Australian cricket chiefs are working on a plan to lure opener Sam Robson back home as they bid to keep him out of the clutches of oldest rivals England, reports said on Friday.
Sydney-born Robson, 24, is the leading run-scorer in the English County Championship this season with Middlesex and the focus of an “Ashes-themed tug of war”, Fairfax Media said. Currently Robson, whose mother hails from the English city of Nottingham, cannot be chosen for New South Wales as a domestic player because although born in Australia, he plays county cricket on a British passport, the reports said.
But a rule change governing the eligibility of players with dual passports in domestic competitions, which needs the green light from Cricket Australia, would clear the way for him to join NSW later this year, Fairfax said. There is significant interest from NSW where Robson’s father, Jim, runs the indoor centre at the Sydney Cricket Ground and where the batsman often trains when playing Sydney club cricket during the southern summer.
NSW Cricket said in a statement: “Under the current rules, Sam is only allowed to play in Australian domestic cricket as a local player because he was born here. “If he chooses to play here as a local, he must give up his position as a local player in (English) county cricket and would be considered an overseas player.”
CA’s plan, according to Fairfax Media, would involve Robson trying out for a call-up to the NSW state side for the first Sheffield Shield match of the summer.
Bresnan out of Ashes
london: England pace bowling all-rounder Tim Bresnan has been ruled out of the remainder of the Ashes and the rest of the home international season with a stress fracture in his lower back, the England and Wales Cricket Board has announced.
“England and Yorkshire pace bowler Tim Bresnan has been ruled out of the remainder of the international season with a stress fracture in his lower back,” an ECB statement said on Thursday.