Swann offers island sides help ahead of T20 World Cup qualifiers
Former Ashes-winning England bowler Graeme Swann says he would be happy to help Jersey and Guernsey ahead of their T20 World Cup qualifiers.The two islands head to the Netherlands next month for the European Qualifier for the 2026 T20 World Cup.They will face Italy, Scotland and the hosts - as well as each other - with the top two booking a place at the tournament in India and Sri Lanka. Swann is a former England 'A' team-mate of Jersey director of cricket Paul Hutchison and the island side will face Swann's MCC Young Cricketers side later this month in a warm-up game."I can't wait to see that talent," Swann, who helped England win the 2009 Ashes among his 60 Test caps, told BBC Radio Jersey."The fact that they are taking on these other nations, with that one step away from being in the World Cup, that would be phenomenal."I'm more than happy to come over to Guernsey or Jersey and help out because I love both islands."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
I made the cut at the US Open... here's how much cash I really made after paying for flights, hotel and more
Each year, thousands of golfers try their luck at breaking into the field at the US Open through qualifiers or success on the PGA Tour. For amateurs this year, 975 players battled for 65 spots. One of those lucky amateurs who earned their way into the field at Oakmont Country Club this year was James Nicholas. Nicholas, a former dual-sport athlete at Yale University who now competes on the Korn Ferry Tour, revealed the costs that he incumbered to make it into the field at the third major on the golfing calendar. The 28-year-old, who sits 66th in points on the Korn Ferry, tried his luck to break through the field at Canoe Brook Country Club in Summit, New Jersey. His 36-hole qualifying endeavor during 'the longest day in golf' paid off for him - as he joined Ben James, Chris Gotterup, and Roberto Diaz in making the field. Nicholas beat out the likes of high schoolers, clubhouse pros, aspiring amateurs, and even those on the PGA Tour to make the field. The Scarsdale, New York native shot a 67-68 to beat the rest of the field by a single stroke in order to make the US Open for the first time in his career. But, to reach the pinnacle of the sport in the US comes with a cost - especially when it comes to qualifying. In a video posted to his nearly 400,000 followers on TikTok and 128,000 on Instagram, Nicholas broke down exactly what he spent and what he earned along his journey. Nicholas says the whole endeavor ran him about $2,186. That covered flights (including to the US Open near Pittsburgh), hotels, food at the events, and other costs. He says that Lexus conveniently provided him with a rental car at the US Open. Additionally, the USGA gave the golfers plenty of gifts - including golf balls, shoes, a range finder, a duffel bag, and more. Other things provided to Nicholas included tickets to a Pittsburgh Pirates game and his accommodations for the US Open. In addition to his travel and competition costs above, Nicholas said he did splurge on merchandise - spending about $250. Wrapping up his costs, Nicholas spent $315 on groceries for the week, $150 on a tip for the locker room staff, $2,500 for his caddie's base salary and an eight percent bonus of $3,500. Nicholas says his total costs came out to $7,220. However, if you add up all the numbers in red shown in the video, the math comes out to $8,901. has reached out to Nicholas for clarification. Nicholas reported his earnings for the weekend at $43,544 after making the cut and coming in at a tie for 61st at 19-over par. In total, Nicholas says that he earned $34,894 from his endeavor after his costs and taxes were deducted. After his final round had finished, Nicholas says one of his sponsors flew him home on a private jet for free. So far this season on the Korn Ferry Tour, Nicholas earned $62,679. He'll hope to make more this weekend at the Wichita Open in Kansas.
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Two superstars will decide outcome of England-India test series claims Rob Key
Rob Key claimed that Ben Stokes and Jasprit Bumrah are the reason cricket fans turn on the TV, ahead of the England v India Test series. Headingley plays host to the opening Test of the five-match series on Friday 20 June, with England lining up against an India side lacking some of their top talents. With the likes of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma now retired, star pace bowler Bumrah is one of the remaining frontline figures of the travelling squad. Key, the ex-Kent batter and current England Cricket managing director, has looked ahead to the upcoming Test series, saying: 'What you want is the likes of Jasprit Bumrah and Ben Stokes playing at their best… that's why people turn on the TV.' Speaking to the Times of India, Key added: 'With Stokes, we know he's probably not going to be able to bowl 10-15 over spells time and time again. Ben is one of the brightest cricketers. 'You can see that by the way he captains. He's got to look after himself, which he will do. You want to make sure that you've got these players there for every pivotal moment.' With Sharma's retirement India were in need of a new captain and Bumrah was not made India skipper because of fitness concerns. The mantel instead went to highly-rated batsman Shubman Gill who will need to orchestrate a run of strong performances in challenging conditions for the tourists. Stokes, who has spent plenty of time managing his recovery from recent injuries, was made England captain when Joe Root stepped down in 2022 and has overseen a resurgence in the test side over the last three years. The 34-year-old worked in partnership with coach Brendan McCullum to introduce a more free-flowing and positive nature of play though recent series have focused on refining 'Bazball' to suit match situations. Bumrah and Stokes will surely be important figures in the five-match series, which will see the inaugural awarding of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. The title was renamed earlier in the year, recognising the top run-scorer in Test history, Sachin Tendulkar, and the most successful wicket taker in the international red ball game, James Anderson.
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
De Villiers calls for WTC change despite SA victory
South Africa's World Test Championship triumph "stirred the emotions" of the country, but there is "still work to be done" on the format, says Proteas legend AB de Bavuma's side beat Australia by five wickets in the Lord's final last week to end the country's 27-year wait for a men's global victory comes after a number of near misses in International Cricket Council (ICC) tournaments that earned the Proteas their unwanted "chokers" tag, but De Villiers hopes that can now become a thing of the past."We've had some very disappointing and sad ends to a lot of campaigns, especially the World Cups, but now it's time to start believing that we can do this more often," he told BBC World Service's Stumped on their Test success may be tricky, though, as South Africa play only four Tests in the next 16 months - two in Zimbabwe in the next month, that are not part of the World Test Championship, and two in India in sort of victorious homecoming for the red-ball side will have to wait even longer with the Proteas' next home Tests not scheduled until October 2026, when they face Australia in a three-match series."[This moment] won't be lost," De Villiers said. "It was too big and too special for all South Africans - it was a Test match no one will ever forget."But yes, to a certain extent, something needs to be done."I saw the schedule that came out for the next cycle of the WTC and there is an improvement, but I still feel there's work that needs to be done there to just to get it as consistent as possible and as fair as possible for all for all Test-playing nations." The 2025-27 WTC cycle began on Tuesday and, as it stands, the number of Tests each team plays over the two years varies Africa played 12 matches to qualify for the recent final, the joint-fewest of the nine sides and 10 fewer than England, who played the most, with percentage of points earned used to determine the is also a discrepancy in who each nation plays, with some highlighting a favourable schedule for the Proteas in 2023-25 qualifying that meant they played just two home Tests against India and did not face Australia or England at contrast, in the new cycle they have the two aforementioned Tests in India and host both Australia and England for three Tests apiece in 2026 and early 2027."You want to get to that final feeling like you've played against all these nations," De Villiers added."Maybe a four-year cycle would be nice. We've done that in the past with one-day internationals, so why not in Test cricket?"It would make sense and it would give the organisers just so much more time to get a really fair, well-balanced system out there."It's a long time until our next Test match, but there's no doubt it won't be forgotten."I've absolutely no doubt the Proteas have sort of stirred the emotions of the South African cricketing fans and they will patiently wait for that next encounter."Listen to the full interview with South Africa great AB de Villiers on the Stumped podcast, available on BBC Sounds, from Thursday.
