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Further update from The Cricketer about the ground redevelopment: Plans for an ambitious redevelopment at Leicestershire have been put on ice by the arrival of a new chief executive. The club raised eyebrows three years ago when they unveiled plans for a £60million redevelopment of the Upton Steel County Ground at Grace Road. For a club with a turnover under £6m a year, almost 70 per cent of which comes from the ECB's distribution, it seemed a mighty optimistic project. Certainly, Emma White, who took over as CEO of Leicestershire at the end of last season, admits the plan is not on her agenda at present. And while she doesn't rule out looking at it again at some stage, she admits that it is likely to be "fairly far in the future". "There's a lot of tradition, and there's a lot of loyalty to Grace Road," White told The Cricketer. "And I've seen different sports clubs in the past that have moved away from their tradition and their loyalty and a little bit of their fan base as well. They've built a brand new spangly stadium that nobody goes to. "If we were selling out every match, I would be banging the boardroom door down saying, 'Guys, we've got to do something, because I'm leaving money on the street here from people who can't get in'. "But I am not there yet. When I get there - because for me, it's definitely a 'when' in certain formats of cricket - then that's a conversation that we would have. But it's not a conversation for now. "I wouldn't say it [the ground redevelopment] has been chucked off the table altogether. But it's for fairly far in the future." In January 2025, Leicestershire appointed sport financing firm Pinto Capital to help them with funding options to accelerate plans around the redevelopment and help with the financing of the women's side, who they hope can achieve tier one status by 2029. Leicestershire could have used their share of income from The Hundred team sales to partially fund such a redevelopment. But, apart from clearing the club's debt (which was around £2.5m), White is in no hurry to spend the money and is happy to allow interest to build. So, the club refurbished some of their conference facilities from their own funds - bookings are up 30 per cent as a result - and are now looking to "be much more financially sustainable" before making any decisions as to how to spend the "once in a lifetime chunk of money". "We need to be much more financially sustainable, so a little bit more stable, before we launch into whatever we do next to future-proof cricket at Leicestershire," White said. "I think you would have to be a bit bonkers business-wise to chuck a lot more money at it. We need to grow the commercial income and start to stand on our own two feet a little bit. And then we give ourselves time to use that money really wisely. It's a once-in-a-lifetime chunk of money. We don't want to waste it."

Spent many an hour in Thomas' and then checking out the second-hand army gear in Irish.

LRI doesn't sound great. Medway A&E was until recently rated as inadequate and unsafe. Parking and access issues there can be horrendous at times, as it's built in the middle of Victorian terraces on the border between Chatham and Gillingham - not far from Gillingham FC , if anyone has been there. On the flip side, I often have to take our daughter to Great Ormond Street and the care, expertise and attention to detail there is world class.

You guys complaining about the hospitals in Leicester, just be thankful you've never had to visit Medway Hospital in Chatham.

From the Cricketer magazine on our plans for the Hundred money: "I won't be pressured into anything," chief executive Emma White told The Cricketer, summing up the approach at Leicestershire. "The plan is: there is no plan right now." And with the large pot building interest in the bank, there is even less pressure on them to splurge. The focus for now is exploring how Grace Road, with the biggest outfield in the country, can maximise revenue generation. From building a new stand to overhauling the whole site, nothing is off the table. But spending any of the money before establishing those facts would be foolhardy or, worse, damn right irresponsible. There is an appreciation from White that the ECB want to futureproof the sport – members seem to agree – and that, when the lump sum eventually runs out, there has to be something to show for it. Looks like Jarvis' previous plans to extensively redevelop the ground are up for debate and we're back to the long-standing question of what we do with such a big playing area.

Seems like it's gone spectacularly wrong for Trump. I'm sure, based on the original intelligence the idea was a Venezuela-type scenario, where the main man was taken out, but oops, they also killed the preferred candidates to take over. They didn't quite foresee oil shooting up so high so quick and with maga fans thinking that cheap gas is a birthright, he doesn't want irate truckers at the pumps and talk of higher food prices, fanning the flames of the affordability debate.

I lived in Beeston for a few years and loved it - great location for lots of reasons. Sherwood also quite pleasant, but yes, lots of other areas I'd pass through very quickly.

Says he thinks the war will be over soon. He's losing interest...

He's definitely positioning himself for it but can't admit anything yet. He has the story and the name recognition, but the main doubt around Newsom is if a California Governor, who looks like a film star and has elite connections will appeal to the 'flyover states' as much as someone else.

An absolute monster. Thoughts are for the parents of the girls, that this is dragged into the media spotlight again. But hopefully this offers some sort of relief and closure for them.

Yep, oil up to $87 a barrel and India now importing it from Russia again. Putin is laughing.

Operation Epstein Smokescreen

Possibly a movement back to London, which has traditionally provided a haven during times of turbulence. Whatever the negatives of the UK, it provides economic, political and environmental stability.

His whole schtick in his career was about working hard, winning set-pieces, running channels, retaining possession, so he fundamentally seizes to exist if he doesn't offer any of that.

I think taking in so many unpopular ex-tories like Braverman and Jenrick has been a bit of an own goal for Reform. Long way to go and Labour could well change leader, but that points to lots of tactical voting and a coalition.

That's a theory to chew over

And good luck if it end up being a ground war. Iran's mountainous terrain means you would have weapons and rebels hiding out and launching attacks for years. Best outcome here is some sort of de-escalation and installation of a more moderate regime change without Iran losing too much face.

Yes has the potential to drag out for some time as the attacks on the wider region will be Iran's main strategy now.

If you look at Sussex's loss then that doesn't surprise me. Higher energy and employment costs have really taken their toll and going forward, all cricket clubs need to find a way of using the Hundred money to make themselves more sustainable 12 months of the year.

Depends who the Democrats put up as a candidate (if they are smart they will choose a moderate), or if an independent runs. Trump's poll numbers are appalling at the moment so he is hedging this can be resolved quickly, oil prices can be controlled downwards and his tax handout will make Americans feel better financially before the mid-terms in November, when the Republicans could lose control of the House or Senate. But given Trump's general impulsive nature and need for attention, he probably isn't thinking too far ahead or even cares that much about what happens after his tenure as he has little allegiance to the Republican party, it's all about himself, I would say.

How did he play nearly 50 times in Serie A and get called up to the Italian squad? Terrible indictment of the decline in standards over there.

Surely some of these will have to go on loan with some of their wages being covered if we can't get a fee for them. It's not sustainable for us to pay the sort of wages these guys are on and it wouldn't surprise me if the total weekly squad wages of some League 1 teams are less than Skipp's.

Yes sadly we'll be forced to flog anyone we can get a few beans for, or terminate contracts with compensation for those we can't sell. But Hamza might still be haunting the place!

Okoli would be better off playing for Tigers. Flanker could his best position

If only we still had Soumare to bring on second half to shore things up.....