Franchise Cricket

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Left-arm seamer Jason Behrendorff has signed a three-year contract with Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash League (BBL).

Behrendorff, 34, was the leading wicket-taker in the 2024-25 season with 17.

He has won four titles with Perth Scorchers and has taken 140 wickets in 106 games.

The move comes as the BBL's new player movement window opened on Tuesday. The window allows clubs to sign eligible free agents and trade uncontracted players or draft picks.

The eight teams have been able to secure a maximum of 10 players but Scorchers, who failed to make the play-offs, opted against offering Behrendorff a deal in time.

"Moving to Melbourne has something my wife, Juvelle, and I have talked about as a goal whether the end of my career happened so to continue my career and play cricket in a city we both love is a blessing," said Behrendorff.

"I am really excited for what the next chapter holds with the Melbourne Renegades but just as importantly for my family too."

Image source, SA20

Joe Root was out for a first-ball duck but Paarl Royals beat Durban's Super Giants by six wickets to extend their lead at the top of the SA20 table.

Root, who went into the game as the top scorer in the tournament with 279 runs in seven innings, was trapped lbw by Prenelan Subrayen as he looked to sweep.

It was given not out on field but Super Giants reviewed and the technology showed the ball would have crashed into leg stump.

Royals recovered from the early loss to chase 144 from the penultimate ball with Rubin Hermann (59 off 51) and Lhuan-dre Pretorius (43 off 29), who has overtaken Root as leading run-scorer, sharing 91 for the second wicket.

Both fell in a 10-ball spell but Dinesh Karthik made 21 and Mitchell van Buuren an unbeaten 13 to see Royals to their seventh win in eight games.

Super Giants had posted 143-7 with Marcus Stoinis making 55 not out from 40 balls and Kane Williamson 45 off 36 balls.

Royals are seven points clear of MI Cape Town at the top of the table, albeit having played an extra game.

Super Giants, who were beaten finalists last year, are bottom of the table and can no longer reach the play-offs.

• SA20 fixtures & table

Image source, International League T20

Tom Banton hit his second century of the International League T20 as MI Emirates thrashed Desert Vipers by 154 runs.

Banton, who had already made 102 not out in MI Emirates' win over Sharjah Warriorz on 19 January, smashed 105 off 55 balls.

The Somerset batter hit nine fours and seven sixes as he shared 198 for the second wicket with Andre Fletcher, who made 96 not out off 50 balls.

Banton, who has now hit four T20 centuries, was run out off the penultimate ball of the innings as MI Emirates posted 228-2.

Sam Curran was the most expensive bowler, conceding 53 from his four overs.

In response Vipers were skittled for 74 with Curran and Azam Khan the only batters to make double figures.

Alex Hales, Dan Lawrence and Adam Hose were among the batters to make single figures while Dan Mousley claimed 2-8 in his sole over for MI Emirates.

The 154-run winning margin is the second-biggest in the tournament's history, behind a 157-run win for MI Emirates against Vipers in 2023.

Vipers remain top of the six-team table despite the defeat and MI Emirates move up to second.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

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The 2024-25 men's Big Bash League is over with Hobart Hurricanes winning the tournament for the first time.

The final saw Mitch Owen smash a record-equalling 39-ball century to cement his place as the tournament's leading run-scorer.

Here is who starred with bat and ball in the 14th edition of the Australian T20 tournament.

Top run-scorers in men's Big Bash 2024-25

1. Mitch Owen (Hobart Hurricanes) - 452 runs

2. David Warner (Sydney Thunder) - 405

3. Cooper Connolly (Perth Scorchers) - 351

4. Glenn Maxwell (Melbourne Stars) - 325

5. Marcus Stoinis (Melbourne Stars) - 311

Sam Billings, who played for Thunder, was the highest-scoring Englishman with 271 runs.

Top wicket-takers in men's Big Bash 2024-25

1. Jason Behrendorff (Perth Scorchers) - 17 wickets

=2. Tom Rogers (Melbourne Renegades) & Riley Meredith (Hobart Hurricanes) - 16

=4. Mark Steketee (Melbourne Stars), Lance Morris (Perth Scorchers) & Lloyd Pope (Adelaide Strikers) - 15

Jamie Overton, who played for Strikers, was the leading English wicket-taker with 11.

Image source, International League T20

Tom Alsop hit an unbeaten 85 off 60 balls to lead Gulf Giants to a six-wicket win over Sharjah Warriorz in the International League T20.

Chasing 172, Alsop hit seven fours and two sixes and shared 65 off 35 balls with Tom Curran (26 not out off 17) to get Giants over the line with three balls to spare.

Warriorz had posted 171-6 with Jason Roy making 44 off 30 balls and Tom Kohler-Cadmore 29 off 25 balls.

Giants remain fifth despite the win, but close on the knockout spots, while Warriorz are bottom.

Sunday's other game saw Dubai Capitals chase 204 against Abu Dhabi Knight Riders to win by eight wickets with one ball to spare.

West Indies batter Shai Hope made an unbeaten 74 off 59 balls and Afghanistan's Gulbadin Naib crashed 80 off 46.

Knight Riders had made 203-4 with Sri Lanka's Charith Asalanka making 74 off 38 balls.

Capitals are second in the six-team table, with Knight Riders fourth.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

Image source, SA20

Joburg Super Kings raced to a nine-wicket win over defending champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the SA20.

Chasing 119, Super Kings knocked off the chase in 14 overs with Faf du Plessis making an unbeaten 76 from 56 balls.

Sunrisers, who have both of the previous editions of the SA20, were bowled out for 118.

England opener Zak Crawley was caught at slip off the first ball of the match and was one of four ducks in the powerplay as Sunrisers slipped to 17-4.

It continues a difficult tournament for Crawley, who has scored 88 runs in eight games, at an average of 11.

David Bedingham made 48 in a stand of 57 with Tristan Stubbs (37), who also added 41 with Marco Jansen.

The bonus-point win reinvigorates Super Kings' knockout hopes. They stay fourth but move to within four points of Sunrisers in third.

• SA20 fixtures & table

Image source, International League T20

Alex Hales smashed an unbeaten 77 off 42 balls as Desert Vipers eased to an eight-wicket victory over Sharjah Warriorz to consolidate their position at the top of the International League T20 table.

Warriorz had posted 151-8 from their allocation thanks to Jason Roy's 38-ball 55 and 42 from Tom Kohler-Cadmore as Khuzaima Tanveer took 4-22 for the Vipers.

Vipers had stuttered to 24-2 after the loss of Pakistan star Fakhar Zaman for eight and Dan Lawrence for a duck.

However, Hales plundered five sixes and seven fours in his knock as he and Sam Curran - 54 not out off 53 balls - got the Viperz home with 31 balls to spare.

Second-placed MI Emirates suffered back-to-back defeats after they lost by two wickets in a last-ball thriller against Gulf Giants.

Tom Banton's 56 off 39 balls helped Emirates reach 151-6 as Dan Worrall took 2-19 for the Giants.

Afghanistan left-arm quick Fazalhaq Farooqi took 3-34 to peg back the Giants after Gerhard Erasmus top scored with 37.

With 11 needed by the Giants off the last over, bowled by Dan Mousley, the England all-rounder saw a no-ball full toss smacked for six by UAE teenager Aayan Afzal Khan.

Zuhaib Zubair then slog swept the final ball of the match for a single to seal the victory for the Giants.

ILT20 fixtures & table.

Image source, SA20

Joe Root hit 78 not out as his SA20 side Paarl Royals beat Pretoria Capitals by 11 runs.

Opening the batting, Root hit eight fours and two sixes in his 56-ball innings, anchoring the Royals to 140-4 in their full 20 overs.

He put on an unbeaten 59 stand with skipper David Miller after a run of early wickets.

The former England captain then also chipped in with two wickets for good measure as the Capitals were restricted to 129-7.

Root said: "Today was a case of being brave enough to take it deeper and you might have a better match-up down the line. I thought we did that pretty well.

"When I was bowling I tried to stay as low as I can. There was a lack of bounce, which makes it hard to get after.

"I didn't think it would spin as much as that. It was a great game of cricket. I've really enjoyed my time here and want to keep putting in winning performances."

Root is one of 14 England players taking part in the six-team tournament.

Scorecard, SA20 fixtures & table

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It is the Big Bash League final on Monday as Hobart Hurricanes host Sydney Thunder at Ninja Stadium (listen to commentary on BBC Sounds, BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and the BBC Sport app from 08:15 GMT).

With the tournament heading towards its finale, let's have a look at the top performers in this year's BBL...

Top run-scorers

• 357 - David Warner, Sydney Thunder

• 351 - Cooper Connolly, Perth Scorchers

• 344 - Mitchell Owen, Hobart Hurricanes

• 325 - Glenn Maxwell, Melbourne Stars

• 311 - Marcus Stoinis, Melbourne Stars

Highest strike-rate (min. five innings)

• 191.11 - Mitchell Owen, Hobart Hurricanes

• 186.78 - Glenn Maxwell, Melbourne Stars

• 184.69 - Finn Allen, Perth Scorchers

• 177.62 - Tim David, Hobart Hurricanes

• 176.08 - James Bazley, Adelaide Strikers

Leading wicket-takers

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• 17 - Jason Behrendorff, Perth Scorchers

• 16 - Tom Rogers, Melbourne Renegades

• 15 - Mark Steketee, Melbourne Stars

• 15 - Lance Morris, Perth Scorchers

• 15 - Lloyd Pope, Adelaide Strikers

Best economy rates (min. 15 overs)

• 5.83 - Ashton Agar, Perth Scorchers

• 6.45 - Tanveer Sangha, Sydney Thunder

• 6.59 - Joel Paris, Melbourne Stars

• 6.92 - Tom Andrews, Sydney Thunder

• 6.94 - Fergus O'Neill, Melbourne Renegades

Image source, SA20

Defending champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape picked up their fourth successive win with a 14-run victory over Joburg Super Kings in the SA20.

Sunrisers, who have won both editions of the tournament, lost their opening three games but are now up to second in the six-team table.

They posted 165-4 with captain Aiden Markram making 43 off 29 balls, David Bedingham 37 off 34 and Tristan Stubbs an unbeaten 35 off 22.

New-ball bowlers Marco Jansen and Richard Gleeson have played a key part in Sunrisers revival and they were again superb and pushed the required run-rate up.

Super Kings were reasonably set at 105-2 but with the run-rate pushing 11 an over the pressure told.

Devon Conway fell for 43 and then Jonny Bairstow (14) picked out deep mid-wicket in the next over.

They finished on 151-8 with Jansen (2-19), Gleeson (2-37) and Ottneil Baartman (2-32) sharing the wickets.

Sunrisers are one point behind leaders Paarl Royals, who have played a game less, while Super Kings sit fourth.

• SA20 fixtures & table

Image source, SA20

England's Joe Root was dismissed for a first-ball duck by Chris Woakes but Paarl Royals beat Durban's Super Giants by five wickets in the SA20.

Chashing 143 to win Root chased a wide delivery and was caught at slip in the first over.

Despite that Royals made a fast start with Lhuan-dre Pretorius (25 off 13) and Rubin Hermann (44 off 22) finding regular boundaries, but both were dismissed to leave Royals 77-3.

Mitchell van Buuren (41 off 41) and David Miller (24 off 21) shared 59 for the fourth wicket to take control of the game but both were dismissed with seven and two required respectively.

India legend Dinesh Karthik came to the crease and hit the winning runs as Royals won with 15 balls to spare.

Super Giants posted 142-7 with Quinton de Kock making 43 off 30 balls at the top of the order.

Afghanistan's Mujeeb Ur Rahman claimed 2-23, while Root dismissed New Zealand's Kane Williamson in taking 1-18 from four overs.

Royals are top of the six-team table with 20 points and Super Giants sit bottom on eight points.

• SA20 fixtures & table

Image source, International League T20

Jordan Cox's 70 was not enough to help Gulf Giants avoid a five-wicket defeat by Dubai Capitals in the International League T20.

England batter Cox hit four fours and one six but he was run out in the final over as Giants posted 153-5.

Capitals' chase was anchored by West Indies batter Shai Hope making 47 off 39 balls.

He was dismissed in the 17th over to leave Capitals 110-5, but Sri Lanka's Dasun Shanaka crashed an unbeaten 34 off 10 balls to see Capitals to victory with eight balls to spare.

The win moves Capitals to third in the table, while Giants are bottom with just one win from five games.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

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England internationals Sam Billings and Jamie Overton have been named in the Big Bash League's team of the tournament.

Billings, who has effected 11 dismissals and scored 209 runs for Sydney Thunder, is placed in the starting XI, while Overton is 12th man after scoring 191 runs and taking 11 wickets with Adelaide Strikers.

David Warner, who is playing in his first full BBL campaign after retiring from international duty, leads the side.

The 38-year-old, who has led the Thunder to the tournament's challenger match, has scored 346 runs in the tournament, just five less than leading run-scorer Cooper Connolly.

The 21-year-old Connolly and his Perth Scorers teammate Jason Behrendorff, who tops the wicket-taking charts with 17, both feature, as do uncapped Australians Mitchell Owen and Tom Rogers.

All the players selected, bar Stoinis, Maxwell, David, Rogers and Overton, are appearing in the team of the tournament for the first time.

Brisbane Heat, the 2023-24 champions who finished seventh this year, are the only side without a player in the line-up.

1. David Warner (Sydney Thunder, captain)

2. Mitchell Owen (Hobart Hurricanes)

3. Cooper Connolly (Perth Scorchers)

4. Marcus Stoinis (Melbourne Stars)

5. Sam Billings (Sydney Thunder, wicketkeeper)

6. Glenn Maxwell (Melbourne Stars)

7. Tim David (Hobart Hurricanes)

8. Ben Dwarshuis (Sydney Sixers)

9. Tom Rogers (Melbourne Renegades)

10. Jason Behrendorff (Perth Scorchers)

11. Lloyd Pope (Adelaide Strikers)

12. Jamie Overton (Adelaide Strikers)

Image source, SA20

England internationals Zak Crawley and Will Jacks both made ducks as Sunrisers Eastern Cape beat Pretoria Capitals by 52 runs in the SA20.

Crawley edged the second ball of the match behind off Jason Behrendorff but his Sunrisers side recovered from 14-3 and 53-5 to post 149-7.

That was largely thanks to an unbeaten 68 from 55 balls by Sunrisers and South Africa T20 captain Aiden Markram while Hampshire and England's Liam Dawson also made an important 25 from 11.

Jacks then hit the second ball of the chase to Dawson at mid-off and the Capitals were bowled out for 97 in 16.3 overs.

Left-arm spinner Dawson took 3-17, including the wickets of Marques Ackerman, Keagan Lion-Cachet and Jimmy Neesham.

Champions Sunrisers have now won three consecutive matches and sit third in the table behind MI Cape Town and leaders Paarl Royals.

The Capitals are fifth.

Scorecard, SA20 fixtures & table

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Sydney Thunder beat Melbourne Stars by 21 runs on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method in Sydney to progress to the Big Bash League's challenger match.

After setting the Stars 136 to win, the Thunder superbly defended the low target, with seamer Nathan McAndrew taking 5-16.

The 31-year-old removed openers Sam Harper and Tom Rogers to leave the visitors 15-2, before the Thunder's spinners took over, with Tanveer Sangha and Tom Andrews taking two wickets apiece and Chris Green removing Marcus Stoinis.

Glenn Maxwell had scored three consecutive half-centuries prior to this match, but Sangha dismissed the Stars' key man for 28 with a caught and bowled, then had Tom Curran caught by Andrews from the following delivery.

When Andrews trapped Usama Mir lbw the Stars were 73-7 in the 13th over, and McAndrew returned to take the final three wickets as the Thunder bowled their opponents out for 114.

They will now face rivals the Sydney Sixers in Friday's challenger match, with the winners to play the Hobart Hurricanes in Monday's final.

Veteran David Warner led the Thunder to a third-place finish in the group stage, one place ahead of their opponents, finishing as the phase's second-highest run-scorer.

However, he was dismissed for a two-ball duck opening the Thunder innings, caught by Stoinis off the bowling of Curran.

With each innings shortened by an over because of lightning, Ollie Davies top-scored for the home side with 36, while English wicketkeeper Sam Billings struck 24, as the Thunder reached 135-7

The Stars, who made the knock-out stage off the back of five consecutive victories, would have been confident of chasing down their target, but McAndrew and the spinners ensured it was the Sydney side who progress.

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Hobart Hurricanes secured a place in the final of the 2025 Big Bash League by beating Sydney Sixers by 12 runs in the qualifier in Hobart.

After setting the Sixers 174 to win, the Hurricanes took wickets in each of the first three overs to reduce the visitors to 5-3.

Kurtis Patterson's 48 and 57 by Jordan Silk kept the Sixers in the chase but they were always behind the required run-rate.

They needed 41 from the final three overs and England seamer Chris Jordan conceded only eight from the 18th.

Australia quick Nathan Ellis then had Silk caught at long-on in the penultimate over and, despite being hit for six by Ben Dwarshuius, he left Jordan 21 to defend from the last.

Jordan conceded four from the first four balls as he expertly closed out the match with Dwarshuis only managing a boundary off the final ball when the game was gone.

The Hurricanes, who topped the table in the group stage, battled to 173-7 with Ben McDermott striking 42 from 31, Caleb Jewell making a 41-ball 40 and Tim David an important 25 from 10 balls late on.

Yorkshire leg-spinner Jafer Chohan impressed with figures of 2-28 for Sixers.

The Sixers are not out of the tournament. They will play the winner of Wednesday's eliminator between Sydney Thunder and Melbourne Stars on Friday.

The Hurricanes' victory means they will host Monday's final.

Big Bash fixtures

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After five weeks of group-stage action, the men's Big Bash League has reached the knockout stages.

Four sides and games remain before the 2025 champions will be crowned.

There will be ball-by-ball commentary on all four games available across BBC Sounds, BBC Radio 5 Sports and the BBC Sport website and app.

There will also be reports on BBC Sport's Franchise Cricket page.

Here's the schedule for the knockouts:

Tuesday, 21 January: Qualifier - Hobart Hurricanes v Sydney Sixers* (08:30 GMT)

Wednesday, 22 January: Knockout - Sydney Thunder v Melbourne Stars* (08:30 GMT)

Friday, 24 January: Challenger - loser of Qualifier v winner of Knockout* (08:15 GMT)

Monday, 27 January: Final - winner of Qualifier v winner of Challenger (08:15 GMT)

Commentary on games with an * will be available on the BBC Sport website and app only. Times are subject to change.

Image source, SA20

A 40-ball 60 from Jonny Bairstow was not enough as Joe Root's Paarl Royals beat Joburg Super Kings by six wickets in the SA20.

Bairstow hit three sixes and two fours as the Super Kings, who were 36-4 at one stage, posted 146-6.

Moeen Ali was one of those dismissed early - out caught at deep extra cover off England team-mate Root for one.

Root finished with 1-16 from four overs but was out for six in the fifth over of the Royals' chase.

The Royals still eased to victory, however, with David Miller finishing 40 not out.

With four runs needed at the start of the final over, Miller should have been out caught in the deep but seamer Lutho Sipamla overstepped.

The South Africa international hit the next ball for six to complete victory with five balls to spare.

Paarl go top of the table on 16 points at the competition's halfway stage. Joburg are third on 10 points.

Scorecard, SA20 fixtures & table

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India wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant has been named Lucknow Super Giants captain for the 2025 Indian Premier League.

Pant, 27, became the most expensive player in IPL history when he was signed by LSG at last year's auction for 27 crore (£2.54m).

He had previously played for Delhi Capitals since 2016, including three seasons as captain.

"I see a born leader in Rishabh Pant. From my point of view he will be probably the best captain IPL has seen," said Sanjiv Goenka, the owner of Lucknow.

"Surely Rishabh Pant will play for at least 14-15 years for us, we hope at least five IPL titles in these years."

Pant returned to cricket in last year's IPL after a 14-month injury lay-off because of a serious car accident. He was also part of the India side that won the 2024 T20 World Cup.

The 2025 IPL is expected to begin in late March.