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Sreesanth and Ankeet Chavan, two of the three Rajasthan Royals players arrested on charges of alleged spot-fixing, have been granted bail by a trial court in Delhi on Monday

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Jun-2013Sreesanth and Ankeet Chavan, two of the three Rajasthan Royals players arrested on charges of alleged spot-fixing, have been granted bail by a trial court in Delhi on Monday. Seventeen others arrested in relation to the case were also given bail.The 19 accused will be released from Tihar Jail on Wednesday, but have been asked to surrender their passports.Ajit Chandila, the third Royals player under arrest, has not applied for bail yet.The judge said the Delhi Police had not produced enough evidence to charge the players under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), a special law passed by the Maharashtra state government to tackle organised crime syndicates and terrorism which contains far stricter provisions relating to bail and admissibility of confessions compared to the Indian Penal Code.Sreesanth, Chavan and Ajit Chandila were arrested on May 16, following which they were suspended by the BCCI pending an inquiry. They were charged under the Indian Penal Code sections 420 and 120B, which deal with fraud, cheating, and criminal conspiracy. Royals also suspended the contracts of all three players, who were allegedly promised money ranging from US$36,000 to 109,000 by bookies for under-performing.

Ravi Bopara batted at No. 8 with a runner in a bid to prove his England fitness as Essex and Kent failed to contrive a positive result

Charles Randall at Chelmsford12-May-2012
ScorecardMark Pettini was the only Essex batsman to master the conditions•Getty Images

It would have been funny if it had not been so serious for Ravi Bopara, a man with almost-certainly dashed England hopes. He batted today with a runner for just over an hour and a half, ran himself out in classic village green style and did not appear in the field for the fag end of this Division Two stalemate.Although Essex were optimistic about Bopara’s ability to be fit for the first Test against West Indies, starting at Lord’s on Thursday, the evidence of his innings suggested England would be unwise to take the gamble. He suffered a “slight tear” to his right thigh in the field on Friday and though he batted for his team, at No. 8, in pursuit of bonus points, his discomfort was clear.During an over in the morning Essex had four batsmen on the square while Bopara and Alviro Petersen used runners, a rare occurrence for a partnership at first-class level, perhaps in any cricket. Bopara looked far from sprightly when he instinctively moved into a run with a midwicket stroke off Ivan Thomas and pulled up with a ghastly stagger. After some scurried runs seemingly in all directions, and five balls without any real mishap, both batsmen sent off their assistants – though Bopara was publicly persuaded to change his mind by the Essex physio Chris Clarke-Irons. So Greg Smith trotted back on, while Petersen, hobbling on a sore ankle, did his best without Tom Westley.With no sign of declarations or targets, Essex’s innings creaked along, owing just about all momentum to Mark Pettini. The last three wickets fell for no runs when Charlie Shreck picked up two in two and Bopara ran himself out, finally forgetting his runner. Bopara pushed a Mark Davies delivery into the covers and set off for the single, reaching ‘safety’ at the other end along with his runner before realising he should have stayed at the crease. Kent did not spot their opportunity until Shreck screamed at his colleagues to get the ball back to wicketkeeper Geraint Jones, who removed the bails at leisure.Pettini, seeking his first Championship hundred for three seasons, batted exceptionally well, though he struggled to score against the constant probing by Davies, the pick of the Kent attack. Resuming on 61, Pettini cut effectively, concentrated well and look set for his much-needed century when Thomas seamed one back into him to win an lbw shout and the innings tailed off after that.Thomas, 20, impressed as a Championship rookie with more whip in his action than one might think. He has had first-class experience with Leeds-Bradford University this season, including the destruction of a callow Sussex side, when he took 6 for 21 in the second innings in Leeds. A memorable maiden wicket for Kent came courtesy of a flying goalkeeper catch in the covers by Brendon Nash, clinging to a full-blooded cut by Essex’s captain James Foster.Both counties harbour expectations of climbing out of this division, but it was a shame that some sort of arrangement could not be reached. Kent, 131 ahead overnight, might have persuaded Essex to chase something as they held some aces in Davies, Shreck and the England offspinner James Tredwell. Thomas could also have been added to the mix on an easing, but still helpful, Chelmsford strip.With Bopara and Petersen unfit, Essex’s batting looked depleted. “The problem with declaring overnight would have been forfeiting batting points, though as it turned out we didn’t get any,” Foster said. “We weren’t expecting to get only 181; we were hoping to get 350. A chase would have been quite a risk as the ball was nibbling about.”Rob Key felt he lost “a horror” of a toss and was elated that his Kent side had gained a first innings lead after their collapse to 9 for 5, thanks mainly to a superb century by Darren Stevens. As so often in county cricket, the effort of fighting back seemed to inflate the fear of defeat. “It was so wet on the first day and by the end it was so dry,” Key said. “We thought it was going to be hard work trying to set up a game. I felt we would have to throw up so many and we would only have two sessions, if that, to bowl. The pitch didn’t deteriorate enough to make it interesting. Essex would have been able to block out, so that the result was either a win for them or a draw.”

Sri Lanka will step up their preparations for the first Test against England when they face a strong Lions side at Derby

Andrew McGlashan18-May-2011Sri Lanka will step up their preparations for the first Test against England when they face a strong Lions side at Derby. It’s a sign of the depth in English cricket that a formidable second team can be drawn up and they should give the tourists a good idea of their readiness for Cardiff.Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara, along with the other three players who spent an extra week at the IPL, have arrived so the visitors are now at full strength. Facing the likes of Steven Finn, Ajmal Shahzad and Graham Onions, who has made an impressive return to action after a career-threatening back injury, will be a good test of adjustment for them on a Derby pitch that often offers help to the pace bowlers.Regardless of their form, however, Jayawardene and Sangakkara will line up in the Test side alongside Tillakaratne Dilshan, Tharanga Paranavitana and Thilan Samaraweera. This match will help Stuart Law, Sri Lanka’s interim coach, and the selectors decide who will be the final specialist batsman – presuming that is the balance they opt for.Against Middlesex, at Uxbridge, they went for two spinners on a flat surface but the Test attack may only include one slow bowler. Suraj Randiv, the tall offspinner, will be given a chance to press his claim after Rangana Herath and Ajantha Mendis did the job in the opening match. Herath’s useful batting could edge the stakes in his favour.That leaves the quick bowling. Dilhara Fernando is pencilled in with the new ball and Chandaka Welegedara took five wickets in the match against Middlesex. The one to watch, after a hint from Law, is Nuwan Pradeep who has been called a slightly less slingy Lasith Malinga. England’s analysts, one of who was at Uxbridge, will no doubt be compiling a library of footage ahead of the Test series.The England selectors will also be watching closely. There is a long season ahead and a pool of reserve talent will come in handy. At least one of the Lions will be appearing in Cardiff with a replacement needed for Paul Collingwood at No. 6, while there is also a pace-bowling vacancy due to Tim Bresnan’s torn calf.The contest between Ravi Bopara and Eoin Morgan has been billed as a shootout for the batting slot, ahead of the squad announcement on Sunday morning, but this England set-up doesn’t operate in that way. They’ll know who they want in the Test team. The smart money is on Bopara and plenty of things favour him. He has overcome a tricky start to the season to score 408 Championship runs with two hundreds and chip in with nine wickets for Essex, while twice turning down IPL advances.Morgan has spent the last six weeks in India with limited success for Kolkata Knight Riders, hitting one fifty in 12 innings. He returned to the UK on Saturday and was at Uxbridge the following day netting against his Middlesex team-mates (and Angus Fraser). He’ll cling to the knowledge that he was England’s most recent stand-by batsman in Australia, but it’s more than four months since their last Test match in Sydney and things change.Meanwhile, a replacement for Bresnan is tough to call, but the selectors are likely to want a like-for-like option who can swing the ball so Shahzad, who played one Test against Bangladesh last year, is a strong candidate. Finn played three Ashes games but with Stuart Broad and Chris Tremlett there are already two tall quicks available.Beyond the immediate battles there is further interest from the Lions line up. James Taylor, the Leicestershire batsman, has another chance to impress, as does James Hildreth who will captain the side. One of those is likely to be in contention when England’s one-day squad is selected in late June. That might also apply to Samit Patel, who has been given another chance after some harsh reminders about his fitness requirements during the winter.

James Tomlinson took three wickets as Hampshire seized the upper hand in their County Championship Division One clash with Essex at the Rose Bowl

05-Jun-2010

ScorecardJames Tomlinson took three wickets as Hampshire seized the upper hand in their County Championship Division One clash with Essex at the Rose Bowl. The hosts added only two runs to their overnight 298 for 7 as Maurice Chambers snared the last three wickets, including veteran Dominic Cork for 55, to finish with figures of 5 for 49. But Essex slipped to 209 for 7 in reply as Matt Walker was left to lead the resistance with an unbeaten 60.Cork made the initial breakthroughs, removing Jaik Mickleburgh for 21 with the help of wicketkeeper Nic Pothas to leave the visitors 51 for 1 at lunch. Tom Westley had been Mickleburgh’s partner in an opening stand of 48, but became Cork’s second victim via a sharp return catch at knee height.There followed a stand of 62 between Ravi Bopara and Walker, the latter taking the stand beyond 50 with a six off Danny Briggs. But Tomlinson then stepped up to make an impact, with Bopara cover-driving loosely to provide Pothas with his second routine catch of the innings.The in-form Ryan ten Doeschate quickly followed, trapped lbw for just six to leave his side 135 for 5 by tea. A rash swing by Walker off the bowling of Briggs sent the ball looping just out of Jimmy Adams’ reach, but the miss did not prove costly as Briggs soon got his reward with the wicket of keeper James Foster, clean bowled for a painstaking 14 by a ball that kept low.Mark Pettini lasted just two balls before tamely prodding into the hands of Neil McKenzie to help Briggs towards figures of 2 for 33. Walker reached his half-century from 126 balls but saw David Masters nick a second catch to McKenzie in the slips after making 15, leaving Tomlinson with 3 for 51.Graham Napier took his side to their first batting point with a cover drive for four but otherwise reined in his attacking inclinations to reach an unbeaten nine by the close. With only Chambers and Danish Kaneria to come, much depends on Napier and Walker as Essex look to cut the deficit tomorrow.

The South Africa quick defended conditions at the new stadium but Heinrich Klaasen did not think they were ideal for T20

Sidharth Monga03-Jun-20242:06

Maharoof: Pitch in New York ‘not good enough’ for a T20 game

Anrich Nortje, who put in his career-best T20I figures to bowl South Africa to a victory in a crucial match in one of the two groups of death, is not ready to buy a low-scoring game was a poor advertisement for cricket in the US. This was the first World Cup match ever in New York, and the conditions came in for criticism as an uneven pitch and slow outfield made scoring exceedingly difficult. Sri Lanka managed to make just 77 but also made South Africa sweat in pursuit of the target.”I thought the game was great,” Nortje said when asked if this pitch was a fair reflection of the entertainment cricket sought to provide when it came to US. “I thought the entertainment was there. I thought the people were there. It was a brilliant spectacle. It was brilliant to see everyone, to hear the voices, the noise, the cheering. I thought it was a great day for cricket.Related

• T20 can be fun without the ball-bashing too

• South Africa up against their bogey team in batter-unfriendly New York

• Klaasen on New York pitch: Batters need to suck it up

• Ponting asks batters to 'lower expectations' about big totals at T20 World Cup

• Klaasen: 'The moment my bat swing is good, I know what to do'

“It doesn’t always mean, correct me if I’m wrong, there needs to be 20 sixes in a game to make it entertaining. There’s still a lot of strategy that goes into the game. There’s a lot of skill that goes into the game, whether it’s sixes or fast bowlers or spinners, however it might be. So, I thought the game was a brilliant game. It was still a close game at the end of the day, another wicket or two, and things might have been different. We might have been in a little bit more trouble.”It is great to be in New York. It’s great to be playing cricket in the US and…we’re excited for what’s to come. We’ve enjoyed the facilities; we’ve enjoyed the sort of getting around exploring as well. So, yeah, it’s brilliant and we are enjoying it.”Ten drop-in pitches were brought in for the World Cup matches in New York. Four of them have been installed at the main venue for the matches, and six for the nets at a training facility 20 minutes from the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium. South Africa had an inkling what to expect when a couple of their batters walked out of the nets a day before the match.Anrich Nortje enjoyed conditions in New York•Associated Press

“We didn’t know it [the pitches] is all from the same [time],” Nortje said. “We sort of assumed that they’re coming from the same, let me call it, factory. But yes, it was a little bit up and down in the nets as well. We need to train as well as the batters also need to train. It’s not always nice to go out and face balls jumping up, I think you adapt to it on the day and rather work on what you want to in the nets. And that’s why I think one or two of the guys eventually walked out, but they were still batting facing us. Also you don’t want to get hit. And a day before the game, you want to sort of go through your routines as a batter and they were fresh and spicy as well.”While South Africa played Sri Lanka, India practised on the same pitches in the nets. India’s coach Rahul Dravid said the pitches at the nets were much spicier when they first went in but had settled down a little. Asked if the pitches were lively just because they are fresh and not played on, Nortje said there was nothing wrong with the pitches.”I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the wickets,” he said. “It’s [allowed to be] nice for bowlers as well. We are also allowed to get some sort of assistance. It’s different to what guys have been used to for the last few months or years. There’s a little bit more in the wicket for the bowlers and I don’t see anything wrong with that. “When it’s flat, people want to see sixes…so the wheels should turn a little bit somewhere. I don’t know what to expect in the next few weeks. It might get a little bit flatter. It might get a little bit slower, faster. Who knows? I’m not the expert on it, but I think our biggest thing is just to sort of adapt to whatever gets thrown in front of us in the next game again. See in the first over what to expect and try and adjust as best as possible.”Heinrich Klaasen, who finally calmed the nerves down with a six and a four off a single Wanindu Hasaranga over, tended to go with the wider narrative. “I don’t think it’s ideal for T20 cricket, but it’s still a good entertaining game,” he said. “Nevertheless our bowlers bowled extremely well. The margin for error for the bowlers is also not as big as you think. It’s not easy for the batters. It took like almost a mixture of Test cricket, one-day, batting-wise to get over the line. Luckily we didn’t chase 120. That would’ve been very interesting.”However, Klaasen was just as happy with the atmosphere as Nortje was. “I said to the coach the DJ was on point, there was no interruptions from his side and the crowd was fantastic,” he said. “You can see the people are excited for the competition.”

He is targeting Ireland’s ODI series in Bangladesh next month and expects to play in the IPL thereafter

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Feb-2023Ireland’s left-arm quick Josh Little will miss the Pakistan Super League (PSL) through injury and has returned home for treatment.Little, 23, was due to play for Multan Sultans in the PSL. He experienced hamstring tightness while representing Pretoria Capitals in the SA20, and Cricket Ireland said that he had returned home “out of an abundance of caution”.Defending IPL champions Gujarat Titans had signed Little for INR 4.4 crore (€500,000 approx) at December’s auction, making him the first active Ireland player purchased in the competition.He is expected to return to fitness in time to fulfil his contract, and is targeting Ireland’s three-match ODI series in Bangladesh next month as a possible return.Mark Rausa, Ireland’s head of sport science, physiotherapy and medical services, said: “Josh reported experiencing some tightness in his hamstring towards the end of his time in the SA20 League.”After reporting this to medical staff at Pretoria Capitals, he was sent for an ultrasound scan that was inconclusive. Out of an abundance of caution, Josh decided to return home for further tests and treatment with the Cricket Ireland medical team.”An MRI scan showed no significant injury in the hamstring, but he will remain in Dublin to complete a course of rehab, strength and conditioning and bowling workload management in preparation for the Indian Premier League (IPL) beginning the end of March, and a subsequent busy period of International cricket for Ireland.”Ireland’s ODI series in Bangladesh will begin on March 18, followed by the T20Is that will go on till March 31, the same day the IPL kicks off with Titans taking on Chennai Super Kings in Ahmedabad.

Hosts West Indies to face Australia in U-19 World Cup opener

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Nov-2021New Zealand have withdrawn from the 2022 men’s Under-19 World Cup, owing to “extensive mandatory quarantine restrictions for minors on their return home”. Scotland, who initially missed qualification in the Europe qualifiers, became the 16th team to participate in New Zealand’s absence.The World Cup will be held in the Caribbean between January 14 and February 5. The 14th edition of the 50-over competition will see 16 teams in four groups vying for the title across 10 venues in Antigua and Barbuda, Guyana, St Kitts and Nevis, and Trinidad and Tobago.Uganda, who made their debut in the 2004 edition of the tournament, have been pooled alongside India, South Africa and Ireland in Group B. Defending champions Bangladesh are in Group A with England, Canada and United Arab Emirates (UAE). Group C comprises Papua New Guinea (PNG), Afghanistan, Pakistan and Zimbabwe, while Group D is made up of Australia, Sri Lanka, Scotland and hosts West Indies.All you need to know about the 2022 U-19 men’s World Cup•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

The 48-match tournament will begin with West Indies taking on Australia and Sri Lanka facing Scotland on January 14.Test venues such as the Queens Park Oval and Warner Park will host group-stage games. The main knockouts are slated to be held in Antigua and Barbuda, with the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium staging the first semi-final on February 1, and the Coolidge Cricket Ground hosting the second on February 2. The final will also be played at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, on February 5.Sixteen warm-up matches will be held between January 9 and 12 in St Kitts and Nevis, and Guyana.Like in the past few editions, the top two teams from each group will progress to the Super League knockouts, but those who don’t qualify will earn crucial playing time in the Plate competition for positions nine to 16 that runs concurrently with the main tournament. It effectively means every team will play the same number of games in this competition designed for rising cricketers.Ten of the 16 teams qualified directly for the world tournament. One place went to Scotland after missing out outright initially, while the last five spots went to the teams that won their regional qualifying events. Canada represent the Americas, having pipped USA, Argentina and Bermuda to the spot. PNG, who missed the previous edition after missing their 2019 regional qualifier final over “internal disciplinary issues” have qualified from East Asia-Pacific. Uganda became first-time qualifiers after beating sides like Namibia and Nigeria in the Africa qualifiers while Ireland, who beat Scotland in the Europe qualifiers, complete the line-up.West Indies have won the Under-19 World Cup once, Australia thrice, Pakistan twice while England, South Africa and Bangladesh have won it once each. India have been crowned champions four times.

He also said hosting the tournament won’t be a risk with regards to spread of Covid-19

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Aug-2020Keith Rowley, prime minister of Trinidad & Tobago, believes hosting the CPL will not be a risk with regards to the spread of of Covid-19 as the tournament will be played in a biosecure environment.The entire tournament, from August 18 to September 10, is scheduled to take place in T&T across two stadiums and behind closed doors to ensure proper protection against the pandemic.”The CPL games are quite different, that’s a bubble,” Rowley said. “Everything that will go on around the CPL will go on in a bubble that does not interact with the local population.”They will come into the country under the protocols of entry, all having tested negative before. When they come here they are confined to the Hilton Hotel and that becomes a bubble for them. Then they will go to a venue to play the game where they will not interact with the population and so the CPL is a bubble that has nothing to do with what goes on in the country.”T&T has recorded a total of 169 cases and eight deaths until July 31st, and there are 29 current active cases, according to government data.As per the agreement between the CPL and the T&T government, all the participants – squads and team management of the six franchises, the organisers and the rest of the crews – will need to self-isolate for two weeks before they board their flights, and for two weeks upon arrival in T&T.All the overseas participants will be tested for Covid-19 before departure and then upon arrival followed by two more tests – seven days and 14 days after their arrival.Rowley also said that breaching of biosecurity protocols by players and staff will strictly not be tolerated. “Don’t play you can come out from that protocol and decide to take a drink down the road or whatever, we’re not tolerating that,” he said.”The same way we opened factories and keep them open, we opened the stores selling cloth…the CPL is just another business aspect in the country, in this case it’s cricket, it’s televised, the benefit we get from it is that we promote the country. We’ve established very strict protocols.”

Ireland’s second successive half-century stand for the last wicket keeps them in the fight

The Report by Shashank Kishore17-Mar-2019
So what should James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Co know about Ireland when England host them at Lord’s in July? One: Tim Murtagh is by no means a No. 11 batsman, although he’ll proudly take the No. 4 spot he occupies in the all-time list for most runs by the last man in a Test. And two: Don’t relax if you’ve picked up nine Ireland wickets quickly. It definitely doesn’t end there.After an epic 87-run last-wicket rescue act with George Dockrell in the first innings that gave Ireland’s total some amount of heft, Murtagh added 58 with James Cameron-Dow in the second to stretch Ireland’s lead to 146 when, at one stage, it looked like it would be a double-digit target for Afghanistan. This after Rashid Khan had run amok, picking up Afghanistan’s first Test five-for after an unimpressive show early in the day, where he struggled for consistency. His performance also dispelled doubts over a finger injury that he picked up while batting at the nets prior to the Test.Then, with the bat, Afghanistan played right into Ireland’s hands up front. Mohammad Shahzad’s decision to cut out all scoring shots, even to deliveries pitched up, seemingly to play for stumps, resulted in Ireland bottling up runs and creating pressure. As it often happens when a batsmen goes into the shell, Shahzad was out to a rank bad ball, getting a faint tickle to one going down leg from Andy McBrine.However, the good work done by their bowlers meant that Afghanistan might not have to bear the brunt of Ireland’s lower-order jailbreak. They ended the third day in Dehradun on 29 for 1 after 16, needing 118 more. Not an utterly dire situation, even though strange things are known to happen on a wearing pitch.Andrew Balbirnie led the Ireland batting charge•AFP

Back to the Ireland second innings – their meltdown against Rashid and left-arm wristspinner Waqar Salamkheil, brought about by fizz on a wearing pitch, was as glaring as some debatable umpiring calls. As many as four decisions went against Ireland, three of those leading to dismissals of key batsmen Paul Stirling, Dockrell and Kevin O’Brien.Dockrell’s in particular came against the run of play, after he’d bunted the bowling for more than an hour to make 25, using his height and solid technique to add 63 for the seventh wicket with O’Brien. He was rooted to the crease, and made the mistake of playing around a quicker delivery, but replays suggested the ball might have missed leg stump.Next was the huge scalp of O’Brien almost immediately after. He had constructed a back-to-the-wall 56, in which he shunned his natural see-ball-hit-ball game to match the situation. It was a slider, which O’Brien looked to play across and was hit on the pad. Once again, replays suggested that the point of impact was on the outer bit of leg stump. No DRS meant no review in either instance.The two wickets came immediately after the tea interval to hurt Ireland, and much like they had lost the well-set Andy Balbirnie and James McCollum immediately after the lunch interval, it set them back by a big way.Balbirnie displayed exquisite technique and resolve against spin to make 82, his first double-digit score in Tests after a pair on debut and 4 in the first innings here, while McCollum was rewarded for his decision to play the spinners out of the hand rather than just off the surface.They added 104 runs to bail Ireland out from a morning wobble when they lost Stirling in the fifth over off a thick inside edge on to the pad off fast bowler Yamin Ahmadzai. S Ravi gave it out and Stirling walked back calmly, not showing a hint of anger or dissent at the decision he had just received.While a number of decisions went against Ireland, it wouldn’t be fair to not laud the Afghanistan spinners. Equally commendable was the show by debutant wicketkeeper Ikram Ali Khil, whose catch off Balbirnie was outstanding. Salamkheil’s flatter trajectory married with bounce off the deck resulted in questions being asked of the batsmen, and eventually resulted in wickets too.Soon after Balbirnie came the wicket of a nervous Stuart Poynter. He glided a shortish delivery to Ihsanullah Janat, who instinctively moved low to his right to pouch an excellent catch at slip. This had Ireland slipping from 137 for 2 to 150 for 5.The trouble didn’t end there, as another umpiring error came back to hurt them when Stuart Thompson was wrongly given out caught at slip by umpire Richard Illingworth. He got outside the line to a sharp-turning legbreak that lobbed off the pad to slip. It couldn’t have been lbw, as the impact clearly outside off. Later, it was clarified on the scoreboard that he had been out caught. However, replays confirmed there was no edge.As much as these decisions may have prevented Ireland from gaining a bigger lead, they could yet make a match of this. If that happens, they will have the lower order and Balbirnie to thank big time.

Melbourne Stars are likely to resume negotiations with the allrounder upon his return from New Zealand following the Trans-Tasman T20 series final

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Feb-2018Brisbane Heat have pulled out of a proposed deal to sign up Australia allrounder Marcus Stoinis, who has turned out for Melbourne Stars since 2013. The franchise’s statement meant Stoinis will not line up with Chris Lynn and Brendon McCullum in an imposing batting roster. Last week the Heat had made a lucrative deal believed to be worth about AUD 200,000 (USD156,000 approx) a season. The side was believed to have room in its salary cap that the Stars lacked.”We touched base with Marcus and put together what we felt was an attractive offer,”Heat General Manager Andrew McShea was quoted as saying to Cricket Australia’s website. “However, that offer is no longer on the table.”The news is likely to come as a relief to the Stars, who not only finished at the bottom of the table this season but also lost Kevin Pietersen, Luke Wright and Rob Quiney. According to Cricket Australia’s website, the Stars are understood to resume negotiations with Stoinis upon his return from New Zealand following the Trans-Tasman T20 series final on Wednesday. There is also speculation that Perth Scorchers might be interested in Stoinis, who had moved back to Perth last winter.Stoinis, 28, is part of Australia’s ODI and Twenty 20 squads, and is also seen as the back-up to Mitchell Marsh for the all-rounder’s spot in the Test squad, despite his struggles in the Sheffield Shield over the last two years. He was also retained in the IPL this year by King’s XI Punjab for USD 1.2 million approx. Stoinis was one of the Stars’ few bright spots this season, as he scored 179 runs from five innings at a strike-rate of 144.35, which was second only to Glenn Maxwell’s 154.12. In all, Stoinis has scored 493 runs in 28 games for the Stars at a strike-rate of 120.24 and has taken 19 wickets at an economy-rate of 8.5.