Stumped

Afghanistan bowler Naveen-ul-Haq discusses the ongoing political situation in his home country, what the future holds for the national team and whether they will compete at the Twenty20 World Cup in October.

We hear how the Afghan Cricket Association, which normally supports players in the UK, has redirected its efforts to providing emergency aid.

Plus, we reflect on India’s win over England in the second Test, discuss the T20 World Cup draw and look ahead to the final Test between West Indies and Pakistan, after a thrilling first victory for the home side.

Photo: Captain Naveen Ul Haq of Afghanistan and his team mates line up for their national anthem prior to the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup match between New Zealand and Afghanistan at Hagley Oval on January 25, 2018 in Christchurch, New Zealand

Ian Watmore, ECB Chair and head of the International Cricket Council's Olympic working group, joins us to talk about the bid for the sport to be included at Los Angeles 2028 and the beginning of the Hundred.

Alison Mitchell, Charu Sharma and Jim Maxwell discuss the injuries affecting England's bowling options heading into the second Test against India

And we'll hear how the inaugural British Gorkhali League is promoting cricket amongst British Nepalese players.

Photo: The torch is lit at the Los Angeles Coliseum as the city was officially named as host of the 2028 Summer Olympics.

We speak to former New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori about his coaching career, including his current role in The Hundred, and about mental health in cricket following Ben Stokes' announcement that he's taking an 'indefinite' break from the sport.

Plus, we hear from the women's team in Barcelona which has run a successful campaign to create the city's first cricket pitch.

PHOTO: Spin Bowling Coach Daniel Vettori takes part in warm ups during game one of the International T20 series between New Zealand and Bangladesh at Seddon Park on March 28, 2021 in Hamilton, New Zealand. (Credit: Getty Images)

We speak to South Africa's all time leading wicket taker and one of the fastest female bowlers in world, Shabnim Ismail, as we discuss whether the 80 miles per hour women's bowling record could be broken soon.

Plus, we'll look at the concerns over this winter's Ashes, and India's injury list ahead of the Test series with England.

Photo: Shabnim Ismail of South Africa bowls during the ICC Women's T20 Cricket World Cup match between South Africa and Pakistan at Sydney Showgrounds (Credit:Getty Images)

On this week’s Stumped, Alison Mitchell, Charu Sharma and Jim Maxwell are joined by Oval Invincibles and England T20 bowler Tash Farrant. Farrant featured in the inaugural match of The Hundred, as the competition finally got underway a year later than originally planned. We discuss the new format, how well it worked and how it's helping towards gender equality in the sport.

And we hear from the 11-year-old boy who's been given a new lease of cricketing life - all thanks to a special set of glasses.

Photo: Tash Farrant of Oval Invincibles bowls during the The Hundred match between Oval Invincibles and Manchester Originals. (Credit:Getty Images)

On this week’s Stumped with Alison Mitchell, Jim Maxwell and Charu Sharma, West Indies great Michael Holding discusses his powerful speech about racial injustice which went viral last year.

He speaks about his own experiences of racism, reacts to the social media abuse aimed at some of England’s footballers at the European Championships this week and discusses his new book 'Why We Kneel, How We Rise,' and whether it’s easier now for sports men and women to use their platform for change.

And with less than a week to go to the start of The Hundred, we discuss the implications of recent positive covid cases and look back at the India v England’s women multi-format series.

Photo: Former West Indies Cricketer Michael Holding shakes hands with West Indies captain Jason Holder. (Credit: ICC via Getty Images)

On this week's Stumped, Alison Mitchell, Charu Sharma and Jim Maxwell discuss the fallout after the entire England ODI squad was forced into quarantine after a number of players and staff tested positive. An entire new playing and coaching team was named just days before their one-day series against Pakistan.

We also hear from the Northern Diamonds and Yorkshire bowler Katie Levick, who shares her first-hand experience of dealing with the consequences of suspected long Covid. She was left unable to walk down a flight of stairs without a having to take a break and feared the illness would end her career.

And we hear the second part of a wide-ranging interview with Australia all-rounder Ashleigh Gardner. She discusses her aboriginal heritage and how the Australian Women have embraced learning more about the indigenous culture.

Photo: Katie Levick of Northern Diamonds bowls during the Rachel Heyhoe Flint Trophy match between Northern Diamonds and Loughborough Lightning. (Credit: MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

On this week's Stumped, we'll speak to the Chief Executive of the Pakistan Cricket Board Wasim Khan who outlines Pakistan's hopes of co-hosting the cricket World Cup in 2027 and 2031.

We'll also discuss the T20 World Cup being moved from India to the UAE.

And we'll hear from Australia All rounder Ashleigh Gardner who's looking forward to the much anticipated one off Test Match against India, taking place at the Waca later this year.

Photo: Pakistan Cricket Board CEO Wasim Khan addresses the media. (Credit: AFP via Getty Images)

On this week's Stumped we hear from former Sri Lanka cricket captain Kumar Sangakkara who says since winning the World Cup in 1996, their players been held back by administrative upheaval and archaic systems where everyone is extremely resistant to change.

Sangakarra who was this month inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame, believes his country have now been surpassed by other cricketing nations and now is the ‘time to draw a line and say it’s enough’.

Plus we debate the pros and cons of the format of the World Test Championship final and celebrate New Zealand becoming the inaugural winners.

And we ask the question whether women's test matches should be extended to five days?

Photo: Sri Lanka batsman Kumar Sangakkara raises his bat after scoring a century at the Bellerive Oval ground during the 2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A match between Scotland and Sri Lanka in Hobart on March 11, 2015. (Credit: INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP via Getty Images)

Stuart Broad has urged the ICC to review the use of soft signals after New Zealand opener Devon Conway controversially survived a claimed catch by Zak Crawley. This follows comments from India Captain Virat Kohli on DRS where he says 'umpire's call creates a lot of confusion'. The Stumped team debate whether there is still a need in the game for soft signals or whether umpires should rely solely on technology.

Plus India and England are playing in a Test Match against each other for the first time since 2014 but the wicket has caused controversy. It is being placed on a used wicket after Gloucestershire played a T20 match on it last week. We ask whether this is a step back in the women's game.

And we hear the second part of our interview with Cricket Australia Chief Executive Nick Hockley. He speaks about sandpaper gate, parity in the women’s game and cricket being on free to air TV.

Photo: England bowlers Stuart Broad (R) and James Anderson (C) inspect the ball with umpire on the third day of the second Test cricket match between England and New Zealand. (Credit: AFP via Getty Images)