Own goal from adidas

ENGLAND cricket kit suppliers adidas made what now looks a rash decision to downgrade the importance of their cricket deal before this summer’s epic Ashes series because it was felt cricket was no longer one of their core sports — and the need to make cutbacks after the £750million contract with Manchester United. It also does not show the German firm in a good light that they are the only one of FIFA’s top tier sponsors not even to have had the courtesy to reply to letters from the New FIFA Now pressure group campaigning for independent reform. Visa, Coca- Cola and McDonald’s are all supportive but it is significant FIFA’s contract with adidas runs until 2030. BELEAGUERED Michael Clarke, whose captaincy of Australia for the fifth Test at The Oval must be in doubt after the capitulation at Trent Bridge, may be fortunate that Cricket Australia director Mark Taylor, one of those who will have a say on his fate, missed the Trent Bridge debacle to go on a trip to Copenhagen. KEVIN PIETERSEN’S Chelsea tractor used to be the only vehicle in the England players’ car park not provided by the official supplier. But along with the Toyota- sponsored cars in the compound at Trent Bridge yesterday, there was Ben Stokes’s BMW with its personalised number plate and Stuart Broad’s Land Rover. The ECB say the Toyota deal does not require players to drive to matches in their cars as their previous backers Jaguar insisted. YORKSHIRE chairman Steve Denison put out a provocative post-midnight tweet following the Scarborough Cricket Festival dinner on the eve of the critical championship match against Durham. It read: ‘Just left the @DurhamCricket lads in the bar sinking pints of lager while our boys are safely tucked up in bed.’ However, the Durham booze-up seems to have been a sensible tactic as Yorkshire were bowled out for 162 in the first innings.