RESULT: MATCH DRAWN Having beaten Kent in a rain affected T20 clash on Monday, SACA faced the same opposition over the next three days, in a red-ball encounter at Polo Farm in Canterbury. Kent skipper Olly Curtis won the toss and elected to bat, and it proved to be a tough morning for the SACA bowlers, as the Kent openers, Ben Dawkins and Will Harby, batted through the opening session of the game to take Kent to lunch on day one on 158 without loss, on 74* and 75* respectivel

We are delighted to announce that SACA Coach, Aadil Ali has been appointed by Leicestershire County Cricket Club to join their coaching group. He will work with the Foxes squad alongside Alfonso Thomas and the rest of the Leicestershire coaching team throughout the 2026 season. Prior to taking up a career in coaching, Leicester born Ali, now 31, graduated through the Leicestershire Academy and signed professional terms with the Club at the end of the 2014 season. Following a

RESULT: SACA WON BY 3 RUNS (DLS METHOD) After two red-ball clashes last week against Gloucestershire and Surrey to get the 2026 campaign underway, it was into the first white-ball action of the season today for SACA, as they took on Kent in a T20 clash at Polo Farm in Canterbury. The day began with SACA skipper Shaariq Sheikh winning the toss and inserting the opposition, and in only the second over of the day Waqas Khan struck with his very first ball to remove Corey Flintof

RESULT: MATCH DRAWN SACA’s second encounter of the week to kick off their 2026 season came against Surrey at Loughborough’s Carillion Cricket Ground this week, in another two-day red-ball encounter. After SACA skipper, Hisham Khan, had won the toss and elected to bowl, it was the county side that had the better of the opening day. SACA started the day well however, as two early wickets for seamer Eshun Kalley, in the fifth and ninth overs, had Surrey on 38 for 2, before a cru

RESULT: GLOUCESTERSHIRE WON BY 5 WICKETS SACA’s 2026 season got underway on Monday, with Gloucestershire up first, in a two-day fixture played at Leamington Cricket Club. It was a game that ebbed and flowed throughout, with the first-class county having the better of the opening day, with SACA fighting back on day two, only for Gloucestershire to rally in the final session of the game to ultimately secure victory. The opening day began with Gloucestershire skipper Luke Charle

SACA are delighted to announce that right-arm seamer, Yadvinder Singh, has been signed on a short-term professional contract by Leicestershire County Cricket Club. Singh, 30, has been training with the Foxes over the winter, with the SACA bowler impressing the Leicestershire coaching staff throughout his time at Grace Road, and he will be available for selection for them across the opening month of the season. He made his debut for SACA in May 2022, at the very start of SACA’

On Sunday 12 April, SACA will be holding an open trial in East London for players to showcase their talents in front of the Academy’s coaching and management group with the opportunity of joining the SACA programme the goal for successful trialists. The day, being held at the Leyton Urban Cricket Hub, in partnership with Remitly and Essex Cricket, will see five sessions being run from 12 noon by SACA’s team of elite coaches, and applications to join the trial are now being ac

SACA is today delighted to name the fifteen players who have been selected to join the inaugural SACA Women’s pilot programme being run in collaboration with Take Her Lead throughout the 2026 season. The volume of high-quality applicants from across the country to join the Women’s programme led SACA to immediately review their initial plans of recruiting a cohort of between 6 and 10 players, and develop an expanded programme to cater for a larger squad of 15, as announced rec

Today, SACA are delighted to announce that the Academy’s batting and wicket-keeping coach Adeel Shafique has been appointed to the role of SACA Second Eleven Coach. Nottingham-born Shafique, 31, has carved out an impressive coaching career since his playing days in the county Second Eleven set-up and internationally with Oman. On moving to Oman in the early 2020’s he began coaching at the Oman Cricket Academy, before being appointed as Head Coach of the Oman Under 19 side, le

Having announced the launch of a dedicated Women’s programme only last month, SACA can today confirm that following a successful recruitment drive for players to enrol onto the programme, it will undergo an immediate expansion as a result of the volume of high-quality players applying to join. The SACA Women’s pilot programme, being delivered in collaboration with Take Her Lead and funded by the ECB as part of their charity and delivery partner support, initially appealed for

SACA can today confirm that its coaches and squad will head to the Square One Cricket Centre in Sussex for two intensive winter training camps as preparations gather pace for the coming season. With a number of SACA’s players returning from overseas playing commitments over the winter, they will join up with the rest of the SACA squad and resume winter training as a group. Square One will host two SACA camps, both held over two days, one at the end of February and one in Marc

Earlier today, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), published the following announcement on its website… The ECB and its official partners have announced increased funding commitments which will take cricket to more people over the next three years. The ECB and its official charity and delivery partners have today announced increased funding commitments which will take cricket to more people over the next three years, supporting the game’s ambition to become the most in

Today, SACA are delighted to reveal that Moonwalkr have become the latest brand to support the Academy by becoming a sponsor of SACA in 2026. Moonwalkr, which launched as a brand in 2009, has revolutionised the world of protective cricket equipment, focussing on innovation to produce an extensive range of top-quality, ground-breaking protective wear including helmets, pads and guards. With a vision to bring science to cricket Moonwalkr are redefining the norms, producing a ra

SACA is delighted to confirm that Kabir Ali, who co-founded SACA with Tom Brown back in 2022, has today been announced as Lancashire Cricket’s Men’s Lead Bowling Coach. Since playing a key role in establishing SACA with Brown over four years ago and helping the Academy lay the early foundations for the success it is seeing today, Ali has carved out a successful coaching career across both the county game and at several global franchise competitions, coaching in both the Men’s

SACA can today confirm that three of the Academy's players have joined Kent Cricket on their Academy+ programme. Left-handed batter Savin Perera, right-handed batting all-rounder Ismail Mohammed, and left-arm quick Chinmay Mullapudi will all join the Kent programme immediately and will be looking to impress at the county’s Canterbury headquarters over the coming winter months. Kent’s innovative Academy+ programme bridges the gap for players who have outgrown the County Academ

SACA is today delighted to announce the opening of its fifth high-performance regional hub, with Leyton in East London becoming the latest focal point in the country to benefit from the opportunities that SACA provides. The Leyton hub, based at Essex Cricket’s Leyton Urban Cricket Hub, joins the existing four other established SACA regional hubs across the country, in the Midlands in Birmingham and Derby, the North in Bradford, the Southwest in Bristol and the Southeast in Wo

Today, SACA are extremely proud to announce that Amar Rashid, one of the Academy’s long-standing coaches, will begin working with the ECB as a Consultant Coach, and is set to travel to Abu Dhabi in mid-February to work with the England Lions on their forthcoming tour against Pakistan-A. As a player, leg-spinning all-rounder Rashid, 39, represented Leeds/Bradford University between 2002 and 2007 ahead of making nine List-A appearances for the Unicorns across 2011 and 2012. He

SACA is today delighted to announce the launch of its very first Women’s programme, building on the success of a Men’s programme that has already seen SACA secure playing contracts for 18 of the Academy’s players with Professional County Clubs. Established in 2022, SACA has to date focused on the Men’s game, with enormous success, however the launch of the Academy’s inaugural Women’s programme is another significant milestone in SACA’s story. The pilot scheme, funded by the E

SACA is today delighted to announce its full fixture list for the 2026 season, which will see the Academy play competitive fixtures against 16 of the 18 Professional County Clubs this year. Following a breakthrough year in 2025, which saw SACA sides in action on 57 days of the season, and the total number of players to graduate from the Academy into the professional game reach 18, 2026 is again set to be a busy summer, with no fewer than 54 days of competitive action confirme

AMBITIOUS PLANS FOR 2026 The South Asian Cricket Academy (SACA) is today delighted to announce the appointment of dedicated communications consultancy, Focus Communications & Media, to help the Academy build on the huge success it has achieved to date. Run by former long-standing Director of Communications at Middlesex Cricket, Steven Fletcher, Focus Communications & Media will take responsibility for handling all media activities and press engagement, work with the S