EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW BY LAWRENCE BOOTH: Eight years on from his only Test cap, Mason Crane is doing his best to change the story.

England have turned to an Australian to help rebuild after last summer's Ashes humiliation, with former Test batter Marcus North poised to become the ECB's new national selector

At a time when the ECB are under pressure for reacting to the Ashes by sticking with the status quo, the appointment of North looks quietly shrewd - grown-up rather than headline-grabbing.

The 39-year-old former Test cricket star's charge had its first mention in a Sydney court on Thursday.

Emergency services were called to Audley Weir in the Royal National Park south of Sydney about 1.15am on Wednesday after a car crashed into the water.

Cricket is on the brink of a major technological breakthrough with three counties practising with balls containing a chip that provides access to new levels of data.

With English cricket at a crucial juncture, the kind of cosy appointment that has become commonplace must be avoided. The new national selector must be someone who will challenge the status quo.

The meeting was called due to increasing worries among non-host counties about spiralling costs and inflation. A document seen by Daily Mail Sport flagged up widespread fears of 'irrelevance or failure'.

Lloyd, 79, has had a lifetime association with his boyhood club, captaining and coaching the team. It is a turn of events that is likely to further anger a disenfranchised fanbase.

Michael Clarke has undergone another skin cancer removal.

With only three rounds of first-class matches to go before the first Test against New Zealand at Lord's, Daily Mail Sport examines the potential replacements for Crawley at the top of the order...