Franchise Cricket

Image source, International League T20

England duo Sam Curran and Dan Lawrence both hit half-centuries to help Desert Vipers beat Abu Dhabi Knight Riders by seven wickets in the International League T20.

Chasing 167 to win, the pair came together at 56-2 and shared 95 for the third wicket.

Lawrence, who made 70 off 39 balls, was dismissed with 16 required, but Curran saw his side over the line with an unbeaten 50 off 37 balls.

Knight Riders had posted 166-5 with Phil Salt making 71 not out off 49 balls and Andre Russell 30 off 14 balls. Curran went for 48 off his four overs.

Curran and Lawrence are set to be available for the whole tournament, but Salt will leave early for England's tour of India from 22 January.

• ILT20 fixtures & table

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Glenn Maxwell smashed 90 off 52 balls as Melbourne Stars beat Melbourne Renegades by 42 runs to move into Big Bash knockout contention.

Stars were 75-7 but Maxwell shared 81 with Usama Mir for the eighth wicket. Remarkably Maxwell scored 79 of those runs, with the other two being extras.

He hit four fours and 10 sixes before being bowled in the final over as Stars were all out for 165.

Renegades lost regular wickets throughout their chase and were reduced to 44-4 and 80-7 before being bowled out for 123 in the final over.

England's Jacob Bethell made one from eight balls. The left-hander has scored 108 runs in seven innings, at an average of 15.42, in the tournament.

Stars have won their past four games, having lost their opening five, and climb to fourth in the table.

They likely need to win their final game and have other results go their way to reach the knockouts.

Renegades are bottom and likely need to both of their remaining games to stand any chance.

• Big Bash fixtures & table

Image source, SA20

England's Joe Root made an unbeaten 62 on his SA20 debut to guide Paarl Royals to a nine-wicket win over Sunrisers Eastern Cape.

Root, who last played a T20 for England in 2019, hit four fours and one six as Paarl chased 176 with eight balls to spare.

He was happy to play a supporting role to fellow opener and 18-year-old Lhuan-dre Pretorius, who smashed a brilliant 97 off 51 balls on his debut.

The left-hander hit all round the wicket and smacked 10 fours and six sixes as Eastern Cape's bowlers strayed.

"Batting with Rooty just calmed me down, gave me some clarity and it was amazing. I'm lost for words," Pretorius told Sky Sports.

"A lot of credit has to go to Rooty for only conceding four dot balls. He allowed me to get into a rhythm. He helped me a lot and I'm grateful for that."

Defending champions Eastern Cape, who have now lost their opening two games, posted 175-5 with captain Aiden Markram making 82 off 49 balls.

Root will play in the majority of the tournament, but will leave for England's 50-over series in India from 6 February.

Saturday's other game saw Joburg Super Kings beat MI Cape Town by six runs on the DLS method after a rain-affected game.

Their chase was stopped twice, with the second time resulting in the end of the game.

Cape Town posted 140-6 with George Linde making 48 not out, and Joburg were 82-3 in the 12th over when the rain arrived.

• SA20 fixtures & table

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Adelaide Strikers made the second-highest total in Big Bash history as they thrashed Brisbane Heat by 56 runs.

Strikers, who were asked to bat first, posted 251-5, which is only bettered by Melbourne Stars' 273-2 in 2022.

They raced to 88-0 off the six-over powerplay and were 164-1 after 12 overs and on course for the record.

Matt Short hit Strikers' fastest century in making 109 off 54 balls, while Chris Lynn added 47 and Alex Ross 44 not out.

In reply, Heat were bowled out for 195 off the final ball of innings. D'Arcy Short was the pick of the bowlers, taking 4-15.

The win moves Strikers off the bottom of the table. Defending champions Heat remain fourth but a place in the knockouts is in jeopardy.

• Big Bash fixtures & table

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Steve Smith made an unbeaten 121 from 64 balls to set up Sydney Sixers' 14-run win over Perth Scorchers in the Big Bash.

Smith, who was playing his first game in this year's tournament, reached his century off 58 balls, before hitting three sixes in the final over as Sixers posted 220-3.

It is his third century in the Big Bash and the 35-year-old now averages nearly 100 in his past eight innings in the competition.

In reply Scorchers were reduced to 97-4 and 128-6 but an unbeaten 66 from captain Ashton Turner gave them some hope.

They were ultimately left with too much to do and finished on 206-7. They remain fifth, outside the knockout spots.

Sixers climb to the top of the table and one more win would secure their progression.

• Big Bash fixtures & table

Image source, SA20

Durban's Super Giants fought back superbly to deny Pretoria Capitals a record chase in the SA20.

Chasing 210 to win, Super Giants were racing along at 154-0 off 12 overs.

However, Afghanistan spinner Noor Ahmad removed compatriot Rahmanullah Gurbaz (89) and England's Will Jacks (64) - who had shared the third-highest stand in the tournament's history - to leave Capitals 173-3.

They were still in control with 37 needed off 32 balls but Chris Woakes (2-42), Keshav Maharaj (1-39) and Naveen-ul-Haq (1-35) closed out a superb two-run win for Super Giants.

The previous record chase was Joburg Super Kings' 209-3 against Super Giants.

Capitals had posted 209-4 with New Zealand's Kane Williamson making 60 off 40 balls on his tournament debut.

Saturday sees the first double-header with Joe Root's Paarl Royals facing Sunrisers Eastern Cape (11:00 GMT) and Jonny Bairstow's Joburg Super Kings playing MI Cape Town (15:30 GMT).

• SA20 fixtures & table

Image source, International League T20

The United Arab Emirates-based International League T20 returns for its third season on 11 January.

Despite clashes with Australia's Big Bash, South Africa's SA20 and international series, there a number of star names involved in the tournament.

There are six teams: Abu Dhabi Knight Riders, Desert Vipers, Dubai Capitals, Gulf Giants, MI Emirates and Sharjah Warriorz. Some of those names may look familiar from the men's Indian Premier League and their women's equivalent the WPL.

The tournament starts with a rematch of the 2024 final where MI Emirates beat Dubai Capitals.

The teams will play each other twice in the 30-game group stage, before the knockouts begin on 5 February. They work as follows:

5 February: Qualifier 1 - first v second

6 February: Eliminator - third v fourth

7 February: Qualifier 2 - loser of Qualifier 1 v winner of Eliminator

9 February: Final - winner of Qualifier 1 v winner of Qualifier 2

• International League T20 fixtures

Image source, Getty Images

A massive 33 England-qualified players will take part in the third edition of the International League T20.

Star names include opener Phil Salt and leg-spinners Adil Rashid and Rehan Ahmed, but their involvement is set to be limited by England's tour of India from 22 January.

Seamers Sam Curran and Olly Stone are set to be available throughout, while other players, including Chris Jordan, will juggle their availability around the Big Bash League in Australia.

England-qualified players featuring in the ILT20:

Abu Dhabi Knight Riders: Phil Salt, David Willey, Joe Clarke, Laurie Evans & Michael Pepper

Desert Vipers: Sam Curran, Dan Lawrence, David Payne, Max Holden, Adam Hose, Alex Hales, Luke Wood & Nathan Sowter

Dubai Capitals: Olly Stone, Sam Billings, Adam Rossington & Joe Weatherley

Gulf Giants: Chris Jordan, Jordon Cox, Rehan Ahmed, James Vince, Tymal Mills, Tom Curran, Ollie Robinson (batter) & Adam Lyth

MI Emirates: Dan Mousley, Tom Banton, Jordan Thompson & Ben Charlesworth

Sharjah Warriorz: Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, Tom Kohler-Cadmore & Luke Wells

Scotland are also represented by Michael Jones and Brandon McMullen and Ireland by Mark Adair.

Image source, Getty Images

Former Australia opener David Warner and West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell lead a host of star international names that will play in the International League T20.

Warner, 38, will play for Dubai Capitals again after the conclusion of Australia's Big Bash League, where he is captaining Sydney Thunder.

Russell will play for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders and is among a large West Indies contingent in the tournament that includes T20 captain Rovman Powell (Capitals), their all-time leading T20 run-scorer Nicholas Pooran and all-rounder Kieron Pollard (both MI Emirates).

Sunil Narine (Knight Riders), Alzarri Joseph, Romario Shepherd (both MI Emirates) and Shai Hope (Capitals) are also set to feature.

Sri Lanka are also well represented with spinner Wanindu Hasaranga (Vipers), Dasun Shanaka, Dushmantha Chameera (both Capitals) and Kusal Perera (MI Emirates) signed to the tournament.

Afghanistan seamer Fazalhaq Farooqi, who was the leading wicket-taker in the 2024 T20 World Cup, will play for MI Emirates, while New Zealand trio Tim Southee, Adam Milne (both Warriorz) and Lockie Ferguson (Knight Riders) will also take part.

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David Warner's 88 not out was not enough as Hobart Hurricanes beat Sydney Thunder by six wickets in the Big Bash.

Warner hit seven fours in his 66 balls to lift the Thunder to 164-6 in an innings that threatened to fall away throughout.

Sam Konstas, who recently made an eye-catching Australia debut, was out for four from nine balls while England wicketkeeper Sam Billings made 28 from 15.

Hurricanes were 59-3 in reply but Australia international Tim David struck 68 from 38 balls as they eased to victory with 3.1 overs to spare.

Hurricanes now sit two points clear at the top of the standings and will confirm a place in the knockouts with one win in their final three matches.

Thunder are third.

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Mickey Arthur has replaced former Australia batter Marcus North as director of cricket at Hundred side Northern Superchargers.

Arthur, 56, will combine the role with his responsibilities as head of cricket at Derbyshire.

Former South Africa and Pakistan coach Arthur said: "I'm delighted to be taking on this role with Northern Superchargers and am very excited to get started ahead of the 2025 edition of The Hundred.

"Whilst the Northern Superchargers haven't lifted any silverware in the competition yet, both the men's and women's teams have put in some strong performances over the years and shown a lot of potential.

"I'm looking forward to working with both Freddie Flintoff and Lisa Keightley to build strong squads, and a culture that will see us enjoy success in 2025.

"I'd also like to thank Derbyshire for supporting me in taking on this role, in addition to the long-term project we are developing at The County Ground."

Superchargers finished fourth in both the men's and women's Hundred in 2024.

The dates for the 2025 tournament are yet to be announced, but it is expected to take place through most of August.

Image source, SA20

Defending champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape were thrashed by 97 runs by MI Cape Town in the opening game of the 2025 SA20.

Chasing 175 to win, Eastern Cape were all out for 77 in 15 overs as they suffered the fifth-heaviest defeat in terms of runs in the tournament's three-year history.

The total is second-lowest in the tournament and Eastern Cape's lowest, beating their 122-9 against Pretoria Capitals last year.

Delano Potgieter took 5-10, the second-best figures in the tournament, while Aiden Markram top-scored with 19.

English duo Zak Crawley (12) and Tom Abell (0) were dismissed in successive balls by Trent Boult (2-16).

Cape Town had earlier recovered from 42-3 inside the powerplay to post 174-7, with Dewald Brevis making 57. Richard Gleeson claimed 2-22 and Liam Dawson 1-32.

The margin of victory also sees Cape Town earn a bonus point, which winning sides claim if their run-rate is 1.25 times that of the opposition.

The likes of Chris Woakes and Liam Livingstone could be in action on Friday as Durban's Super Giants face Pretoria Capitals.

• SA20 fixtures

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Glenn Maxwell's brilliant 58 not out off 32 balls helped a resurgent Melbourne Stars get the better of high-flying Sydney Sixers in the Big Bash.

Maxwell, who was dropped on the boundary early in his innings, hammered five fours and three sixes to rescue his side from 60-4 to post 156-5 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Sixers, who were top of the table before this clash, were going well while England's James Vince was in typically good touch.

However, shortly after bringing up his half-century, the 33-year-old sent a Marcus Stoinis delivery high into the night sky and Maxwell steadied himself to take a brilliant catch which turned the tide.

From 96-2, Sixers lost four wickets for 16 runs and eventually fell short on 140-9, to lose by 16 runs.

Victory lifts Stars off the bottom of the table and is their third win in succession after they lost their opening five games.

They face the Renegades again on Sunday before hosting Hobart Hurricanes in their final match as they bid to sneak into the knockout stages.

Sixers face Perth Scorchers next before finishing up with a trip to face Adelaide Strikers.

• Big Bash table & fixtures

Image source, SA20

The SA20, South Africa's franchise T20 league, returns on Thursday, 9 January for its third edition.

The tournament, which was established in 2022, is South Africa's equivalent of the Big Bash or Indian Premier League and features some of South Africa's and the world's biggest cricketing names.

There are six teams involved, with all of them owned by IPL franchises. The teams are: Durban's Super Giants, Joburg Super Kings, MI Cape Town, Paarl Royals, Pretoria Capitals, Sunrisers Eastern Cape.

The tournament begins with Sunrisers Eastern Cape, who have won the first two editions, taking on MI Cape Town in Gqeberha. It runs for four weeks and concludes on Saturday, 8 February.

The teams will play each other twice in the group stage, with the top four progressing to the play-offs. They work as follows:

4 February: Qualifier 1 - first v second

5 February: Eliminator - third v fourth

6 February: Qualifier 2 - loser of Qualifier 1 v winner of Eliminator

8 February: Final - winner of Qualifier 1 v winner of Qualifier 2

Image source, SA20

A total of 14 English players will play for the six teams in the 2025 SA20.

Some of key names to look out for are leading Test run-scorer Joe Root, fast bowler Chris Woakes as well as opening batter Zak Crawley and all-rounder Liam Livingstone.

However, Root and Livingstone's involvement is set to be limited by England's white-ball tour of India, which starts on 22 January.

Test captain Ben Stokes will not take part due to the hamstring injury he sustained in the third Test against New Zealand in December. Jacob Bethell has also opted out of playing for Paarl Royals.

The following England players are set to take part:

Durban Super Giants: Chris Woakes

Joburg Super Kings: Moeen Ali & Jonny Bairstow

MI Cape Town: Chris Benjamin

Paarl Royals: Joe Root & Sam Hain

Pretoria Capitals: Will Jacks, Liam Livingstone, Will Smeed

Sunrisers Eastern Cape: Zak Crawley, Liam Dawson, Craig Overton, Tom Abell, Richard Gleeson

Image source, SA20

Among the six teams involved in the SA20 are a multitude of top-class players from across the world.

South Africa seamers Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje will play for MI Cape Town and Pretoria Capitals, while batters David Miller and Heinrich Klaasen will be at Paarl Royals and Durban's Super Giants. Current T20 captain Aiden Markram will play for Sunrisers Eastern Cape.

Other big names include distinguished batter Faf du Plessis who captains Joburg Super Kings and former Test wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock, who will play for Super Giants, but Test captain Temba Bavuma is not featuring in the tournament again.

Afghanistan players were popular with superstar leg-spinner Rashid Khan returning to captain MI Cape Town alongside all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai.

Rahmanullah Gurbaz will join the Capitals, while fast bowler Naveen-ul Haq and left-arm spinner Noor Ahmed both head to Super Giants. Finally, Paarl Royals bagged off-spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman.

Former New Zealand captain Kane Williamson will make his SA20 debut at Super Giants, while fellow Kiwis Devon Conway (Joburg Super Kings), Trent Boult (MI Cape Town) and Jimmy Neesham (Capitals) also feature.

West Indies fast bowler Shamar Joseph was snapped up by Super Giants, along with opening batter Brandon King, while Evin Lewis will play for Pretoria Capitals.

Other players include Australia all-rounder Marcus Stoinis (Super Giants), Sri Lanka spinner Maheesh Theekshana and seamer Matheesha Pathirana (both Super Kings) and India's Dinesh Karthik (Royals).

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Cricket Australia has announced players' availability for the remainder of the Big Bash League following the conclusion of their five-Test series against India.

Availability has been decided on an individual basis and with Australia's two-Test tour of Sri Lanka from 29 January in mind.

None of the bowlers are available, while the batters have mixed availability.

No players are set to play in the knockouts from 21-27 January.

Australia Test players' Big Bash availability

Adelaide Strikers: Alex Carey (regular season), Travis Head (not available)

Brisbane Heat: Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne (16 Jan v Hobart only)

Melbourne Renegades: Nathan Lyon (not available)

Melbourne Stars: Scott Boland (not available), Beau Webster (regular season)

Perth Scorchers: Mitchell Marsh (regular season), Jhye Richardson (regular season)

Sydney Sixers: Sean Abbott (regular season), Josh Hazlewood (not available), Steve Smith (three games from 11 Jan), Mitchell Starc (not available)

Sydney Thunder: Pat Cummins (not available), Sam Konstas (regular season)

Image source, Getty Images

The BBC's commentary on the men's Big Bash League, via its partnership with ABC Grandstand in Australia, will continue in the first week of January.

Monday, 6 January: Brisbane Heat v Sydney Thunder (07:30 GMT)

Tuesday, 7 January: Perth Scorchers v Melbourne Renegades (07:30 GMT)

Wednesday, 8 January: Sydney Thunder v Hobart Hurricanes (07:30 GMT)

Thursday, 9 January: Melbourne Stars v Sydney Sixers (07:30 GMT)

Friday, 10 January: Hobart Hurricanes v Sydney Thunder (07:30 GMT)

Saturday, 11 January: Sydney Sixers v Perth Scorchers (05:45 GMT) & Adelaide Strikers v Brisbane Heat (09:45 GMT)

Sunday, 12 January: Melbourne Stars v Melbourne Renegades* (07:30 GMT)

Commentaries will be available on BBC Sounds, BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and the BBC Sport website and app. Commentaries marked with * are website and app only.

All times are commentary start times, and subject to change. All commentaries are available to UK users only.