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Mitchell Swepson’s media minders avoided the temptation to have him pose for the cameras in front of the Shane Warne statue outside the MCG on Sunday. When the 23-year-old spoke of his inclusion in Australia’s squad to tour India next month this proved to be a wise move, for there is more to Swepson’s story than Warne’s giant shadow.While grateful for Warne’s advocacy over the past few weeks leading up to the selection panel’s decision to send him with Steven Smith’s team, Swepson is neither a pupil of Australia’s most prolific wicket-taker nor a clone of his bowling method. Instead Swepson has built and trusted his own technique through a brief career that has already taken him a long way in a shorter space of time than he expected.”I never really modelled my bowling on anyone,” Swepson said. “I have looked at footage from Shane Warne bowling but more as a fan. I love watching that sort of thing, I love watching videos of Brett Lee bowling 160kph”I see myself as a standard leggie who likes to rip the ball. I’ve always been taught since I was a youngster bowling legspin to give the ball a good rip. You’ll go for a few runs, you’ll bowl some pump, but if you give yourself a chance to spin the ball hard and get the ball to talk through the air that’s how you’ll get your wickets. That’s how I go about it. I know I’ll go for runs and bowl some poor balls, but if I get the wickets that’s what I’m looking for.”Other influential figures in Australian cricket have been watching Swepson closely for some time, helping accelerate his progression through the ranks in a manner reminiscent of the young Warne or, more recently, Nathan Lyon. The selection chairman and former legspinner Trevor Hohns hails from the same Brisbane grade club, doubtless helping to forge a familiarity that contributed to Swepson’s starts for Queensland, Brisbane Heat and last year Australia A.”When I first got picked for the Shield team I didn’t think I was ready, sort of got thrown in the deep end there,” Swepson said. “Same thing when I made my BBL debut I didn’t think I was ready.”But it’s part of the game, if you get the opportunity it’s about taking it. I wasn’t expecting to be in a Test squad touring India, but it’s gone well for me being thrown in the deep end so far in my short career, so I’m really looking forward to any opportunity I can get over there and hopefully grab it with two hands.”Time in India and Sri Lanka last year with the national performance squad has allowed Swepson to gain some appreciation for what to expect, and also earn the respect of the national captain Smith, among others. Strong displays at home against India A in the spring also offered him some insights into the ways of Indian batsmen. He is aware that the Australian way must be significantly reshaped in the subcontinent, and also that any spin bowler’s resilience will be sorely tested by players raised against the turning ball.”There’s a lot to the way you have to go about your bowling over there,” he said. “It’s a lot different to bowling here in Australia, you’ve got to have your wits about you, got to have variation, change of pace, you’ve got to do a lot of things differently. I feel like the fact I’ve been over there and tested the waters a bit will help me to hit the ground running.”I take it as a challenge as a legspinner. Any cricketer should want to challenge themselves against the best; looking ahead to India in India against players like Virat Kohli, the best players of spin in the world, what better challenge could you want? It’ll be awesome to go over there and test yourself against the toughest opponents.”That kind of attitude has been fostered by another man influential on Swepson’s young career: Brisbane Heat captain Brendon McCullum. “As a captain on the field he’s such a calming influence,” Swepson said. “It’s pretty easy to get soaked up in the BBL, the crowds and the pressure and all that, but to have someone like that standing at short cover next to you when you’re bowling is pretty cool.”He loves a joke, loves a laugh loves a punt, brings in the field when maybe you shouldn’t. He finds a way to make you relax as a bowler and that’s what he’s helped me with.”So as much as Warne’s voice has been loud in support, there have been plenty of others in Swepson’s corner. Should he prove a success, all will be due credit for helping him along the way.

Angelo Mathews, who is returning from multiple injuries, hoped to “bowl quite a lot” and support Sri Lanka’s frontline quicks in the three Tests against South Africa starting from December 26 in Port Elizabeth.”I am 100 percent confident of my fitness,” Mathews said. “I am hoping to bowl quite a lot in South Africa. If I can bowl a lot more, the way I did in the recent few years, I can offer a lot to my team. I’ve managed my workload especially in the subcontinent on slow wickets. My bowling is mostly suited when the ball is slightly swinging and seaming.”In Asian conditions, I haven’t bowled that much but if it is South Africa, Australia or England, where the ball is seaming and moving, I might have to bowl a bit more because getting wickets is also important for my team.”Earlier this June, Mathews had hobbled off the field with stiffness in his left hamstring after bowling six overs during Sri Lanka’s tie with England in the first ODI in Trent Bridge. He went onto play the remaining four matches of the series, but bowled only five overs during those games.Later in August, Mathews tore his calf while batting in the fourth ODI against Australia and missed the final one, along with the two T20Is that followed. He then pulled out of the Tests against Zimbabwe, and the one-day tri-series involving West Indies, in October and November.Mathews insisted his injuries had nothing to do with his bowling and cited his heavy workload as a possible explanation. “If you look at my last four years I was actually told that I have played the most amount of cricket in the world,” he said.”Also if you look at my last four-five years I’ve been bowling quite a bit. It’s just that this year I had a hamstring injury and a calf strain but apart from that I’ve managed to play all the games. Injuries can occur any time but I don’t think it’s because I bowl.”Mathews also said that niggles were inevitable for a seamer. “Injuries can occur from time to time. The fast bowlers or medium-pacers will always have niggles,” he said.”If you talk to the great Wasim Akram who recently had a workshop in Colombo, Chaminda Vaas or Champaka Ramanayake, our fast bowling coach, they will always say they had niggles. You can never wake up without one when you are playing. That is what all the fast bowlers have to put up with.”

Ajinkya Rahane’s plate is fairly full in Test cricket. At No. 5, he has often been the leader of an Indian counterattack. In the field, he is the first-choice at first slip for the spinners. Since the away series against West Indies in 2016, he has been vice-captain. One more responsibility has fallen on his shoulders ahead of the five Tests against England at home: helping India make optimum use of the Decision Review System, especially considering the hosts will be using it for the first time in a Test series since 2011, whereas England have rarely ever played without it.”It is a completely new concept for all of us,” Rahane said. “We’ll have to wait and see about the DRS, but yes, we’ve been discussing about this from the last series and we had some plan. Wicketkeeper is obviously very important and as a slip fielder, you have that role to convey that message to the captain and also bowler.”As a batsman, you are completely involved in the game, you have to see where the ball is going and you have to convey that message to your partner. You have to be sure all the time.”When asked if DRS might be a key influence on the outcome of the series, Rahane said: “Yes, but that comes later on, We will spend some time explaining about DRS, how it works and how we should approach it. But the main focus is to play good cricket here. DRS obviously comes later on.”We want to dominate this series, we’ve been playing some very good cricket in the last one, one-and-a-half years. So important to start well here in Rajkot and continue that momentum into the series.”The BCCI had been, for a long time, reluctant to use DRS because it felt the system could not provide 100% accuracy. MS Dhoni had previously wondered if the system existed to reach the correct decision or if it was there to protect the on-field umpire’s call. With time, however, the technology has improved which in turn has helped change the team’s view. Since their visit to Bangladesh in 2015, Virat Kohli’s first tour as full-time Test captain, India have spoken about how they were discussing the implementation of DRS. Anil Kumble’s inputs must have helped – the current India coach is also chairman of the ICC’s cricket committee, which has been working towards eradicating the possibility of faults in the system.In October, ICC general manager Geoff Allardice made a presentation to the BCCI about the improvements that have been made over the years. The HawkEye cameras that were used for ball-tracking in the 2011 World Cup in India recorded 50-75 frames per second. The ones in this series can record 340 frames per second. This means there is more data to calculate the predicted path of the ball – say, after it hits the pad in case of lbw decisions – and therefore less chance of error. Also with respect to the lbw protocol, the ICC has tweaked the rule to effectively make the stumps larger and as such there is the possibility that not-out calls made on the field have a high chance of being overturned by the third umpire.The BCCI is yet to reach a decision on whether it will continue using DRS after the England series.

The ICC has been challenged to do more for disability cricket if they are to justify the claim of governing a truly global game.The call was made by Ian Martin, the ECB’s head of disability cricket, as the organisation seek to stage a World Championship for physically disabled cricketers in 2019.The first disability World Cup was staged in Bangladesh in 2015. On that occasion, five nations took part with the hosts joined by England and the other teams – India, Pakistan and Afghanistan – heavily subsided by the International Red Cross.

ECB name squad for Dubai T20 tournament

A 15-man England Physical Disability team will head to Dubai later this month to compete in the ICC Academy Dubai Invitational T20 tournament.
The competition, which runs from 19 to 25 October, also features Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
England, the defending champions, will be captained by Iain Nairn and have included three uncapped players in Lee Clarke, Joe Seabridge and Lee Walker, alongside England disability player of the year, Callum Flynn.
“This tour is vital preparation as we build towards the 2019 World Championship in England,” said Ian Martin, the ECB head of disability. “We are really looking forward to testing ourselves against some of the best sides in the sub-continent and our aim is to retain the trophy.”

The ECB now hope to host a seven-team event (this time termed a World Championship) in 2019. The hope is that those nations invited – Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, South Africa and England – will play a two-week T20 competition between the 2019 World Cup and The Ashes.The process is complicated, however, as several cricket boards have little involvement with disability cricket. In India, for example, four or five organisations claim to be the governing body of the nation’s physical disability cricket with the BCCI seemingly reluctant to take responsibility. As a result, funding – or even just selecting a side said to represent India – is problematic.In 2015, and again for the 2019 tournament, the ICC have had no meaningful involvement with the organisation of the tournaments, in spite of comments made by Haroon Lorgat in 2012, when he was the chief executive of ICC, that “disabled cricket is on the agenda”.”We’re not as inclusive as we should be,” Ian Martin, the ECB’s head of disability cricket, told ESPNcricinfo. “We talk of being a global game and we celebrate images of it being played in different communities and in different environments – by Maasai Warriors or on mountain tops – as evidence of its popularity and diversity.”But if we are not providing opportunities for people to play in countries where we think of cricket as a popular, accessible sport, we’re not truly global and we’re not fulfilling our duty.”A global governing body should be able to evidence what it is doing to enable participation for disabled communities within its member nations. But rather than being driven and guided by the ICC, such matters are devolved to individual boards who have little or no experience in developing the game for disabled people. I think we can do better.”In the long term, the likes of Martin would like to see ICC membership criteria extended to include requirements for the encouragement and development of disability cricket. In the short term, he is hopeful that some contribution from ticket sales for the 2019 World Cup will be allocated towards the physical disability World Championship.But while other sports embrace and take pride in the development of their physical disability programmes – the Paralympics, for example, attracted a huge TV audience – the lack of support from the ICC for such schemes in cricket reflects poorly upon them.

Steve Waugh, the former Australia captain, has indicated a willingness to consider the role of selector after it emerged that the panel’s chairman Rod Marsh will vacate his post at the end of the season.Series defeats in Sri Lanka and South Africa have renewed focus on the Australian team’s performance, and there is tension in the air as Steven Smith’s team look to rebound by winning at home.Marsh’s decision not to seek a contract renewal was announced after the South Africa ODI series ended in a 5-0 defeat, and he will not be the only man under pressure, should results go badly this summer.Pat Howard, the head of team performance, is also out of contract next year, and will be looking to recast the selection panel before that time. Darren Lehmann, the national team coach and selector, has had his contract renewed until 2019.Waugh, whose twin brother Mark has been a selector since 2014, said he would be open to joining the panel. “I’d listen to it if the opportunity came up, but there are a lot of things you’ve got to throw into the mix and see whether it’s the right time,” Waugh told the . “I think there are a lot of good cricket brains in Australia. No one has asked me, but I’d listen to it.”Aside from a brief chat during the 2015 World Cup, Waugh has seldom been seen near the Australian side since his 2004 retirement, but has remained a respected voice and was a member of the Argus review panel in 2011, alongside fellow former captains Mark Taylor and Allan Border.Waugh perceives 2016-17 to be a pivotal summer for Smith in particular. “You always have a honeymoon period. The first six to 12 months, everything is fantastic. You make all the changes and they work,” Waugh said. “Then, the reality sets in and it’s a bit harder than that.”I think losing that series in Sri Lanka probably was a bit of a shock to the system. I thought our fielding was very poor, which is unlike Australia, and that sort of set the benchmark for the rest of their cricket.”[Smith] will be having a good look at himself, his captaincy style and which players he wants in the team. These six Tests in Australia could well define his captaincy going forward. I think if they have a good series in Australia and the team stays stable, and they respond to his leadership, then it’s great for him, but if things don’t go well, it will be a challenging time for him, particularly after the last few losses. But, as a captain, the one thing about Steve Smith is he’s amazing in the way he responds when things are down.”Waugh also noted Smith’s recent comments about the “quiet” nature of numerous members of the Test team and wanting to see a more boisterous group.”That’s when he’s got to get together with the selectors and say ‘this is the type of player I want in the side’,” Waugh said.”I’m sure he’ll be talking to Rod Marsh and the selectors, saying, ‘look, we need a bit more life, a bit more talk and attitude and a bit more Aussie Way’. That may define some of the selections in the first Test. If he wants more talk out there, he’s definitely got to get it.”

West Indies’ batting coach Toby Radford rued another poor batting display from his side in their 16-run loss to Pakistan in the second T20I in Dubai. Having lost the series, Radford said that West Indies couldn’t counter Pakistan’s game plan of spin on a ground with a slow track and big boundaries. Poor starts in the Powerplay didn’t help their cause, he added.In the first T20I, West Indies were struggling at 25 for 5 after the first six overs and were eventually bowled out for a paltry 115. In the second, chasing 161, they lost three wickets in the Powerplay putting only 20 runs on the board. Radford pointed out that West Indies were unable to switch to a mode that focused on accumulating runs through singles and twos, like Pakistan have done in the matches so far.”The first Powerplay yesterday and today were every similar. Yesterday we were five down, three down in the first six today,” Radford said after the game. “And I think the big difference when you looked at Pakistan in the first six was they were 38 for 1 and 39 for 1 on both days.”Clearly the game plan from Pakistan has been to have slow wickets to bowl a lot of spin and have very big boundaries. West Indies are known to be a big, six-hitting and boundary-hitting side, normally play on quicker pitches and slightly smaller grounds. But it’s up to us to find a way around that.”Pakistan have bowled well, they have actually fielded well. When they batted, they showed on a slow wicket and a big outfield that it’s actually all about knocking the ball into gaps and doing a lot of running. They ran a lot of twos tonight which I think really stretched us, and I don’t think it was ever going to be a game for lots of boundaries because I don’t think it’s that type of surface and that type of outfield.”While Radford praised seamer Sohail Tanvir, who picked up 3 for 13 in his four overs, Pakistan’s T20 captain Sarfraz Ahmed also credited the innings played by Shoaib Malik at No. 4. Malik, who became only the third Pakistan player to score more than 1500 T20I runs, chipped in with a useful 28-ball 37, and added 69 with Sarfraz for the fourth wicket before falling in the last over. That partnership helped Pakistan garner 60 runs off the last six overs. Sarfraz finished unbeaten on 46 off 32 balls.Sarfraz also stated that the team management had decided to send in Umar Akmal at No. 6 to bolster the lower order, which had been missing a finisher.”It was our strategy to play Umar Akmal at No. 6, since we needed a finisher in the lower order. We scored about 50 runs in the last five overs and we felt that was enough as we had set a target of a 150+ score,” Sarfraz said. “A lot of credit goes to Shoaib Malik too, the way he played with me at the end. We needed a senior player to stay at the wicket and he did that for us.”Pakistan went in with an unchanged side for the second match, leaving out fast bowler Mohammad Amir. Sarfraz stressed that the management wanted to give players confidence through a longer stint in the side and Amir was a part of the side’s plans for the future.”We have tried to keep a winning combination so we didn’t try to change too much,” Sarfraz said. “That is also our target – to give players a longer run in the side to build their confidence. Mohammad Amir is our main bowler and he will definitely play an important role for us in the future.”

The BCCI has authorised its president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke to look into the legal ramifications of the Supreme Court verdict that approved the Lodha Committee’s recommendations and guide the board and its member units. While there was no official statement from the BCCI, sources that attended the meeting confirmed that Thakur and Shirke will, in conjunction with the newly formed legal panel, engage with the Lodha Committee, and they will represent the concerns of the state associations as well.”This (Lodha Committee verdict) was the single-point agenda, and it was one [short, focused meeting] that lasted about half an hour to 45 minutes,” a state association official from the east zone told ESPNcricinfo. “The BCCI has the legal cell. We as a state association don’t know the legal aspects but somebody has to take care of such things. So, the SGM was called to authorise the secretary and the president to look into it. Concerns of individual state associations were not discussed; it was [a discussion] on the whole as reforms are meant for everybody.”Another official from a southern state said state associations had been instructed to direct their legal queries to the board’s lawyers who will advise them on the future course of action. According to him, however, the board’s first task would be to seek clarifications regarding its own functioning.”On August 9, the president and secretary are supposed to meet the Lodha Committee,” the official said. “The first priority is clarifications regarding the BCCI, only then will state associations come into the picture. Clarifications on all matters – when should the constitution be amended and how, the recommendations, and we also have the AGM coming up in September – will be sought.”While there has been speculation that the BCCI is inclined to file a review petition challenging the Supreme Court’s verdict, the official said it was a decision the president and secretary would make based on the legal advice they get. “There will be greater clarity once they meet the Lodha Committee on the ninth,” he said.The official also said there was no instruction from the board regarding elections of the Karnataka State Cricket Association and the Cricket Association of Bengal. The Lodha Committee had directed the CAB and KSCA to put their polls – scheduled for July 31 and August 7 respectively – on hold. “The BCCI will give its opinion on it. There will be more clarity after they discuss with the Lodha Committee. We are not going to raise anything as far as state associations are concerned, let the BCCI do. The states will fall in place thereafter.”

Kent 207 (Blake 89*, Porter 3-51) and 252 for 7 (Northeast 116*, Bopara 3-49) trail Essex 569 (Bopara 94, ten Doeschate 91, Westley 88, Lawrence 82, Rabada 4-118) by 110 runs
ScorecardSam Northeast held up Essex’s victory surge•Getty Images

Kent captain Sam Northeast summoned a century to deny Essex a Specsavers County Championship win in three days but he is unlikely to prevent them from extending their lead at the top of the second division.Northeast’s hundred followed the efforts by four Essex batsmen who departed within sight of three figures in a total of 569, a county record that eclipsed the 560 century-less innings against Sussex at Leyton in 1933, although on that distant day they declared nine wickets down.Back in the present, Northeast’s dogged resistance took a game that was fast running away from Kent into a fourth day. Northeast had entered Kent’s innings shortly before lunch when they were 18 for 2, still 344 runs short of making Essex bat again. By the close he was 116 not out, and Kent had closed the gap to 110.He belatedly found a batting ally in James Tredwell, and the eighth-wicket pair put on an unbeaten 124 in 39.3 overs to prevent Essex celebrating going back to the top of the Division Two table with a well-deserved day off.Ravi Bopara took three wickets and a catch during the afternoon to help reduce Kent to 128 for 7, but Essex were unable to press home their advantage in a wicketless evening session.Chasing 362 to make Essex bat again, Kent lost two wickets in the nine overs they had to negotiate before lunch. Sean Dickson was brilliantly caught at first slip by Alastair Cook, diving like a goalkeeper to his right.Fabian Cowdrey followed four balls later when he lifted the ball into Dan Lawrence’s hands at point to give Jamie Porter his 100th first-class wicket.It wasn’t long before Porter had No 101 when Joe Denly went lbw to one that nipped back to the bowler’s second ball after the interval.Northeast put on 57 with Darren Stevens to carry Kent to the relative safety of 86 for three. But two quick wickets had them deeper in trouble. Stevens was bowled through the gate when Bopara found some late movement.And Alex Blake, who held together Kent’s first innings with an unbeaten 89, went for two caught low down at cover by Bopara to give Quinn a second wicket.Adam Ball helped Northeast put on 27 for the sixth wicket before he was trapped lbw by Bopara, who then had Callum Jackson caught at mid-on by Quinn.The captain found an ally in James Tredwell for the eighth wicket and they passed fifty in a little over 15 overs, with Tredwell contributing 34 of them with six firmly-struck boundaries.Tredwell went to his fifty off 86 balls, with nine fours, as he pushed Ryan ten Doeschate into covers for two. Almost immediately Northeast carved Napier through mid-on for the four that not only brought up his own century but also the hundred partnership.Northeast’s third ton of the season took 172 balls, with 15 fours, while the stand with Tredwell encompassed 28 overs.Essex gave Kent another hour and a quarter’s toil in the field in the morning as they added 85 to their overnight total to post a 362-run lead on first innings. Kent did claim four wickets in the process, but that was scant consolation.Ten Doeschate became the fourth Essex batsman to depart within sight of a century, and the second in the nervous nineties, when he was beaten for pace by Mitch Claydon to edge behind. His 91 came off 122 balls and with a dozen fours.Kagiso Rabada had gone wicketless on day two after taking the prize wicket of Cook the previous evening. The South African quick finished with figures of four for 118 from 34 overs. He ended Napier’s cameo of 12 in eight balls, with a brute of a delivery that reared up and caught the shoulder of the bat.Rabada versus Cook had been a highlight of the first evening; Rabada versus Quinn was equally fascinating, though at a lower level. The tail-ender had one edge fall just short of Tredwell at second slip, the next ball flying through the cordon for four. Not surprisingly James Foster protected his young partner in the following over. But Quinn became Rabada’s fourth victim, pegged on his back foot lbw.Foster hoisted Tredwell straight for six, but in an Essex innings where batsmen just failed to reach landmarks, he holed out for 49 to Stevens on the long-off boundary. It should have been a fifty, but Foster had declined a single a ball before in keep Porter away from the strike.

ScorecardJosh Coughlin took two wickets on a shortened day•Getty Images

A second day of rain prevented England U-19s’ bowlers from making significant headway in their efforts to force victory. The Sri Lankans lost four wickets in a truncated day’s play – leaving a draw looking the likeliest result.Sri Lanka had started day three at Fenner’s on 96 for 2 with Charith Asalanka and Avishka Fernando looking to build on yesterday’s steady start at the crease.George Bartlett, who had complained of a knock to his hand during the warm-up, dropped a chance on 110 for 2, but quickly redeemed himself holding onto a low catch at short midwicket to dismiss Asalanka for 81 which included 12 boundaries.Durham pace bowler Josh Coughlin also made his first impact on the game dismissing Fernando for 45 giving George Hankins at second slip an easy catch.The afternoon session was lost to rain but after play resumed at 5pm Amar Virdi took his second wicket of the match – dismissing Shammu Ashan on 51.Sri Lankan keeper Navindu Vithanage was dispatched in the next over – Coughlin’s second wicket of the day – being caught one handed by an outstretched Pope.But bad light then intervened, forcing the players from the field again.Sri Lanka will resume tomorrow on 235 for 6.

ScorecardRichard Gleeson claimed three cheap wickets for Northants•Getty Images

Such is Northants’ dominance in T20 cricket this year that it might take until the winter for them to face a real challenge.Certainly they encountered little resistance at Edgbaston. Although the teams went into the match equal on points at the top of the North Division, Birmingham were 25 for 5 after 37 deliveries and there is no way back from that. It’s a little premature to suggest Northants have one foot in the quarter-finals, but they are very handily placed.But, by the time winter comes, the discussion over the future shape of the domestic T20 tournament will be coming to fruition. As things stand right now – and these things change like manifesto promises – the most likely result of those discussions is a two-division competition involving all 18 first-class counties and a system of promotion and relegation. It could start as early as next year, though 2020 and the advent of a new TV deal remains a more likely timeframe. The broadcasters would focus on the top division.Which all sounds pretty simple, doesn’t it?Except such is the desire to ensure the product – yes, it’s a horrible word, but we have to be realistic – looks right, that the argument over how to populate the top division could become complex.While you might think that simply picking the quarter-finalists of the previous season was the most meritocratic solution, there are those who think the division should be decided by ground size. That way, they argue, the product will appear more glamorous on TV and the potential for extra revenue from ticket sales increases. It is, in essence, a way of introducing city cricket through the back door.But if the new-look competition does start next year Northants, in particular, cannot be denied. So consistently impressive has their T20 form been over the last few years – they won the competition in 2013 and reached the final in 2015 – that any formation that does not include them (and the other ‘small’ counties who are out-performing their city neighbours with big grounds and even bigger senses of entitlement) will lack integrity. Merit must remain the only method for qualification.A similar discussion occurred ahead of the first year of the Premier League. Cambridge United were, at the time, the club with the small stadium that threatened to win promotion. As it was, they fell away and most of their best players were cherry-picked by bigger clubs. Northants supporters will be familiar with the sensation.Northants do have an issue with ticket sales, though. While Surrey, who could find themselves in the lower division, have sold 122,247 NatWest Blast tickets this season, Northants have sold just 16,477. Not for the first time, the cricket side of the club is being let down by the business side.Ticket sales have fallen off drastically around the country in the last couple of weeks. From a high point, a month ago, where they were up 26 percent on 2015 levels (which was, in itself a record year), the relentlessly wet weather (and, perhaps, the rival attraction of the football) has reduced this figure to 8 percent. The plan to start the competition several weeks later in 2017 may help, but the last few weeks might prove a reminder that, if this competition is held in a window, it is a hostage to fortune. It could be ruined by a spell of wet weather the like of which we have just experienced.What Northants provide – in T20 cricket, at least – is a glorious reminder of the ability of sport to transcend financial muscle. So here, despite fielding a makeshift opening attack of part-time pros (Richard Gleeson combines his playing role with a community coaching role at the Lancashire Cricket Board, while Moin Ashraf has been signed on a short-term contract to cover for injuries to Rory Kleinveldt and Stone), they thrashed a side with a budget the like of which they can only dream.Birmingham, remember, have such a strong squad that they feel able to leave out players of the class of Varun Chopra (who scored an unbeaten 97 in his only T20 innings this season) and Jonathan Trott (who remains the highest T20 run-scorer in the club’s history, despite hardly having played for several years). Indeed, if you added up the salaries of those left out – and you could include Boyd Rankin, Tim Ambrose, Ian Westwood, Keith Barker and Chris Wright – it might not fall far short of the entire Northants’ salary bill.The better side won here. While Northants produced some moments of great skill – Richard Levi seemed to defy gravity as he leapt high into the air to take as sharp a slip catch as you could wish to see to dismiss Laurie Evans – Birmingham had what might politely be called a shocker: Jeetan Patel’s drop at cover to reprieve Josh Cobb on 1 was museum-quality awful.Perhaps they were a little unfortunate. Batting first on a pitch that had been under cover for much of the time since it was used for last week’s ODI, Gleeson gained just enough movement to trouble the batsmen. Luke Ronchi edged a beauty that left him, Ian Bell missed one that may have nipped in and Sam Hain, frustrated at his lack of progress, top-edged a desperate heave. Had the match not been reduced to 16 overs a side due to rain, Birmingham may well have struggled to see out their overs.Northants, recognising the tricky conditions, did not try to win with overs to spare. Instead Ben Duckett – a home-grown player who could well go on to represent his country – and Cobb, the third-highest scorer in the competition this season, played intelligent, mature innings. There were 21 balls to spare when Cobb clipped the boundary through mid-wicket that clinched the win. Cricket’s version of the Leicester City story continues.