BBL scraps overseas draft, Root fumes over Carse, India weigh follow-on — cricket digest 26 Aug 2026

· Cricombo Editorial

BBL contracting shake-up: overseas draft binned, marquee rules loosened as embargo lifts

Cricket Australia has confirmed sweeping changes to Big Bash and WBBL contracting, with the overseas draft scrapped and the long-running signing embargo due to lift on Thursday at 9am AEST after months of talks with the ACA and club feedback. Teams will no longer be required to sign any overseas players, and the minimum number of marquee domestic players has been reduced in a bid to funnel more of the salary cap towards leading local names.

In the BBL, only three marquee players per club must now earn more than AU$212,242 within the AU$3.18m cap (down from six), while the top six earners still need to combine for at least AU$1.7m. The same principle applies in the WBBL: three marquees above AU$53,000 within a AU$772,000 cap, with the top five combining for more than AU$439,000. The new landscape could open the door to direct deals for players such as Ben Stokes and Finn Allen, while Adam Zampa is among those looking for a new club after leaving Melbourne Renegades.

England stand down Carse after Derby arrest; Root says he’s “hacked off” by off-field mistakes

England have removed Brydon Carse from their squad for Thursday’s second Test against Pakistan at Lord’s after he was briefly arrested outside a bar in Derby and filmed in handcuffs. Police confirmed he was arrested on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly before being de-arrested, with the Cricket Regulator now investigating.

Joe Root said he was “really hacked off” and disappointed that attention had shifted away from cricket, adding that the issue was the pattern of “stupid mistakes” rather than one incident. Root said Carse was “upset and apologetic”, and that he had held a “very robust discussion” with the group after arriving in London. Carse is the third England player this summer to miss a Test pending an investigation into late-night drinking, following Gus Atkinson and Ben Stokes.

India keep control in Colombo as Morkel floats follow-on call and Pant’s fitness is monitored

India remained firmly in front in the second Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo, but Morne Morkel said the visitors would not rule out enforcing the follow-on if the chance arises, with rain and lost time a factor after only 222 overs were bowled across the first three days. Sri Lanka finished day three still needing 39 runs to remove the decision, with Sonal Dinusha unbeaten on 85 in a ninth-wicket stand and the second new ball only 3.2 overs old.

Morkel also said India were hopeful Rishabh Pant would be able to keep wicket on day four after a shoulder bruise left him restricted during warm-ups, following earlier issues while batting. India’s thinking, Morkel added, was to maximise overs at Sri Lanka given the stop-start nature of weather and covers.

Pakistan expect Babar back for Lord’s after “positive” net session; Gul points to Headingley cold snap

Pakistan are set to welcome Babar Azam back for the second Test against England at Lord’s after Umar Gul described a “positive” training session and said the captain “looked good” facing pace, spin and throwdowns as he recovers from a finger injury. His return is expected to trigger a top-order reshuffle, with Azan Awais likely to make way as Babar slots in at No. 4 and one of Shan Masood or Abdullah Shafique moves up to open.

Gul also suggested Pakistan were caught out by the shift from hot conditions earlier in the tour to cold, rainy weather at Headingley, saying the quicks struggled to execute as they acclimatised. While he called Shaheen Afridi “Pakistan’s best bowler”, Gul deflected questions about his absence to the selection committee.

In brief

  • Sri Lanka reached 265 for 8 on day three of the Colombo Test, still 238 behind India’s 503 for 9 declared, with Sonal Dinusha unbeaten on 85 and Prasidh Krishna taking 3 for 47.
  • Sri Lanka spinner Prabath Jayasuriya was reprimanded and given one demerit point for hitting the boundary wedges with his bat after being dismissed in the Colombo Test; Yashasvi Jaiswal and Asitha Fernando had earlier been penalised for an on-field confrontation.
  • Prasidh Krishna’s day-three spell in Colombo took his Test bowling average under 30, with India’s camp highlighting fuller lengths alongside his usual intensity.
  • Pakistan spinner Ali Usman is backing himself to be a factor again at Lord’s, despite the venue’s reputation for offering little help to slow bowlers.
  • A Batta Fast podcast episode debated how Pakistan’s current Test side stacks up against previous touring teams in England, with recent World Test Championship finishes cited as context.
  • East Zone thrashed North East Zone by an innings and 210 runs in the Duleep Trophy, powered by centuries from Shahbaz Ahmed (167) and Sudip Kumar Gharami (146) and five-wicket hauls from Abhijit Sarkar and Anukul Roy.
  • North Zone beat West Zone by 52 runs in their Duleep Trophy quarter-final, with Abid Mushtaq and Nishant Sindhu wrapping up the chase in 6.3 overs to seal a semi-final spot.
  • Moeen Ali’s unbeaten 56 helped Antigua and Barbuda Falcons beat Barbados Tridents by 30 runs in the CPL at North Sound, with Joshua James taking 3 for 18 in the Tridents’ chase.
  • The European T20 Premier League begins on August 26 in Voorburg in the Netherlands, launching a new competition with its own teams and format.
  • Cricket Australia has asked curators to “favour the batter” in the Sheffield Shield after a run of short home Tests raised concerns about pitch quality and player development.
  • Nathan McSweeney is trying to play his way back into Australia contention in England, building on two Sheffield Shield titles and a productive county stint after a difficult start to Test cricket.
  • A piece on Australia’s batting argued the national calendar is contributing to top-order issues by not giving leading batters the conditions and rhythm needed to perform consistently at Test level.
  • A stats feature looked at Manav Suthar’s 17 wickets after his first two Tests and compared it with other early-career returns, alongside a note on Bangladesh fast-bowling records.
  • With Sri Lanka’s Test batting under scrutiny, Sonal Dinusha and Pasindu Sooriyabandara were highlighted as rare bright spots amid a broader decline in sustained run-scoring.
  • Musheer Khan’s 96 in West Zone’s chase against North Zone was framed as a high-risk innings that left the Duleep Trophy quarter-final finely poised before the result was decided.
  • Commentary around Brydon Carse’s Derby arrest noted the level of public scrutiny on England players and argued the squad has left itself exposed to repeated distractions.

Sources: ESPNcricinfo