Mumbai Indians name Luke Williams as WPL coach, IPL 2027 auction set for Goa — cricket digest 24 Sep 2026

· Cricombo Editorial

Luke Williams appointed Mumbai Indians WPL head coach as Keightley departs for Cricket Australia role

Mumbai Indians have hired Luke Williams as their new head coach in the WPL, replacing Lisa Keightley, who has taken up a post as Cricket Australia’s national development lead. Williams previously won the WPL with Royal Challengers Bengaluru in 2024 and had been part of their set-up again before stepping away this year to focus on his Adelaide Strikers commitments in the WBBL.

Williams, who is also an assistant coach with England Women, becomes MI’s second coaching change in as many seasons after Keightley arrived ahead of WPL 2026 following Charlotte Edwards’ move to the England head coach job. MI finished fourth last season and Williams’ first assignment is to finalise retentions ahead of the September 28 deadline, with the WPL 2027 mini-auction scheduled for October 28 in Kochi.

IPL 2027 auction confirmed for Goa in December as mini-auction cycle nears its end

The IPL 2027 auction will be held in Goa in December, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia confirmed. It will be the last mini-auction of the 2023-27 cycle, with the IPL having staged its previous three auctions outside India.

The league has not yet confirmed the retention deadline, which is usually late November, while the official dates for the 2027 season are also still to be announced. The IPL had earlier indicated a March 14 to May 30 window, and Saikia has said the tournament is expected to start at the end of March.

Boland set for South Africa return with Australia’s Test squad, admits 2016 ODI tour is a blur

Scott Boland is preparing to tour South Africa with Australia’s Test squad next month, but says he can barely recall his previous trip there in 2016, when he played the last three of his 14 ODIs. He remembered only vague details, including Cape Town’s ground, from a series Australia lost 5-0.

Now 37, Boland said the biggest change in his game has been how he prepares and manages his body, after feeling he over-trained earlier in his career. He is scheduled to play a domestic 50-over match for Victoria against New South Wales at the Junction Oval before flying out, as part of a planned training “reload” ahead of the tour.

Asian Games build-up: Hesson calls India the white-ball benchmark; Litton targets Bangladesh gold

Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson described India as the benchmark in white-ball cricket as his young, Shaheens-heavy squad readies for the men’s Asian Games competition. Pakistan and India can only meet in a medal match if both sides progress, and Pakistan begin with a quarter-final on September 28 against the runners-up of Group B.

Pakistan have also made a forced change, bringing in Mohammad Wasim Jnr for the injured Salman Mirza (fractured left thumb), with Sahibzada Farhan to captain a 15-man squad. Bangladesh captain Litton Das, meanwhile, said playing the Asian Games is a rare opportunity and that his side’s “big dream” is to win a second men’s gold medal, with Aliss Al Islam called up in place of the injured Mohammad Saifuddin (hamstring).

Brook climbs to career-best No.4 in T20I batting rankings; Abrar replaces Rashid at top of bowling list

England captain Harry Brook has reached a career-high fourth in the men’s T20I batting rankings after a prolific home series against Sri Lanka, in which he totalled 170 runs including an unbeaten hundred. His ODI form against Sri Lanka also lifted him to 12th in the 50-over batting list, while Jos Buttler moved up to fifth in the T20I batting rankings after two half-centuries.

Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan has been displaced as the No.1 T20I bowler, with Pakistan legspinner Abrar Ahmed taking top spot for the first time. England seamer Jamie Overton surged to sixth on the T20I bowling list after taking five wickets across the Sri Lanka series, and Zimbabwe’s Sikandar Raza rose to second in the ODI allrounder rankings.

In brief

  • Essex batter Robin Das has been charged with two counts of rape and is due to appear at Inner London Crown Court on October 9.
  • Arab Gul (4 for 8) and Nangeyalia Kharote (3 for 19) spun Afghanistan to a 48-run win over Japan in the men’s Asian Games opener in Nisshin.
  • India A tightened their grip against Australia A in Puducherry after Kumar Kushagra’s 113 set up a 163-run lead at the end of day two.
  • Australia A chased 339 to beat India A in the second one-dayer, with Tahlia Wilson, Anika Learoyd and Charli Knott leading the pursuit despite Yastika Bhatia’s 112 in India’s 338 for 6.
  • Lakshya Raichandani’s unbeaten 110 helped India Under-19 beat Australia Under-19 by six wickets to complete a 3-0 series whitewash.
  • South Africa’s pace injury list grew again ahead of the ODI series against Australia, with Kwena Maphaka ruled out by a right hamstring strain and Lizaad Williams called up.
  • Naseem Shah has joined SNGPL for the remainder of the President’s Trophy, with Abdullah Shafique and Farhan Yousaf also linking up ahead of round three.
  • Billy Root has announced his retirement from professional cricket at 34, bringing a 14-year career to a close.
  • South Australia edged Tasmania by seven runs in the One-Day Cup after posting 383 for 7 and then holding off Jordan Silk’s 142 in the chase.
  • Wicketkeeper Chiedza Dhururu and 19-year-old legspinner Olinder Chare have returned to Zimbabwe’s squads for the home ODI and T20I series against West Indies.
  • Guyana Amazon Warriors captain Imran Tahir says he is keen to return for CPL 2027, when he will be 48.
  • Will Jacks has revealed he nearly missed England’s Sri Lanka series after emergency appendix surgery last month, before returning to play a key role with bat and ball.

Sources: ESPNcricinfo