Middlesex lose appeal

MiDDLeseX will play in Division two of the county championship next year after their appeal against a twopoint penalty for a slow over rate was dismissed. the 2016 county champions contested the punishment applied during the draw against surrey at the Oval in August after the firing of a crossbow bolt onto the field led the umpires to abandon the final day’s play prematurely. they went on to finish in the relegation places, a point behind somerset who stayed up. Meanwhile, ireland hope to host Australia in a pre-Ashes test match in 2019 following the icc’s approval of four-day tests as an ongoing trial.