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Former England head coach Matthew Mott has been named as assistant head coach at Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League.

Mott, 51, was England men's white-ball coach between May 2022 and July 2024.

He guided them to the T20 World Cup in 2022 but disappointing 50-over and 20-over title defences in 2023 and 2024 respectively saw Mott lose his job.

He had previously been in charge of Australia's all-conquering women's team.

Since leaving the England role he has also become an assistant coach at Sydney Sixers in the Big Bash League.

Mott will assist head coach Hemang Badani and will be reunited with England batter Harry Brook.

The IPL begins on 22 March with the Capitals' first game against Lucknow Super Giants two days later.

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Australia's Jess Jonassen made an unbeaten 61 off 32 balls to guide Delhi Capitals to a six-wicket win over Gujarat Giants in the Women's Premier League.

The left-hander hit nine fours and two sixes in as Capitals chased 128 with 29 balls to spare in Bengaluru.

She was supported by India opener Shafali Verma, who made 44 off 25 balls at the top of the order.

Giants were restricted to 127-9 with Bharti Fulmali making 40 and Deandra Dottin 26.

There was more disappointment for Beth Mooney (10) and Phoebe Litchfield (0).

Capitals top the five-team table with three wins from five games, while Giants are bottom with three defeats in four matches.

• WPL fixtures & table

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Sophie Ecclestone starred with bat and ball as UP Warriorz beat Royal Challengers Bangalore from the first super over in the Women's Premier League.

Ecclestone successfully defended just nine from her deciding over, having previously hit 33 from 19 balls to tie the match initially.

Warriorz were struggling in pursuit of 181 for victory, but with needed 18 from the final over with just one wicket remaining, Ecclestone hit Renuka Singh Thakur for two sixes and a four before she was run out from the final ball to force the super over.

Australia's Kim Garth conceded 8-1 from RCB's sole over but was eclipsed by Ecclestone, who only went for four.

In RCB's 180-6, Ellyse Perry continued her fine form with an unbeaten 90 from 56 balls to take her tournament tally to 235 runs from just four innings.

The Australian all-rounder hit nine fours and three sixes in her knock and added 94 for the second wicket with England's Danni Wyatt-Hodge, who made a 41-ball 57.

Defending champions RCB remain top of the table while UP Warriorz climb to third with back-to-back wins.

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Grace Harris took a final over hat-trick to help UP Warriorz beat Delhi Capitals by 33 runs for their first WPL win of the season.

Australia all-rounder Harris took the final three wickets to end with figures of 4-15 as Delhi Capitals were skittled out for 144.

Seamer Kranti Goud also impressed taking 4-25, including the key wickets of Shafali Verma, Meg Lanning and Jemimah Rodrigues at the top of the Capitals' order.

Chinelle Henry earlier top-scored with 62, including eight sixes and two fours, as UP Warriorz, managed by England Women coach Jon Lewis, posted 177-9.

The West Indies batter reached her half-century off just 18 balls, the joint-fastest in WPL history.

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Nat Sciver-Brunt's Mumbai Indians claimed a thrilling four-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bengaluru to end the defending champions' perfect start to the WPL.

The England all-rounder made a superb 42 from 21 balls as Mumbai chased down RCB's 167-7 with a ball to spare.

Ellyse Perry had led the way for RCB with a brilliant 81 from 43 balls, while Amanjot Kaur was the pick of the Mumbai bowlers with 3-22.

Despite Sciver-Brunt's quickfire knock, Mumbai found themselves in trouble at 82-4 in the chase before a 60-run partnership between Amanjot and captain Harmanpreet Kaur swung the game back in their favour.

Harmanpreet made it to her half-century but just when Mumbai appeared to have the game won, Australia leg-spinner Georgia Wareham dismissed the India star and then had Sajeevan Sajana lbw next ball to put it back in the balance.

However, with Mumbai needing 22 from the last two overs, Amanjot smashed two sixes in the 19th to take it down to six from six balls.

It went to the fifth ball of the final over but 16-year-old G Kamalini found the boundary to secure Mumbai a win that moves them level on points with leaders RCB after three games.

• WPL fixtures & table

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Australia batter Steve Smith has confirmed he is in talks to join Welsh Fire for The Hundred this summer.

This would be the 35-year-old's first time playing in The Hundred, although he was due to captain Fire in 2020 before the tournament was postponed because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Smith is better known for his exploits in Test and 50-over cricket but does have four T20 centuries to his name, averaging 32.43 with a strike-rate of 129.97 in the format across his career.

"I'm in discussions at the moment so we'll wait and see," he told BBC Sport.

"From what I've heard, it's a wonderful tournament to be involved in so we'll keep those conversations going and we'll see how we go over the next couple of days."

Smith has a close relationship with Washington Freedom owner Sanjay Govil, who agreed to buy a 50% stake in Welsh Fire last month.

Freedom won the second season of Major League Cricket with Smith as skipper and Ricky Ponting as coach.

Smith is currently in Pakistan for the Champions Trophy, where he will captain Australia in Pat Cummins' absence.

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The Women's Premier League takes a break on Thursday as the five teams travel from Vadodara to Bengaluru for the next phase of group matches.

The opening six games were in Vadodara and there will be eight in Bengaluru before matches in Lucknow and Mumbai to conclude the 20-match group stage.

Here's who has starred with bat and ball so far...

Top run-scorers in WPL 2025

1. Ash Gardner (Gujarat Giants) - 141 runs

2. Nat Sciver-Brunt (Mumbai Indians) - 137

3. Meg Lanning (Delhi Capitals) - 101

4. Smriti Mandhana (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) - 90

=5. Richa Ghosh (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) & Harleen Doel (Gujarat Giants) - 75

Top wicket-takers in WPL 2025

=1. Hayley Matthews (Mumbai Indians), Renuka Singh Thakur (Royal Challengers Bengaluru), Annabel Sutherland (Delhi Capitals) & Priya Mishra (Gujarat Giants) - 5

=5. Amelia Kerr (Mumbai Indians), Ash Gardner (Gujarat Giants) & Georgia Wareham (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) - 4

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Captain Meg Lanning hit 69 as Delhi Capitals beat UP Warriorz by seven wickets in the Women's Premier League.

Chasing 167, the Australian put on 65 for the first wicket with Shafali Verma (26) before the Indian opener was caught by Chinelle Henry off the bowling of Deepti Sharma.

Sophie Ecclestone had Jemimah Rodrigues caught for a second-ball duck before Annabel Sutherland arrived at the crease, putting on 49 with her former Australia team-mate.

Lanning was bowled by compatriot Grace Harris in the 15th over, but Sutherland pushed on alongside Marizanne Kapp (29 not out), finishing unbeaten on 41 as Capitals chased down their target with one ball to spare.

For Warriorz, Kiran Navgire hit 51 off 26 from the top of the order before she was caught by Verma off Sutherland's bowling, but the rest of the top-order failed to fire.

Shweta Sehrawat (37 off 33) and Henry (33 from 15) helped set a decent total, but not one that their side could ultimate defend.

Capitals sit second in the table with two wins and a defeat from their first three games, while Warriorz, who are led by England head coach Jon Lewis, are bottom after two losses.

• WPL fixtures & table

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Nat Sciver-Brunt starred with bat and ball as Mumbai Indians beat Gujarat Giants by five wickets in the Women's Premier League.

The England all-rounder took 2-26 before hitting 57 off 39 balls to anchor Mumbai's chase of 121.

She was dismissed with seven required but Sajeevan Sajana and 16-year-old WPL debutant G Kamalini saw Mumbai home with 23 balls to spare.

Sciver-Brunt was supported by Hayley Matthews (17 off 19) and Melie Kerr (19 off 20).

The Giants were bowled out for 120 from the final ball of their 20 overs.

Harleen Deol top-scored with 32 but there were more failures for Beth Mooney (one) and Laura Wolvaardt (four).

Matthews was the pick of the Mumbai bowlers with 3-16 with her off-spin, while leg-spinner Kerr claimed 2-22.

The win is Mumbai's first after a defeat in their opening game, while the Giants have now lost two of their three matches.

• WPL fixtures & table

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Australia captain Pat Cummins has decided to skip the 2025 season of Major League Cricket in the United States.

Cummins, 31, signed a four-year contract to play for San Francisco Unicorns in the American franchise tournament until 2027 in June last year.

He played six MLC matches for the Unicorns in the 2024 season and took four wickets at an average of 52.75.

Cummins is currently recovering from an ankle injury and has already been ruled out of Australia's squad for the Champions Trophy.

"Pat Cummins is unavailable to re-sign for the Unicorns in 2025 due to international commitments and workload management," said a statement from the Unicorns.

"The fast bowler has expressed his excitement to play in future Major League Cricket seasons, as his international schedule permits."

Australia's next assignment after the tournament in Pakistan is the World Test Championship final at Lord's which starts on 11 June.

They will then travel to the Caribbean to play three Tests and five T20 internationals against West Indies in June and July which is likely to clash with the third edition of MLC.

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Smriti Mandhana hit a masterful 83 as defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru beat Delhi Capitals by eight wickets in the Women's Premier League.

The India opener hit 10 fours and three sixes in her 47-ball knock as RCB chased 142 with 22 balls to spare in a repeat of last year's final.

Mandhana, who hit her fastest WPL half-century off 27 balls, was dismissed with eight runs required but Ellyse Perry (seven not out) and Richa Ghosh (11 not out) saw RCB home.

England opener Danni Wyatt-Hodge made 42 off 33 balls in an opening-wicket stand of 107 with Mandhana.

The Capitals, who have been beaten finalists in the first two editions, were bowled out for 141 in 19.3 overs.

India opener Shafali Verma was out for a first-ball duck and Australia legend Meg Lanning made a 19-ball 17.

Jemimah Rodrigues (34) shared 60 with Lanning but the Capitals, who left out England's Alice Capsey, lost regular wickets and struggled against the leg-spin of Australia's Georgia Wareham, who claimed 3-25.

RCB are top of the table with two wins from two matches, while the Capitals are third with one win and one defeat.

• WPL fixtures & table

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Former England batter Alex Hales will not return to Nottinghamshire Outlaws to play in the T20 Blast this summer.

The 36-year-old opener, who became the second-highest runscorer in the history of T20 cricket earlier this month, has played for Nottinghamshire for 17 consecutive seasons.

However, he has recently relocated to Dubai and has decided not to sign a white-ball contract with the Outlaws.

Hales said Trent Bridge was his "favourite place in the world to play cricket" and he would like to "return at some point" but looks set to take up franchise opportunities in the Caribbean Premier League and Major League Cricket instead.

He is the Outlaws' all-time leading T20 run-scorer, with 4,825 runs in the format, and has made a total of 25 centuries in Nottinghamshire colours.

"Given the current landscape of the global game as well as having recently moved abroad, unfortunately I won't be able to return this season," Hales said.

Nottinghamshire director of cricket Mick Newell added: "While he won't be joining us this summer, we are by no means closing the door on him making a return to Notts at some stage in the future."

Hales played 11 Tests, 70 one-day internationals and 75 T20s for England between 2011 and 2022.

He hit centuries in each of England's ODI world-record breaking innings at Trent Bridge, and was part of the team which won the T20 World Cup in 2022.

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New Zealand great Kane Williamson will captain London Spirit in this summer's Hundred competition after becoming one of the competition's first ever direct signings.

Williamson, 34, will also play county cricket for Middlesex outside of The Hundred window as he spends the English summer based at Lord's.

"Our international schedule has allowed for a bit of break, and I was looking to come to the UK with my family, so when this opportunity arose it was a really exciting prospect," said Williamson.

"The Home of Cricket is one of my favourite grounds in the world for so many different reasons. I've had so many incredible moments there.

"Every player in the world holds Lord's in the highest regard. They have been able to maintain the tradition around playing there, and that's what makes it unique to any other place in the world."

Williamson had previously been signed by Birmingham Phoenix in The Hundred but failed to play a game due to a back injury.

Williamson is widely regarded as one of the best batters of his generation, scoring more than 9,000 Test runs at an average of 54.88.

He has extensive T20 experience too, and has scored almost 10,000 runs for his country and in domestic cricket.

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Australia batter Steve Smith and South Africa's Heinrich Klaasen are among the overseas stars to be retained for the 2025 Major League Cricket tournament.

The pair have been retained by champions Washington Freedom and Seattle Ocras respectively.

Australia's Glenn Maxwell, South Africa's Marco Jansen and New Zealand's Rachin Ravindra will also stay at Freedom while Los Angeles Knight Riders have kept West Indies duo Andre Russell and Sunil Narine.

MI Cape Town kept Afghanistan's Rashid Khan and West Indies' Nicholas Pooran, while San Francisco Unicorns have kept Finn Allen but Australia Test captain Pat Cummins has opted against playing in the tournament.

Number one-ranked T20 batter Travis Head (Freedom), Jason Roy, David Miller, Josh Little (all Knight Riders), Quinton de Kock (Ocras), Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje (MI New York), Markram and Mitchell Santner (both Super Kings) are among the players to be released.

Overseas players retained for Major League Cricket 2025

Los Angeles Knight Riders: Andre Russell, Sunil Narine and Spencer Johnson

MI New York: Nicholas Pooran, Kieron Pollard, Rashid Khan and Trent Boult.

San Francisco Unicorns: Haris Rauf, Finn Allen, Matthew Short, and Jake Fraser-McGurk

Seattle Ocras: Heinrich Klaasen and Ryan Rickelton

Texas Super Kings: Faf du Plessis, Noor Ahmad, Devon Conway and Marcus Stoinis

Washington Freedom: Steve Smith, Lockie Ferguson, Glenn Maxwell, Marco Jansen, Rachin Ravindra and Jack Edwards

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Ash Gardner and Deandra Dottin played pivotal roles as Gujarat Giants picked up their first win of the 2025 WPL with a six-wicket victory over UP Warriorz.

Australia's Gardner hit her second successive half-century as she made 52 off 32 balls in the Giants' chase of 144.

The Giants captain was dismissed with 58 required but West Indies all-rounder Dottin smashed 33 not out off 18 balls and India's Harleen Doel an unbeaten 34 as the Giants won with 12 balls to spare.

Dottin also took 2-34 and Gardner 2-39 as the Giants restricted the Warriorz to 143-9.

They were 22-2 in the third over before Deepti Sharma (39 off 27) shared 51 with Uma Chetry (24 off 27).

However Chetry's wicket was soon followed by the dismissals of Australia duo Tahlia McGrath (0) and Grace Harris (2) and the Warriorz were forced to scramble to a total.

Harris removed compatriot Beth Mooney for a first-ball duck in the Giants' chase and England's Sophie Ecclestone claimed 2-16, including South Africa's Laura Wolvaardt, but the Warriorz's total was under-par.

• WPL fixtures & table

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Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders will face Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the opening match of the 2025 Indian Premier League.

The group stage starts on 22 March and the final will take place at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on 25 May.

It will be the third time Eden Gardens has hosted the final but the first since 2015.

The 70-match group stage will run until 18 May with matches every day, including 12 double headers.

Qualifier 1 between the first and second-placed teams is in Hyderabad on 20 May before the eliminator between third and fourth the following day.

Qualifier 2, which decides who joins the winner of qualifier 1 in the final, is also at Eden Gardens on 23 May.

England's one-off Test against Zimbabwe is due to start on 22 May so the likes of Harry Brook, Jacob Bethell and Brydon Carse may be unavailable for the play-offs.

Teams have again been split into two pools of five. They play every side in their group twice, one side from the other pool twice and the other four teams once.

That means the IPL's two must successful side - Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians - will face each other twice in the group stage.

All results form one group table with the top four progressing to the play-offs.

Group 1: Kolkata Knight Riders, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Rajasthan Royals, Chennai Super Kings, Punjab Kings.

Group 2: Sunrisers Hyderabad, Delhi Capitals, Gujarat Titans, Mumbai Indians, Lucknow Super Giants.

Teams face the side in the corresponding position twice in group stage - i.e KKR and SRH and RCB and DC.

• Full IPL 2025 schedule (external link), external

• IPL 2025 squads

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Afghanistan Mujeeb Ur Rahman will replace injured compatriot Allah Ghazanfar at Mumbai Indians for the 2025 Indian Premier League.

Off-spinner Ghazanfar, 18, was set to play in the IPL for the first time but has been ruled out by a back injury that has also seen him replaced in Afghanistan's Champions Trophy squad.

Mujeeb, 23, has taken 19 wickets in 19 IPL matches but last played in the tournament in 2021.

The dates for the 2025 tournament are yet to be announced but reports, external say it is due to start on 22 March.

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Delhi Capitals beat Mumbai Indians in a final-ball thriller in the Women's Premier League despite England all-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt making an unbeaten 80.

Sciver-Brunt, who made 80 off 59 balls with 13 fours, shared 73 with India captain Harmanpreet Kaur (42 off 22) for the third wicket but 2023 winners Mumbai collapsed from 105-2 to be bowled out for 164 in 19.2 overs.

Delhi got off to a rapid start in reply with Shafali Verma crashing 43 off 18 balls and Meg Lanning making 15.

However both fell in the space of three balls and were soon followed by Jemimah Rodrigues and Annabel Sutherland as the two-time finalists fell to 76-4.

England's Alice Capsey added 16 in a stand of 33 with India's Under-19 World Cup-winning captain Niki Prasad (35 off 33) and Scotland's Sarah Bryce crashed 21 off 10 balls.

Delhi needed 10 from the final over and Prasad hit a boundary from the first ball but was dismissed with two needed from two balls.

However Delhi scrambled the two needed from the final ball with the third umpire deciding Arundhati Reddy made her ground to secure a two-wicket win.

Replays suggested it was extremely tight and was the third run-out decision in the Delhi chase that raised question marks.

• WPL fixtures & table

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Defending champions RCB broke the record for the highest successful run chase in the Women's Premier League as they chased down 202 to beat Gujarat Giants by six wickets in Vadodara.

Richa Ghosh top-scored with an unbeaten 64 from just 27 deliveries to help RCB win with nine balls to spare in the opening match of the third edition of the tournament.

Kanika Ahuja added 30 off 13 in an unbroken 93-run stand with Ghosh, who was dropped first ball by Simran Shaikh.

Australia's Ellyse Perry earlier led a recovery, hitting 57 from 34 balls, after captain Smriti Mandhana and England's Danni Wyatt-Hodge fell cheaply to leave RCB wobbling on 14-2.

Perry's international team-mate Ash Gardner starred with bat and ball in a losing cause for the Giants.

The all-rounder hit an unbeaten 79 from 34 balls to help Gujarat post 201-5, the joint fourth-highest score in WPL history.

Gardner then took the early wickets of Mandhana and Wyatt-Hodge, ending with figures of 2-33.

• WPL fixtures & table

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Former India bowler Jhulan Goswami says working with Charlotte Edwards as Mumbai Indians' bowling coach and team mentor has been "a pleasure" and the pair have "loved getting to know each other away from the cricket field".

When Goswami and Edwards began playing against each other internationally in 2002, it sparked the beginning of a cricketing rivalry that lasted 14 years.

Right-arm seamer Goswami dismissed Edwards 13 times in one-day internationals but the pair are working closely together under Edwards' leadership at Mumbai Indians.

After retiring from cricket in 2017, the former England opener took on the role as head coach of the Mumbai-based WPL side ahead of the inaugural season in 2023.

Goswami, who was the highest wicket-taker in women's ODIs when she retired in 2022, was immediately made bowling coach and mentor and the two led the side to the title in the first WPL.

Speaking on BBC World Service's Stumped podcast Edwards said: "As soon as I got this role, I knew that Jhulan was going to be the mentor and bowling coach. I was just so happy that I was finally getting to work with this wonderful person. We've had some wonderful memories over the last couple of years and we've really got to know each other.

"She [Goswami] comes across as this big fierce fast bowler, but she's a big softy. She's wonderful with the young players, she knows everyone and that's why we're so lucky to have her scouting across the country. It's no kind of coincidence that we've managed to pick up some of this wonderful Indian talent."

On working under Edwards, Goswami said: "It has always been a pleasure working under Lottie's leadership. Her leadership quality and ability to bring everyone together is something she has really bonded with. I think this journey together with Mumbai Indians has been unparalleled. Every day I'm learning something new and it has been fantastic.

"It was an exciting moment for both of us and we've got to know each other away from the cricket field. We hardly spent any time together because, as opposition, we were always in opposite dressing rooms. But getting to know each other is fantastic and what a lovely person she is."

Listen to the full interview with Mumbai Indians head coach Charlotte Edwards and bowling coach and team mentor Jhulan Goswami on the Stumped podcast on BBC Sounds.

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Former England captain Charlotte Edwards says her time coaching Mumbai Indians in the Women's Premier League has been "so rewarding" but has brought "pressure at times".

The WPL, which was launched in 2023 and is the equivalent of the men's IPL, is the most lucrative franchise competition in women's cricket with the five teams spending almost £1.2m on salaries each year.

Mumbai Indians, who have been led by Edwards since the inception, won the inaugural edition and finished third in last year's tournament.

Edwards, who made 309 appearances for England and led them to two Ashes victories, began her coaching career in 2020 and has led Southern Vipers and Southern Brave in England and Sydney Sixers in Australia before taking on the Mumbai role.

Speaking on BBC World Service's Stumped podcast she said: "It's been a wonderful experience. I've grown so much in the past two years, working with different cultures. It's been so rewarding, changing players lives as well out here.

"It's quite a pressure at times but it's been so great to be able to have the opportunity to work in India. I obviously got to play here, but to work here with one of the greats of the game [in Jhulan Goswami] has been truly special."

Listen to the full interview with Charlotte Edwards and Mumbai Indians bowling coach and team mentor Jhulan Goswami on the Stumped podcast on BBC Sounds.