Malan and Bell-Drummond shine for South

Dawid Malan and Daniel BellDrummond put on an unbroken stand of 205 as South crushed North by 10 wickets in Dubai.

The North-South fixture was making its return to the calendar for the first time since 1961, now as a three-match 50-over series rather than a first-class encounter, with England head coach Trevor Bayliss casting his eye over proceedings. He cannot have failed to be impressed by Malan’s 109 not out and Bell-Drummond’s 92 not out, knocks that made light of North’s 202 all out.

A North side captained by Keaton Jennings and led by England bowling coach Ottis Gibson opted to bat first, only to be dismissed in 43.3 overs for an underpowered total.

Opener Sam Hain managed 33 before a bright stand of 63 between Joe Clarke (57) and Tim Bresnan (40) added some substance to the middle order. But it was not enough as South, guided by Bayliss’s No2 Paul Farbrace, continued picking up regular wickets, with recent England call-up Tom Curran claiming three for 19.

The next game takes place in Dubai tomorrow, with North needing a win to stay in the series. The Cycling Anti-Doping Foundation [CADF], the independent body which runs the sport’s anti-doping program, has asked UK Anti-Doping to “assess” former Team Sky rider Josh Edmondson’s claim that the British outfit covered up his breach of cycling’s ‘no-needles’ rule. Edmondson made his claims in a BBC interview in which he claimed the team did not report him after discovering he had broken rules. Former Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone has revealed he wanted to remain working in the sport but understands why he was replaced shortly after new owners Liberty Media completed their takeover. “I would have asked them to work with me for a bit, wait for a year and afterwards say, ‘Has it worked, not worked?’, ‘Not worked? Sorry, you’ll have to leave’, or whatever,” he told Sky Sports News.