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The West Indies Cricket Board finalised a three-year plan to increase retainer fees for women’s players and also approved the membership of the West Indies Retired Players Foundation (WIRPF) at a board meeting

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jul-2013The West Indies Cricket Board finalised a three-year plan to increase retainer fees for women’s players and also approved the membership of the West Indies Retired Players Foundation (WIRPF). The decisions were taken at the WICB’s board meeting held in Guyana on July 13.The WICB plans to increase retainer fees for women players by 100% over the next three years, starting with a 40% increase in 2013-14, followed by a 30% hike over the next two years. The board also approved a recommendation that makes it mandatory for all territories to establish women’s cricket leagues a year before they participate in regional tournaments.The WIRPF, a joint initiative between the WICB and the West Indies Players Association (WIPA), seeks to involve former players to help the game at the regional level. Former West Indies players, Wavell Hinds and Nixon McLean will represent WIPA in the foundation along with WICB-appointed members, Delano Franklyn and Nigel Camacho. The foundation will be headed by Brian George, president and CEO of Supreme Ventures Ltd, Jamaica.Hinds, who is also the president of the WIPA, said that the creation of the foundation was an important moment in West Indies cricket.”Michael Hall (the CEO) and I, along with the other members of WIPA’s new executive are very excited about the formation of the WIRPF,” Hinds said. “It’s not just for the direct benefits it brings to those who have served the game and the region, but also because it represents another collaborative effort between the WICB and WIPA.””The skills and services of our retired players have not been utilised in a manner befitting their stature and the situation needed to be improved,” WICB president Whycliffe Cameron said. “Our former players have international reputations for success and achievement and we must now, in a formal and structured way, undertake the necessary work to utilize their expertise to help to improve and redevelop West Indies Cricket.”

ESPNcricinfo previews the third ODI between England and Australia

The Preview by Alan Gardner10-Sep-2013

Match Facts

September 11, Edgbaston
Start time 2pm (1300 GMT)Australia produced an accomplished all-round performance to take a 1-0 lead in the series at Old Trafford•Getty Images

The Big Picture

They say you learn more from your mistakes than your successes and, if so, there should be a fair amount of wisdom to be gleaned from the scribbles in Ashley Giles’ notebook after the weekend. Eoin Morgan, England’s stand-in captain, won the toss and Steven Finn bowled a wicket maiden but little went right from then on, as Australia took a 1-0 lead in the series and Michael Clarke collected twin laurels, with his first ODI hundred against England and his first victory on tour.England have rolled out a half-and-half squad for these fixtures, so it should not be a surprise if the product is a little half-baked. The likes of Michael Carberry and Ben Stokes deserve a few goes in the kitchen to properly evaluate whether they can handle the heat and, while there were obvious deficiencies in the performance at Old Trafford, a couple of the ingredients came off well – Boyd Rankin has seamlessly transferred the promise of his Ireland career to England colours and Jos Buttler was able to showcase his exotic skills over a longer innings.While England fiddle, Australia have capitalised, the confidence that slowly coalesced around the second half of their Ashes campaign becoming firmer by the game. Despite a disappointing Champions Trophy, one-day cricket is probably Australia’s strongest suit and they are focused on fine-tuning their best XI. That the explosive opening partnership of Shaun Marsh and Aaron Finch was quickly defused, and Fawad Ahmed struggled to influence the game, only suggests that they can perform better still.

Form guide

(Most recent first)
England LWLWW
Australia WWLLW

Watch out for…

Mitchell Johnson has described how alien it felt to watch the summer’s Ashes skirmishes from his couch in Australia and knows that a fire-breathing performance in the one-day series can help get him back into Test contention. With Mitchell Starc the latest of Australia’s cadre of young pacemen to pull up lame, the chances of a return to Mitch 1.0 during the return series have increased. Johnson may not have some of the natty upgrades of the new generation but, despite the clanking action and occasional processing glitches, operating speeds of 90mph never go out of fashion.Morgan and Giles have argued against suggestions that the selection was wrong at Old Trafford but the make-up of England’s attack will be under extra scrutiny. Their strategy in the 18 months leading up to the Champions Trophy was to play five genuine bowlers, with the possibility of a Ravi Bopara or Joe Root providing a few overs, but an experimental squad for this series has led to them tinkering with the formula, playing Durham allrounder Stokes as the third seamer and No. 8 batsman. On the evidence of the bowling displays against Ireland and Australia, it hasn’t worked.

Team news

England seem firm in their convictions about the balance of the side but they do have other options. Jamie Overton is the bolter that most England watchers want to see but that would lengthen the tail; perhaps the most appealing compromise would be to give Root a rest and bring in the Sussex quick Chris Jordan, who is also a capable batsman, for a first senior cap.England (possible) 1 Michael Carberry, 2 Kevin Pietersen, 3 Jonathan Trott, 4 Eoin Morgan (capt), 5 Ravi Bopara, 6 Jos Buttler (wk), 7 Ben Stokes, 8 Chris Jordan, 9 James Tredwell, 10 Boyd Rankin, 11 Steven FinnAfter a tumultuous couple of months, we are now beginning to see Darren Lehmann’s Australia masterplan come together. This is the first squad Lehmann has picked himself and George Bailey has praised the atmosphere in the group. Winning helps and a settled side could stay unchanged for a third outing.Australia (possible) 1 Aaron Finch, 2 Shaun Marsh, 3 Shane Watson, 4 Michael Clarke (capt), 5 George Bailey, 6 Adam Voges, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 James Faulkner, 9 Mitchell Johnson, 10 Clint McKay, 11 Fawad Ahmed

Pitch and conditions

It was at Edgbaston during the Champions Trophy that England’s summer of turners began. India’s spinners found the pitches to be a home from home during their triumphant campaign and despite the arrival of some autumnal weather, a slow, dry surface conducive to spin seems likely. A forecast for rain in the evening won’t be to anyone’s liking, however.

Stats and trivia

• As well as a wet no result against New Zealand during the Champions Trophy, Australia suffered a washout and an abandonment on their previous two visits to Birmingham in 2012 and 2005.
• England’s win over Australia at Edgbaston at the 2004 Champions Trophy ended a run of 14 consecutive ODI defeats dating back to 1999.
• Australia’s one-day record of nine wins and four defeats in 2013 (win percentage of 69.23%) is second only to India’s.
• George Bailey is 30 runs short of 1000 in ODIs.

Quotes

“When you’ve got inexperience, you’re going to have to suffer some pain occasionally to get some gain.”
“We’ve played some good cricket for the last couple of months, and it’s our time now to really put our foot on the throat and win these last few games.”

Kraigg Brathwaite went ahead and brought up the only hundred of the match on a final day when everybody just went through their motions. The match was called off at 3.30pm, the earliest it could have been.

The Report by Sidharth Monga in Shimoga05-Oct-2013
ScorecardFile Photo: Kraigg Brathwaite remained unbeaten on 104•BCCI

Kraigg Brathwaite went ahead and brought up the only hundred of the match on a final day when everybody just went through their motions. The match was called off at 3.30pm, the earliest it could have been, and the teams travelled to Hubli, waiting for a more interesting contest.There wasn’t even an outside chance of a result after 20 wickets had taken three days to fall on a slow and flat pitch. The only matter of interest left was to see how Zaheer Khan would bowl. He tested the batsmen with some short-pitched bowling, but had only a wicket to show for his eight overs bowled on the final day to take his innings figures to 13-4-27-1.Zaheer began the day with a concentrated short-ball barrage at Kieran Powell. The pitch didn’t offer much bounce, but Zaheer’s accuracy meant he hit the batsman on the forearm twice, and made him fend too. Powell managed to punch him for a four, but was eventually caught on the back foot when Zaheer bowled one full and outside off. The edge was taken, Zaheer’s plan had worked, but that was the last success he got in his first first-class match of the year.One of the few players who would have come out happy for this match was West Indies A captain Kirk Edwards. Not because of his scores, but because during the match he received the news he has been picked for the Tests against India. He last represented West Indies in May 2012. Although he believed he shouldn’t have been here in order to make the comeback. Before the start of the match, when asked if this tour could help him force his way back, he said he was hoping he wouldn’t have to play the A tour to return to the national squad.Back in the side now, Edwards is “grateful”, but not content. “It feels good to be back to international cricket,” he said, “but having said that, I am in the squad and not in the XI. I am not guaranteed to play. But it is a step closer to where I want to be so I am grateful.”Edwards did go on to suggest he was not entirely happy with being out of the side. “I can’t say I was confident of making the team because I have seen worse things happen to me over the last couple of years,” he said. “I never count my chickens before they are hatched.”I was frustrated at the beginning but you have to face the reality,” he added. “Instead of thinking about things not happening for you, it is best to think about what is happening for you. You need a positive mindset. You need to be confident that whatever you set out to do, nobody can stop you from doing.”Edwards prescribed similar attitude to others who might think they have been hard done with. “Sorry, my heart is a bit cold about feeling bad for people because it is just cricket,” he said. “Sometimes the guys who really don’t have to do much and they get picked. Then there are guys who really have to work hard and get picked. I have observed that over a period of time. I have no feelings for people who – I don’t want to say I don’t have feelings for them – but whoever is hard done needs to suck it up, and go and work extra hard and get back instead of sting around and moping about the situation.”Was it hard to tell himself the same when “worse things” were happening to him? “Not very hard because that’s how I am,” Edwards said. “Just a tough life, buddy. You just have to face it. Simple.”

Chris Morris, the Rajasthan Royals fast bowler, has said Shane Watson had handed the team’s captaincy to Steven Smith to concentrate more on his batting and bowling

ESPNcricinfo staff11-May-2015Chris Morris, the Rajasthan Royals fast bowler, has said Shane Watson had handed the team’s captaincy to Steven Smith to concentrate more on his batting and bowling. It had come as a surprise when Smith walked out for the toss when Royals played Chennai Super Kings in Chennai.”The decision was taken a couple of days ago. It is a tough job to captain a T20 team, especially when you are bowling first and your mind is all over the game,” Morris told iplt20.com after Royals lost by 12 runs in Chennai. “And then you come off and strap your batting pads on in 10 minutes. It becomes a bit of a roller-coaster game.”I doff my hat off to Watson for giving up the captaincy and taking more responsibility for his batting. It was a responsible thing to do. We all appreciated it as team men and moved on from there.”Watson scored 205 runs in six innings at an average of 34.16 as captain, and had taken four wickets with an economy of 9.47 overall.Smith had led Royals for four games at the start of the season because Watson was injured, and they won all of those matches. After Watson’s return, however, Royals won only two matches, losing four while two games were washed out. The slump in form left them needing to win their last league game in Kolkata to have a chance of making the playoffs.”I guess the oppositions got their teams right in terms of selection. I really don’t know what has happened. There were a couple of games that went to the last ball,” Morris said when asked about Royals’ string of losses. “Cricket is a game of margins and we needed to get the last ball to go our way but it didn’t on a couple of occasions. I will not point fingers at any particular department. The entire team wins or loses. There have been some mistakes that we have made and spoken about. At the end of the day it is the small margins in cricket that will cost you.”Royals lost the match against Super Kings despite Morris producing his best IPL figures – 3 for 19. “Pretty happy with my bowling but disappointed with the loss. The wicket was a bit slow, so the batsmen expected a lot of slower balls and pitched-up deliveries. So, I thought I’ll use the bouncer as a surprise ball,” Morris said. “The yorker is something I work really hard on and train a lot for in the nets. If you get it right no one can really hit it out of the park unless you are Brendon McCullum and go on one knee. It is also a confidence thing. On some days it lands well for you and today was just one of those days for me.”

Thailand will host the ICC Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier from November 28 to December 5 later this year

ESPNcricinfo staff28-May-2015Thailand will host the ICC Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier from November 28 to December 5 later this year. The top-two sides from the eight participating countries will meet reigning champion Australia, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and West Indies in the World T20 2016 in India.Hosts Thailand will be joined by China, Netherlands, Papua New Guinea, Scotland and Zimbabwe which all qualified for the tournament through regional tournaments. Bangladesh and Ireland will also have to go through qualification after finishing ninth and 10th in the previous World T20 held in Bangladesh.The eight teams will be divided into two groups with the top two from each group moving to the trophy semi-finals. The teams contesting the trophy final will qualify for the World T20 2016. The 20 matches in the tournament will be equally shared between the Thailand Cricket Ground and the Asian Institute of Technology Ground in Bangkok.”This event will provide an opportunity to the Cricket Association of Thailand to promote and market the game in its territory, an opportunity which will highlight the truly global appeal of the women’s game,” said Clare Connor, the ICC women’s committee chair and former England captain. “The regional qualifying tournaments, the ICC Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier and the ongoing ICC Women’s Championship are all testament to the fact that women’s cricket is thriving. With two ICC Women’s World Cups, two ICC World Twenty20s and two stand-alone ICC Women’s World Twenty20s to take place over the next seven years, these are unprecedented times for women’s cricket in terms of volume of cricket and give us a wealth of fantastic opportunities to enhance the profile of our sport.”This is the second edition of the Women’s World T20 Qualifier, after the 2013 event in Dublin jointly won by Pakistan and Sri Lanka, who qualified for the Women’s World T20 2014 along with Ireland.

Jamie Atkinson stepped down as captain after Hong Kong’s eight-wicket win over Namibia in a one-dayer on March 17, Tanwir Afzal was named as his immediate replacement

ESPNcricinfo staff19-May-2015Jamie Atkinson has stepped down as Hong Kong captain after his team’s eight-wicket win over Namibia in a one-dayer on May 17. Fast-bowling allrounder Tanwir Afzal was named Atkinson’s temporary replacement for the remainder of the Namibia tour and he led the side in their 59-run win in the first T20, in which Atkinson made an unbeaten 37-ball 64.Wicketkeeper batsman Atkinson, 24, had made history as the first person born in the 1990s to play ODI cricket when he made his debut against Pakistan in the 2008 Asia Cup at age 17.He cited a slump in his form over the past few series as the main reason for stepping down. “It has been a pleasure to lead this side over the last three and a half years and the win over Bangladesh in their own backyard and gaining ODI status were the biggest highlights of my term as captain,” Atkinson said. “It is a tough job and it has taken its toll on me. My performances over the last few series haven’t been the standard I set for myself or the team. I think it’s the perfect time to have a fresh outlook with a new captain.””I’m looking forward to supporting the incoming captain and to helping the team with my performances as a top-order batsmen and keeper as well as supporting the younger guys coming into the team which will help the incoming captain.”Hong Kong Cricket Association Director of Cricket and Head Coach Charlie Burke praised Atkinson for his contribution as captain and player. “I would go as far to say he probably is the most successful Hong Kong captain by gaining ODI status, qualifying for a World T20 and playing off for bronze in the 2014 Asian Games,” Burke said. “I will never forget his leadership against Bangladesh in the World T20 and the way he put so much faith and belief in his bowlers.HKCA are expected to announce a permanent successor to Atkinson shortly.

The New Zealand batsmen huffed and puffed, and eventually fell short of their target of 143 by 17 runs, unable to tackle the Indian spinners in the first women’s ODI in Bangalore

The Report by Vishal Dikshit in Bangalore28-Jun-2015

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFile photo – Jhulan Goswami struck 57 off 67 balls to haul India to 142, which proved enough in the end•Getty Images

The New Zealand batsmen struggled and scuttled, crawled and scampered, huffed and puffed, and eventually fell short of their target of 143 by 17 runs, unable to tackle the Indian spinners in the first Women’s ODI in Bangalore. Even after reducing India to 87 for 8 within 31 overs, New Zealand allowed the hosts to come close to 150, with Jhulan Goswami’s maiden ODI fifty, and later struggled to get substantial partnerships going in the chase. The win gives India two crucial points for the ICC Women’s Championship as they were at the bottom of the table before the match started.After medium-pacer Lea Tahuhu and spinners Leigh Kasperek and Morna Nielsen bowled impressively in conditions alien to them, to bundle India out, they needed someone more than just Suzie Bates and Sophie Devine to get going in the chase. Debutant Kasperek fought it out till the end with an unbeaten 21, but she ran out of partners as three wickets from Sneh Rana, and two each from Harmanpreet Kaur and Ekta Bisht bowled them out for 125.Tight lines from Goswami and a round-the-wicket angle from left-arm spinner Bisht resulted in a slow start for the visitors. Opener Rachel Priest played out 18 dot balls without opening her account and was trapped lbw by Bisht under pressure. Fleetingly, it looked like Bates and Amy Satterthwaite would cruise through the chase when Satterthwaite creamed a drive through the covers in the eighth over and Bates flicked one off her pads in the next, finally taking the run rate over two per over.But batsmen from both teams could be held accountable for giving their wickets away after going into a shell or hitting full-tosses to fielders. First, Satterthwaite fell to a sharp catch from Smriti Mandhana at short cover and then a mix up between Bates and Kate Broadmore, who also took 13 balls to get off the mark, made the score 38 for 3. New Zealand’s biggest blow came within three overs after that when Bates was squared up by Rajeshwari Gayakwad’s left-arm spin, which beat her leg-side whip, and ended her patient innings on 28.The fifth-wicket stand between Katie Perkins and Devine, the only partnership to resist for more than eight overs, shifted the momentum back by nudging the ball in gaps and forcing the fielders to make mistakes. Mithali Raj tried five different bowlers during that and it finally paid off when Perkins was foxed by a back-of-the-hand delivery from Harmanpreet that turned in sharply.The final dent of the chase came just before the batting Powerplay when Devine cut Harmanpreet straight to backward point for 24. It was only Kasperek’s unbeaten knock that kept them alive for a while from there. Anna Peterson missed a wild slog against Rana and Maddy Green handed a full toss back to the same bowler to make it 110 for 8. Even though Tahuhu and Nielsen struck three fours between them to bring the required runs under 20, a run-out and Nielsen’s catch to short cover made Kasperek a mere spectator to end the match.Earlier, Bates lost her sixth consecutive toss in ODIs but she made the most of her bowling resources. Tahuhu’s offcutters reaped benefits early when one of them found the gap between Poonam Raut’s bat and pad and another deceived Shikha Pandey that was full and quick, to trap her lbw. While Raj looked in good touch from ball one, Mandhana, the other opener, came down the track to break the shackles but was stumped after being beaten in flight by Nielsen. Most of the other wickets were a result of poor shot selection. An almost well-set Raj gave Kasperek her maiden international wicket by smashing a full toss to short midwicket where Perkins took a stunning catch, diving to her right.Kasperek’s flight and drift didn’t give India any room to breathe. Harmanpreet swept to glove a catch to the wicketkeeper down the leg side and Veda Krishnamurthy was trapped lbw, also trying to sweep. Fifty-five for 6 became 87 for 8 in no time as Rana and Bisht also gave their wickets away to full-tosses, both off Nielsen.Goswami’s innings included two parts – she first avoided India from being bowled out for under 100 and then pushed it to nearly 150. For her first 45 balls she relied mostly on ones and twos, and once the batting Powerplay started, she switched gears to show how cleanly she could find the gaps when the situation demanded, mainly targeting the spinners.R Kalpana and Gayakwad, gave her ample support by blocking and leaving plenty outside off for stands of 26 and 29, the top two of the innings. Goswami used her feet to clear the in-field mostly on the leg side and got to her fifty with a four to the square-leg boundary in the 44th over. She followed it by dispatching a full toss to the cow-corner boundary three balls later but was bowled for 57 when she tried to slog Tahuhu, to end the innings on 142.

USA wicketkeeper Akeem Dodson has questioned the motivation of some members of the team including captain Muhammad Ghous

Peter Della Penna in Belfast14-Jul-2015USA wicketkeeper Akeem Dodson, who top-scored with 49 in USA’s seven-wicket loss to Namibia at Stormont on Monday, rejected any notion that his team threw in the towel early in the second innings. However, he questioned the motivation of some members of the team, including thinly veiled criticism directed at captain Muhammad Ghous.”I wouldn’t say the team gave up,” Dodson told ESPNcricinfo after the match. “Maybe a few players felt that they weren’t in a position to bowl or they didn’t want to bowl. In this kind of game, especially in a T20 game, you need a big heart. Sometimes when the ball is getting hit 100 meters, a lot of bowlers are afraid. Their heart gets a little weak and their arms might get a little lazy.”With Namibia on 73 for 0 after seven overs, and openers Stephen Baard and Gerrie Snyman both having already been dropped, Ghous brought on specialist batsmen Alex Amsterdam and Timothy Surujbally – a player who had only bowled two overs in eight previous T20 games – to bowl for USA in the eighth and ninth overs. Ghous had bowled two overs for nine runs at the start of the chase but did not reappear for the rest of the game.”It really takes being a bigger person and understanding that ‘Yeah, I’m a big bowler and this is when I need to bowl’, especially as a top bowler in the team,” Dodson said. “It was the captain’s choice. It was his decision, he made the decision and we have to live with it.”Dodson, 27, is USA’s most experienced batsman in the squad, having played 29 T20s and is their leading run-scorer in the tournament with 88 runs in three games. Dodson took responsibility for throwing his wicket away on 49 going for a six, calling it the turning point in the match at the start of the 14th over, which precipitated USA’s feeble first-innings finish to go from 82 for 3 to a total of 113 for 8.In contrast to USA’s opening match of the tournament, where they fought till the final over to defend a total of 121, Namibia reached the target of 114 with 43 balls to spare. Dodson said the team’s performance in the field was a disappointment but that morale was low heading into the innings break.”I think the fielding performance today was lackluster,” Dodson said. “I think because we ended up with that total, we lost momentum. There wasn’t the same kind of fight that you saw in Indianapolis and you saw in the first couple of games. No-balls are always costly and in the T20 game fielding is king. Fielding is where you’re going to win it or lose it and today I think it lost it for us.”It could have made the game a lot more interesting if we took those catches, if that no-ball was a wicket [with Snyman on 7]. If we had got Snyman’s wicket early, then it could have been a whole different game. We have to really emphasize that it is where we want to be a cut above the rest. If we are able to field well and field better than other teams, then we’ll be able to win games.”USA resume Group A action against Jersey on Wednesday at Bready after an off day. The previous match between Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea at Bready on Monday was washed out and USA’s final pre-tournament warm-up at the same ground against Kenya was also abandoned. Dodson said the team is hoping that the rain will stay away in order to give them a chance to break the losing streak.”The outlook is still bright I believe,” Dodson said. “We have to play well and win these games. The biggest problem will be watching the weather. We have Jersey at Bready. I feel that even though Jersey won a really good game against Hong Kong, we have the firepower to take them on and beat them. I think that’s going to be our rebound. Once we can rebound from there and regroup, Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea better watch out.”

Ross Taylor has been ruled out of New Zealand’s tour of Zimbabwe and South Africa after undergoing minor surgery for a groin injury

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Aug-2015Ross Taylor has been ruled out of New Zealand’s tour of Zimbabwe and South Africa after undergoing minor surgery for a groin injury. Taylor suffered a blow to the groin during training a day before the third ODI in Harare and will miss the remaining two matches against Zimbabwe, as well as the following two T20Is and three ODIs against South Africa.A New Zealand Cricket release stated that with 16 players in the squad, no replacement will be required for Taylor. James Neesham took the batsman’s place in the New Zealand XI for the third ODI against Zimbabwe.

Chris Rogers, the former Australia opener, has signed a one-year deal with Somerset who will become his fifth English county

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Oct-2015Chris Rogers, the former Australia opener, has signed a one-year deal with Somerset who will become his fifth English county.Rogers retired from international cricket after the final Ashes Test at The Oval in August and his highest score, 173, came during the series at Lord’s although that was also the match where he was forced to retire hurt after suffering dizzy spells in the second innings.Somerset have said that Rogers is set to bat at No. 3 next season, meaning the opening partnership will remain Marcus Trescothick and 21-year-old Tom Abell who made 726 runs at 36.30 in 2015 and won the LV=Breakthrough Player award.”I’m really pleased to be joining a club of the stature of Somerset,” Rogers said. “I have always enjoyed playing cricket in England and as soon as I heard that Somerset were interested I wanted to make it happen. There have been quite a few Australian players who have done really well down at Taunton and hopefully I can add my name to that list. I’m looking forward to the challenge and can’t wait to get started.”Somerset held onto their Division One status in the Championship although were not secure until the final round. Their batting has continued to lean heavily on Trescothick and James Hildreth, who scored 1284 and 1390 runs respectively in the 2015 season, although the emergence of Abell was a significant development.Matthew Maynard, Somerset’s director of cricket, hopes Rogers’ wealth of experience will rub off on the younger players. “Chris Rogers is an outstanding batsman with an excellent attitude towards the game. He will score runs on the field and will have a positive impact off it as well. He is an excellent professional and our young players will learn a lot from him.”Rogers has previously played county cricket for Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Derbyshire and most recently Middlesex until 2014. However, his connections with Middlesex ended in somewhat controversial circumstances when he became embroiled in an Ashes ticket scheme where a company Rogers co-founded was offering hospitality packages for sale.Somerset also announced the signing of 18-year-old wicketkeeper Ryan Davies from Kent. He has played for England Under-19s having joined the Kent Academy as a 13-year-old. Somerset have struggled for a regular wicketkeeper since the double loss of Jos Buttler to Lancashire and Craig Kieswetter to injury-forced retirement.Alex Barrow played six Championship matches in 2015 but averaged just 13.33 and the county subsequently signed New Zealand wicketkeeper Luke Ronchi and the former Hampshire gloveman Michael Bates.