 Test wickets. The statisticians believe it is the most ever taken by one first-class team. (The nearest challenger discovered so far is another Lancashire side, one that contained Muthiah Muralidaran, Andrew Flintoff and Dominic Cork.)Regardless of who he was facing though, Clarke continued to bat with careful fluency, lapping Lyon for four to fine leg, pulling him onto the railway line and reaching his fifty in 107 balls. Nottinghamshire lunched on 164 for four and were therefore only 63 runs in arrears. But the prospect of Anderson with the new ball in his hand was enough to have those supporters looking anxiously at the sky and wondering when the forecast rain might arrive.Anderson duly took the new ball two overs into the afternoon session and Clarke prepared to receive it as though he was starting his innings afresh. However, the Lancashire bowler had delivered five wicketless overs for 16 runs when rain swept in from the west at 2.20.Contrary to some expectations, play resumed at 4.00 with a minimum of 33 overs to be bowled. Rather than be unsettled by the resumption of play, though, Clarke and James played with increasing freedom and had taken their side into the lead when Clarke reached his century off 185 balls with a square cut off Luke Wells.

Charlotte Edwards Cup, Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy replaced as competitions align more closely with men’s county set-up

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Sep-2024

England’s top women’s teams will play in their own version of the Vitality Blast and Metro Bank One-Day Cup from next season, aligning the new domestic competitions more closely with those of their male counterparts.The competitions will replace the Charlotte Edwards Cup and Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, which had been the women’s T20 and 50-over contests since 2020. Teams in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup women’s competition will still compete to lift the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy.The possibility of matching competitions with the potential to play some fixtures as double-headers featuring men’s and women’s teams from the same clubs has been mooted since the ECB announced an overhaul of the domestic women’s structure in February. That was confirmed on Thursday with the announcement that T20 sponsor Vitality and Metro Bank, which currently sponsors the men’s 50-over competition, would further their investment in the women’s game.As with the Men’s Blast, the women’s competition will culminate in a Vitality Blast Women’s Finals Day, while the men’s and women’s Metro Bank One-Day Cup competitions will each have two semi-finals and a final.Related

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In the Metro Bank One-Day Cup, the eight women’s teams will compete as Durham, Essex, Hampshire, Lancashire, Somerset, Surrey, Warwickshire and The Blaze, representing Nottinghamshire – who along with the other seven teams were awarded Tier 1 status under the new structure – and surrounds.The eight women’s Blast teams will be Birmingham Bears (representing Warwickshire), Durham, Essex, Hampshire, Lancashire Thunder, Somerset, Surrey and The Blaze.The top-flight women’s competitions are set to expand to include Yorkshire from 2026 and Welsh county Glamorgan from 2027.A knockout cup competition consisting of teams from all three tiers of the expanded women’s domestic structure will also form part of the 2025 schedule with the aim of giving all counties a chance to compete against each other and players across the pyramid the opportunity to test their skills against higher-ranked teams.In 2025, Tier 2 will comprise Derbyshire, Glamorgan, Gloucestershire, Kent, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Middlesex, Sussex, Worcestershire and Yorkshire.Beth Barrett-Wild, ECB director of the women’s professional game, said: “A big driver for the reorganisation of women’s professional cricket has been to enable us to better use the leverage and existing scale of men’s county cricket to accelerate fan base growth for our women’s teams and players. Looking ahead to the 2025 season, we’re therefore really excited to fully align our men’s and women’s domestic white-ball competitions for the first time.”As we have seen through the Hundred and alignment of our England Men’s and England Women’s teams, we believe that by putting our men’s and women’s competitions and players on the same platform we can exponentially increase the reach of the women’s domestic game and intensify the depth of feeling fans have for our women’s teams moving forwards.”Under the new professional structure, £8m in new funding will be invested per year into women’s domestic cricket by 2027, taking annual investment in this area to about £19m, an injection of funds the ECB believes could produce an 80% increase in the number of professional female players in England and Wales by 2029. Counties will be responsible for deciding player salaries.

تحدث عماد النحاس المدير الفني للفريق الأول لكرة القدم بالنادي الأهلي، عن تعادل الفريق أمام إنبي بهدف لمثله، في المباراة التي جمعت بينهما اليوم ببطولة الدوري المصري الممتاز.

والتقى الأهلي مع إنبي على استاد المقاولون العرب، ضمن لقاءات الجولة السادسة من عمر بطولة الدوري المصري.

وقال عماد النحاس في تصريحات خلال المؤتمر الصحفي: “في مثل هذه المواقف الإنسان لا يعرف ماذا يقول، كنا نلعب على الفوز منذ بداية اللقاء، ركلة الجزاء التي تم احتسابها ضدنا كان يوجد كرة لتريزيجيه كان ممكن أن تُحتسب مثلما تم احتساب الأولى”.

طالع أيضاً.. فيديو | الأهلي يواصل المعاناة ويكتفي بتعادل مخيب مع إنبي في الدوري

وتابع: “حدث توتر كبير في آخر المباراة ولم نستفد من التغييرات، لم يكن هناك تركيز، وأنا لم أخاطر بمشاركة زيزو، اللاعب أبلغنا أنه جاهز وسليم وهو ما أكد عليه اللاعب لذلك شارك”.

وأتم: “زيزو أبلغنا أنه يتحمل مسؤولية المشاركة وهذا متاح في الكرة”.

Manchester United have now opened talks with the agent of a “real leader”, who would be keen on a move to Old Trafford this summer, according to a report.

Amorim needs to hit the ground running next season

Despite admitting it was always going to be “tough” to join Man United mid-way through the 2024-25 campaign, former Man United man Ashley Young believes Ruben Amorim needs to make a fast start to the 2024-25 campaign.

However, Amorim has a very particular style, meaning new personnel will be needed if his side are to kick on next season, and there has been a strong desire to bring in a new forward, with Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo emerging as a major target.

The Red Devils are hoping to get a deal for Mbeumo over the line as soon as possible, and having reportedly now struck an agreement, they can perhaps afford to turn their attentions towards strengthening other areas of the squad.

With Casemiro now 33-years-old, Amorim is looking to bring in a long-term replacement for the Brazilian, and an approach has been made for Richard Rios, while another midfielder has also emerged as a potential target.

According to a report from L’Equipe (via Sport Witness), Man United have now opened talks with the agent of Lyon midfielder Corentin Tolisso, in order to assess whether he would be willing to make a move to Old Trafford this summer.

Tolisso is said to be keen on the move, which could make it easier for United to orchestrate a deal, although he is unwilling to force an exit.

"Real leader" Tolisso could be exactly what United need

Roy Keane has been critical of the lack of leaders at Man United for quite some time, with the former midfielder saying: “You need characters, you need leaders, I keep repeating myself every week on here. That’s what you need from a group of players.”

As a result, it would make sense to bring in players with more of a presence in the dressing room this summer, and the Lyon star could fit the bill in that regard, having been described as a “real leader” by Lyon manager Paulo Fonseca.

Not only that, but the £90k-a-week maestro is clearly a very well-rounded midfielder, having performed very well across some key attacking and defensive statistics over the past year.

Statistic

Average per 90

Non-penalty goals

0.28 (96th percentile)

Assists

0.17 (84th percentile)

Blocks

1.98 (97th percentile)

Aerials won

2.10 (93rd percentile)

Tolisso could be a solid signing for Man United this summer, but there may be some slight concerns about his age, with the central midfielder set to turn 31 before the new Premier League season gets underway.

Stand-in manages just 30 runs in four innings, but looks to bounce back at The Oval

Matt Roller01-Sep-2024

Ollie Pope has pledged to “block out” criticism of his batting, as the scrutiny on him mounts following 30 runs in four innings against Sri Lanka. England may have a perfect record under his captaincy, but Pope has come under fire after failing to reach 20 across two Tests standing in for the injured Ben Stokes.Pope managed scores of 1 and 17 during England’s 190-run win at Lord’s, and the manner of his dismissals suggested that his bid to “compartmentalise” the captaincy had failed. In the first innings, he top-edged a wild pull to square leg; in the second, with England setting up a declaration, he was caught at deep point (the only man back on the off-side) when top-edging an uppercut.”I’m not going to put down my average shot to the fact that I was captain,” Pope said. “I’ll learn from it and move on, but I think I’ve managed my own game better throughout this match… The second innings was slightly different, because we were really trying to push the game forward, but I was very disappointed with the shot I played in the first innings so early on.”I’m not going to hide behind the fact that I’ve had two poor games with the bat. That’s the way cricket is sometimes and form comes and goes. But I think the best players are the ones who can draw a line under it and have a fresh start next week. Hopefully, I can put a score together.”Pope has long had a reputation as being frenetic early in his innings. Steve James of has labelled him “the worst starter since prawn cocktail”, and Pope has now been dismissed within his first 20 balls 32 times in 85 Test innings. Despite coming into the series in a decent vein of form, following a century and two fifties against West Indies, he conceded that his nervous starts are an issue that he is trying to address.Related

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Brook wears deputy tag lightly but greater responsibility beckons

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Ollie Pope passes first captaincy test, though his own returns beg to differ

“The last two games I’ve had, they’re learning games for me,” he said. “It definitely is something that I’m still trying to improve in my game, and obviously the way that I start my innings especially is something that I want to keep on improving – and then when I do get in, it’s trying to cash in as well.”Michael Vaughan has been particularly critical, labelling Pope “an insecure human being” and “not the kind of personality” that should be England captain. Pope said that had expected to find himself under more scrutiny while in temporary charge, and that his primary aim was to avoid “overthinking” ahead of Friday’s third Test at The Oval.”I’m not surprised,” he said. “Chatting to Stokesy before this series, when you’re captain as well, you’re going to attract a lot more [criticism]. To be honest, it is just important to block it out and keep staying close with the people around you. There’s a lot of voices, a lot of guys who want to have their say – some past cricketers as well – and that’s completely fine.”Everyone’s entitled to their opinion, but it’s important for us as a team and me to stay and keep trusting the people in the four walls, because that’s not going to help me get back into my best form. Sometimes, when you have two bad games, it can feel a lot worse than it is because of the noise that’s surrounding it.””For me, it’s just trying to stay as level as I can and keep on trusting the people around me, putting my work in, and not really overthinking it, to be honest. When I went and made good runs in that West Indies series, that’s exactly what I was playing like, so there’s no real need for me to get too involved in what people are saying.”Pope has sought advice from Joe Root, whose twin hundreds set up England’s series-clinching win at Lord’s, since taking on the captaincy. “Any batter in England can learn a fair bit off him,” he said. “Form is something that comes and goes… for me, it’s not overthinking it, keep training hard, and going into the next game, it’s a completely fresh week, a fresh start.”It will be Pope’s first Test at his home ground – where he has scored 11 first-class hundreds for Surrey – since 2022. “Obviously it’s a great place to bat,” he said. “It’s always special getting back to The Oval, where I’ve played all my county cricket, so hopefully there will be a great crowd in. Everyone will be excited to get to The Oval.”England have not won every Test in a home season since 2004, and will be pushing for a summer sweep. “It would be a pretty cool thing to look back on,” Pope said. “We’ve played some really good cricket throughout this summer, and obviously had a tough winter away in India where the results weren’t what we wanted on the return trip. So to get used to winning games back-to-back is really pleasing for us.”

Chelsea are on the verge of finalising an “excellent” player’s exit from Stamford Bridge, according to one media source, and it could be a move which seriously suits all parties.

Enzo Maresca has a seriously bloated squad that needs trimming, especially factoring in their recent fine from UEFA for breaking FFP rules.

Related £52m Chelsea star could now join Barcelona, he's "no longer" unsellable

The La Liga champions have cast their eyes towards Stamford Bridge.

Posts ByEmilio Galantini Jul 10, 2025

The likes of Raheem Sterling, Ben Chilwell and Carney Chukwuemeka are taking home six-figure pay packets each week but are currently nowhere near the first team, with Borussia Dortmund director Sebastian Kehl recently confirming the club’s intention to re-sign the latter.

“We will definitely have some more discussions in the next few days about his situation,” said Kehl.

“We will try to keep him because he’s a very good player.

“It’s always easier to loan a player than to buy one, especially within Carney’s [price] range, but let’s see. We are not that far advanced [in talks] at the moment, but I can tell you that we are pretty close to the player, and he loves Dortmund.

“Everything else will be decided between Chelsea and us. That won’t be tomorrow. That won’t be on Tuesday. I think it will take some more days.”

Sterling’s £325,000-per-week wages are proving a serious drain on Chelsea in particular, with Fulham reportedly considering a move for the 30-year-old if they can navigate the finances involved.

Chelsea’s best performers in the Premier League last season

Average match rating

Cole Palmer

7.33

Moises Caicedo

7.02

Enzo Fernández

6.95

Nicolas Jackson

6.88

Noni Madueke

6.82

via WhoScored

However, journalist Simon Phillips reports that Sterling’s desire to remain in London is making it difficult for BlueCo to sell him.

Alongside the aforementioned names, Lesley Ugochukwu, João Félix, Renato Veiga, Christopher Nkunku, David Datro Fofana, Armando Broja, Axel Disasi, Noni Madueke, Nicolas Jackson and Djordje Petrovic are other players who could leave Chelsea this summer.

Of course, there are those promising young players who simply need to leave the club on a temporary deal to acquire more game time, with a view to a potential first-team slot in future seasons.

One of them, according to Sky Sports Switzerland reporter Sacha Tavolieri, is goalkeeper Mike Penders.

Chelsea "close" to agreeing Mike Penders loan deal to Strasbourg

Taking to X this lunchtime, Tavolieri reports that Penders’ loan to sister club Strasbourg from Chelsea is now “close” to being finalised.

The 19-year-old, who Chelsea signed from KRC Genk last summer, remained in the Jupiler Pro League for another season before officially linking up with Maresca this summer.

Penders was also named in Maresca’s Club World Cup squad, securing a spot on the bench for Chelsea’s games against Esperance, Benfica, Palmeiras and Fluminense, but the towering 6 foot 7 shot-stopper now appears close to sealing a temporary exit to further his development.

Some reports have previously claimed that BlueCo hold high hopes for Penders, who they privately liken to ex-Chelsea star Thibaut Courtois, with Malmo’s head academy goalkeeping coach, Matt Pyzdrowski, sharing his main strengths.

“Commanding his area is what he’s best at,” Pyzdrowski said to The Athletic.

“He’s really, really excellent at taking an aggressive position and very comfortable coming and taking high balls into his penalty area, even right up to the edge of the box. His timing is very good, and he loves to catch the ball rather than punch.

“That’s why I call him a mix between Ederson and Courtois, because Ederson has that aggressiveness commanding his box but Courtois has the hands to catch and hold the ball.”

ظفر فريق يوفنتوس بديربي إيطاليا أمام خصمه إنتر ميلان، خلال المباراة التي جمعت الفريقين مساء اليوم السبت بمنافسات بطولة الدوري الإيطالي، وحقق فوزًا قاتلاً بأربعة أهداف مقابل ثلاثة.

والتقى يوفنتوس وإنتر ميلان في مباراة بالجولة الثالثة لبطولة الدوري الإيطالي، على ملعب “آليانز ستاديوم” معقل البيانكونيري.

وتقدم يوفنتوس في الدقيقة 14 عن طريق لويد كيلي، والهدف جاء بعد كرة عرضية إلى داخل منطقة الجزاء لصالح يوفنتوس وصلت إلى بريمر الذي مررها لتصل إلى لويد كيلي ويسدد داخل شباك إنتر ميلان.

ثم تعادل إنتر ميلان عن طريق هاكان تشالهان أوغلو في الدقيقة 30، بعد تمريرة من كارلوس أجوستو إلى تشالهان أوغلو الذي سدد كرة رائعة من خارج منطقة الجزاء لتسكن شباك يوفنتوس.

وعاد يوفنتوس وتقدم مجددًا بهدف كينان يلدز في الدقيقة 38، بعد تصويبة رائعة من خارج منطقة الجزاء.

في الشوط الثاني، تمكن إنتر ميلان من إدراك التعادل بهدف ثانٍ لهاكان تشالهان أوغلو في الدقيقة 65 بتسديدة على الطائر.

اقرأ أيضًا | لاوتارو مارتينيز: لم أكن يومًا ضمن المرشحين للكرة الذهبية.. وتشاجرت مع كونتي

وأحرز ماركوس تورام الهدف الثالث لصالح إنتر ميلان في الدقيقة 76 بعد تمريرة عرضية من ديماركو وصلت إلى تورام ليسدد برأسية في الشباك.

ورد خيفرين تورام على شقيقه ماركوس بتسجيل هدف يوفنتوس الثالث في الدقيقة 82 وأيضًا برأسية بعد عرضية وصلت له من كينان يلدز.

واقتنص فاسيلي أدزيتش هدف يوفنتوس الرابع في الدقيقة الأولى من الوقت المحتسب بدلاً من الضائع بتصويبة صاروخية من خارج منطقة الجزاء.

حسمت المباراة بفوز يوفنتوس بنتيجة 4-3، ليرفع رصيده للنقطة 9 في صدارة ترتيب الدوري الإيطالي، ويتوقف رصيد إنتر عند 3 نقاط في المركز 11.

Tottenham still have a few key items on their transfer agenda, and luckily for chairman Daniel Levy, weeks remain before the deadline day timer runs out on September 1.

Related Harry Kane has already endorsed £167k-a-week star who Tottenham want to sign

Spurs have reportedly contacted his agents.

Posts 1 ByEmilio Galantini Jul 23, 2025

Spurs have already spent around £112 million on the signings of Kevin Danso, Mathys Tel, Kota Takai and Mohammed Kudus this summer, and that number really should be closer to £172 million, if not for Nottingham Forest blocking Morgan Gibbs-White’s £60m switch to Spurs two weeks ago.

Tottenham’s best-performing regulars in the Premier League – 2024/2025

Average match rating

Son Heung-min

7.00

James Maddison

6.98

Pedro Porro

6.95

Dominic Solanke

6.84

Dejan Kulusevski

6.83

via WhoScored

The Lilywhites could still sign Gibbs-White, but may end up paying more compensation to sweeten the deal and loosen Forest’s legal stranglehold on the player (Stefan Borson).

As Forest maintain their stalemate with Tottenham over Gibbs-White, following their unhappiness over an alleged ‘illegal approach’, Spurs do have their eyes on other targets for different areas of the squad.

According to reliable journalist Ben Jacobs this week, Brentford striker Yoane Wissa is still in their sights, despite rival interest from Forest and Newcastle United, with Tottenham also believed to be in talks for the Congolese.

Alongside Wissa, Tottenham are in the market for a number six, but they’ll need to offload one of their current abundance of central midfielders, which will most likely be Yves Bissouma (Alasdair Gold).

Bayern Munich’s Joao Palhinha is apparently one of many targets being considered by Thomas Frank and co in that regard (Alasdair Gold), but they’re also keen on a new cenre-back.

The Telegraph reported earlier this week that they’re weighing up a move for Crystal Palace star Marc Guehi, who’s now entered the final 12 months of his contract, and the centre of defence is a position actively being looked at.

Frank already has Micky van de Ven, Cristian Romero, Radu Dragusin, Luka Vuskovic and Danso as options in that area, and it would’ve been six centre-backs if Ashley Phillips hadn’t sealed a loan move back to Stoke City earlier this week.

Vuskovic could also depart on a loan deal, but that would still leave Spurs with four senior centre-backs – perhaps indicating that there is still uncertainty surrounding Romero’s future.

Crystal Palace prepared to sell Marc Guehi amid Tottenham interest

Now, as per GiveMeSport, an update has emerged on the future of Guehi as Tottenham continue to register an interest in the England international.

The Lilywhites had a club-record £70 million bid rejected for Guehi in January, as widely reported, but the defender’s contract situation means that Eagles chairman Steve Parish could now let him go for £45 million.

Palace are apparently open to offers for Guehi before deadline day, with Spurs, Liverpool and Newcastle all keen, so this could be one to watch as the 25-year-old’s future becomes one of the main talking points in the last few weeks of this window.

“There is a price and a situation where we might consider it,” Parish told BBC Sport last summer.

“Somebody [in another interview] said he is a superstar, so somebody has got to pay superstar money. Realistically, he is homegrown, 24 years old and a sensational talent – so somebody has to make it difficult for us. At the moment, it isn’t.”

Now, the situation has changed, and Parish is very unlikely to get ‘superstar money’ with Palace facing the prospect of losing him for free in 2026.

يستعد عماد النحاس، المدير الفني المؤقت للفريق الأول لكرة القدم بالنادي الأهلي، لخوض مواجهة سيراميكا كليوباترا اليوم الجمعة، في الدوري المصري.

ومن المقرر أن تقام مباراة الأهلي وسيراميكا كليوباترا على أرضية استاد القاهرة، في إطار لقاءات الجولة السابعة من الدوري المصري، في الثامنة مساء بتوقيت القاهرة والسعودية.

ويأمل النحاس، في قيادة الأهلي لاستعادة التوازن بعد الخسارة أمام بيراميدز والتعادل أمام إنبي في الدوري.

طالع.. تشكيل الأهلي أمام سيراميكا كليوباترا في الدوري.. عودة ياسر إبراهيم وبن شرقي أساسيًا

ويتولى النحاس، منصب المدير الفني بشكل مؤقت خلفًا للإسباني خوسيه ريبيرو بعد توجيه الشكر لحين التعاقد مع مدرب أجنبي

ويتواجد الأهلي في المركز السادس عشر بجدول ترتيب الدوري المصري برصيد 6 نقاط، من 5 مباريات، حقق الفوز في مباراة وتعادل في ثلاث، وتلقى هزيمة واحدة.

ويتواجد سيراميكا كليوباترا في المركز السابع بجدول ترتيب الدوري المصري، ولديه 10 نقاط من 5 مواجهات، فاز في 3 وتعادل في لقاء، وتلقى هزيمة وحيدة.

ويغيب عن الأهلي إمام عاشور بعد إصابته بفيروس A، وأحمد سيد زيزو بعد تعرضه للإصابة خلال المباراة الماضية. تشكيل الأهلي المتوقع أمام سيراميكا كليوباترا

حراسة المرمى: محمد الشناوي

خط الدفاع: محمد هاني – ياسر إبراهيم – ياسين مرعي – أحمد نبيل كوكا

خط الوسط: أليو ديانج – مروان عطية – محمد علي بن رمضان- تريزيجيه – أشرف بن شرقي

الهجوم: محمد شريف

Head coach of The Blaze has overseen pathway and age-group programmes, including England U19s

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Sep-2024

Chris Guest, head coach of The Blaze, has been appointed as England Women’s U19 Performance Lead.Guest, 40, spent three years as head coach of Loughborough Lightning, and latterly The Blaze following the region’s move to Nottinghamshire in 2022, and guided the team to victory in this season’s Charlotte Edwards Cup.Alongside his regional commitments, he also led the England Women U19 World Cup programme as head coach in 2023, as well as the U19 tri-series between Sri Lanka, England and Australia earlier this year.He has also served as assistant coach at Northern Superchargers during the previous three editions of The Hundred.Guest’s new role will incorporate a coaching role, including overseeing the U19 Women’s T20 World Cup in Malaysia next year, while also leading on talent identification from the academy and senior programmes, which will feed into England’s U19 activity.Guest previously worked in ECB pathway coaching at both Derbyshire and Staffordshire.”The pride and excitement of wearing the Three Lions over last few years has been immense and to be able to do so in this new role is an incredible feeling,” Guest said.”With the growth of the women’s game, it’s a privilege to take on this role as it will focus on ensuring our young cricketers get the cricket they need at the right time which I am extremely passionate about.”I thoroughly enjoyed my time at The Blaze. It’s a great place to work and has been massive part of my development and I wish them every success in the future.Richard Bedbrook, the head of England Women Performance Pathways, said: “We are delighted to have Chris on board.”He has vast experience in the women’s game, strong relationships with and knowledge of all our domestic teams and this new full-time role will allow him to help shape the development of our highest potential players in a collaborative fashion before, during and after any international U19 activity.”His qualities have hugely affected the previous England Women U19 environments and we are all looking forward to his inspirational methods influencing future programmes and systems in a positive way.”Director of England Women’s Cricket, Jonathan Finch, added: “The ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup provides fantastic opportunities for our young talent to experience tournament match play against their peers from other countries.”Chris’s appointment allows us to build on those experiences, through closer relationships with the counties, to enhance the support the players get at this age group.”Chris brings a wealth of experience from the women’s domestic game and will play a key role in shaping the experiences young players have on their journey to international cricket.”