All posts by n8rngtd.top

Offspinner Ashmini Munisar and wicketkeeper Shunelle Sawh also earn maiden call-ups

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Jun-2023West Indies have named fit-again Chinelle Henry in their 16-member provisional squad for the first two ODIs of their three-match series against Ireland. The allrounder has fully recovered from the injury that kept her out of the recent Super50 Cup and T20 Blaze.Offspinner Ashmini Munisar and wicketkeeper Shunelle Sawh have also earned their maiden call-ups. Munisar, West Indies’ captain at the Under-19 T20 World Cup earlier this year, was the joint-third highest wicket-taker in the T20 Blaze with six scalps from five games. Her economy of 3.31 was the best among those who bowled at least ten overs in the tournament.Hayley Matthews will continue to lead the squad; Shemaine Campbelle will be her deputy. The official squad of 13 players will be named ahead of each match.Related

• Robert Samuels appointed head coach of WI Women for Ireland series

• Business-class flights and single rooms for West Indies women

“The ODI series against Ireland gives a good opportunity for batters to focus and to stay longer at the crease and build an innings,” Ann Browne-John, CWI’s lead selector for women’s cricket, said. “A number of the younger players would be transitioning from the shorter format to the 50-over format. They definitely have the potential, and it is important that the policy of identifying young players and developing the talent pool is continued.”The ODI series is part of the Women’s Championship, where West Indies and Ireland are the bottom-most teams. Both teams have played six games each so far; West Indies have one win while Ireland are yet to open their account.”The squad shows a great balance of batting coupled with a variety of bowling styles, which is something that has been lacking in the recent past,” Browne-John said. “Victory here will provide valuable points as the team attempts to move up in the rankings and qualify for the World Cup.”The ODI series from June 26, West Indies’ first ODI cricket since December 2022, will be followed by three T20Is. All six matches will be played at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground in St Lucia, and for the first time, a full West Indies Women’s bilateral home series will be broadcast live on television.These are West Indies’ only home fixtures this year.Provisional squad for first two ODIs: Hayley Matthews (capt), Shemaine Campbelle (vice-capt), Aaliyah Alleyne, Shamilia Connell, Chinelle Henry, Afy Fletcher, Cherry-Ann Fraser, Shabika Gajnabi, Zaida James, Djenaba Joseph, Qiana Joseph, Ashmini Munisar, Karishma Ramharack, Shunelle Sawh, Stafanie Taylor, Rashada Williams

Seamer had been made unavailable for selection after fractious encounter at Hove

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Nov-2023Ari Karvelas, the Sussex seamer, has been cleared of breaching ECB regulations on player behaviour following an investigation into an incident during the LV= Insurance County Championship game against Leicestershire at Hove last season.Karvelas was made unavailable by his club for the final two matches of the season, reportedly over a comment made to Leicestershire’s Pakistan international batter Umar Amin during a fractious encounter, which also resulted in an ECB ban for Cheteshwar Pujara, Sussex’s captain, and Tom Haines and Jack Carson being stood down for a game apiece.Sussex won the game but were subsequently docked 12 points by the ECB, effectively ruling them out of the running for promotion from Division Two.More than a month after the conclusion of the season, Sussex released a statement declaring the matter closed: “Sussex Cricket can confirm that the ECB Integrity Team has concluded its investigation into Ari Karvelas following the LV= Insurance County Championship match against Leicestershire on September 13.”The ECB Integrity Team has confirmed that there has not been a breach of the ECB regulations and therefore, no further action will be taken. The club now considers this matter closed and will not comment further.”Without the services of Karvelas, their leading wicket-taker in the Championship, Sussex collected a draw and a win from their final two games, which lifted them to a third-placed finish behind Durham and Worcestershire.

Hosts double down on ultra-attacking style as Australia bowlers lack control

Matt Roller20-Jul-2023Zak Crawley’s 189 off 182 balls sent England roaring into the lead at Emirates Old Trafford, giving them hope of beating both a frazzled Australia side and the Manchester weather to square the series two-all.With rain expected to wipe out the fourth and fifth days, Ben Stokes hinted the day before this Test that England would adjust their strategy accordingly by doubling-down on their ultra-attacking style with the bat. True to their captain’s word, they overhauled Australia’s first-innings 317 inside 55 overs.And it was Crawley who led the way. He flicked the first ball of England’s innings past Alex Carey for four and, after a shaky start before lunch, he batted with utter disdain against the best seam attack in the world throughout the afternoon. His first Ashes hundred took only 93 balls, the fourth-fastest by an Englishman, and left Pat Cummins and his bowlers floundering.England scored at a run rate of 7.12 during a heady second session, adding 178 in 25 overs. Alongside Moeen Ali, then Joe Root – who both made half-centuries of their own – Crawley pulled, drove, flicked and slog-swept his way to three figures, then accelerated past 150 after tea.He fell 11 runs short of a second Test double-hundred, bottom-edging a swing across the line onto his own stumps, but by that stage he had become the leading run-scorer in the series. It served as vindication of England’s faith in an opening batter who had arrived at the ground on Thursday morning with an average below 30, yet has come to represent their progress under Stokes and Brendon McCullum.Related

• Australia play down Mitchell Starc injury worries after chastening day

• Cummins feels heat as Australia struggle to keep pace with Bazball

• Whisper it quietly but Zak Crawley is so far nailing this Ashes

• Incomplete Australia leave the door ajar as England fight to stay in the Ashes

• Stuart Broad scales giddy heights to take the fight to his favourite foes

Australia were a bowler down by the close after Mitchell Starc damaged his left shoulder while diving in the field. Despite the wicket of Root for 84, bowled by a ball which shot through low from Josh Hazlewood, they lacked any semblance of control; their decision not to field a frontline spinner for the first time in a decade was exposed as a blunder.There were few signs early in Crawley’s innings of what was to come. He played-and-missed several times against Starc and Hazlewood in their initial new-ball bursts, edging Hazlewood just short of Steven Smith at slip on 12. When Cummins came into attack in the 12th over, Crawley edged his first ball past his own stumps.He lost his opening partner Ben Duckett to the 13th ball of the England innings, edging Starc’s outswinger behind, and Moeen’s driving outside his off stump was fast and loose as he walked out in his temporary role as a makeshift No. 3. Crawley himself was given out lbw on 20, trapped on the front pad by Cameron Green, but reviewed successfully.But in the over before lunch, he creamed a trademark cover drive for four off Cummins and never looked back. Carey couldn’t get his hand to a half-chance via the inside edge as he cruised towards a 67-ball half-century, raised with a reverse-swept four off Travis Head’s first ball and celebrated with a swept six off his second.Moeen reached his first Test fifty since January 2019 when he flogged Head over mid-on, then miscued him in the same direction. Cummins put him down at short midwicket on 53, but he didn’t survive his next ball: Starc went short, Moeen took on the pull, and nailed it straight to the same position, when Usman Khawaja held a diving catch.Australia hoped that, after a second-wicket stand of 121 in 152 balls, this was where the carnage ended. When Root pulled his first ball behind square for four, then glided his fifth away past gully with an open face, it became clear that it had only just started.Cummins tried to slow the game down, tinkering with the field multiple times in the same over, but Crawley cared little for changes of plan. He swung back-to-back boundaries off first Hazlewood, then Starc, before mistiming Cummins through cover to reach three figures. He grinned with arms aloft, as Old Trafford rose to its feet.Zak Crawley gets a handshake from Pat Cummins•AFP/Getty Images

By the time Mitchell Marsh – who dismissed him in both innings at Headingley – was brought into the attack, Crawley had 112. England were treating a must-win Ashes Test like an exhibition match: Root reverse-scooped Marsh for six; Crawley slog-swept Head for six more, bringing up a century stand.Another Root reverse-scoop, this time for four off Cummins, brought him a 45-ball half-century and Crawley went back-to-back once more to raise 150. He swung Marsh over his head for six to put England into the lead, and his dismissal – chopping Green’s round-the-wicket short ball onto his stumps – came from nowhere.The scoring rate fell after Root’s dismissal, bowled by a grubber that scudded under the toe of his bat, as Stokes and Harry Brook saw out the final stages of the day. Starc’s injury, diving at mid-on, seemed to compound Australia’s problems, even if their management are optimistic about his prospects of bowling on Friday after icing his shoulder overnight.The portents were ominous for Australia from before the scheduled start of play: by the time the clock in the old pavilion at the James Anderson End had ticked past 11am, Cummins had chipped a tame half-volley from its eponymous bowler straight to Stokes at cover-point, falling to the very first ball of the day.Chris Woakes celebrated a first Ashes five-wicket haul when Hazlewood edged his fourth ball of the morning to second slip, but he was reprieved by a marginal front-foot no-ball. When Woakes did remove Hazlewood, well caught by Duckett at third slip, it seemed the 18 runs added for the last wicket might prove costly; seven hours later, those concerns were forgotten.

Australia’s women begin a three-match series against New Zealand in Queensland on Thursday having not played an international since April

Alex Malcolm17-Sep-2024Three-time defending women’s T20 World Cup champions Australia are hoping to shake out the rust and do some heat acclimation ahead next month’s tournament in the UAE in their warm-up series against New Zealand starting on Thursday in Mackay.Australia’s women have had a rare lengthy break between international assignments having not played since the limited overs tour of Bangladesh in March and April.Several of Australia’s squad played in the women’s Hundred in the UK in August while Tahlia McGrath was only one of Australia’s 15-strong squad to play in recent Australia A limited-overs series against India A.Related

• Australia won't experiment as New Zealand hope to find some form

• Darcie Brown fit for T20 World Cup as Australia prepare to 'unleash' pace duo

• Rosemary Mair back as New Zealand name experienced squad for T20 World Cup

Australia is one of the few teams that hasn’t played international cricket recent months as Pakistan and South Africa have squared off while England and Ireland have locked horns. Australia’s opponents New Zealand had a lengthy tour of the England in June and July.Phoebe Litchfield, who played in the Hundred for the Northern Superchargers, believes there shouldn’t be too much rust amongst the defending champions given most have been playing somewhere over the winter months. But she did note that the team needed to do some heat acclimatisation before the trip to the UAE.”It’s going to be hot. Not too dissimilar to Bangladesh,” Litchfield said on Tuesday. “So our preparation continues the same, and we’re probably going to do some heat acclimation over the next sort of week and a half to get ready. But I think being Australian, we’re really suited to hot weather, so hopefully it won’t be too bad.”Litchfield said the squad was disappointed the tournament had to be moved from Bangladesh for security reasons, particularly after Australia had learned quite a lot about the conditions in Bangladesh from their tour there earlier in the year.”I think it’s really disappointing not to go to Bangladesh,” Litchfield said. “I know how much they were looking forward to it. But I think Dubai offers as much as it can, and we’re looking forward to it. I was having a look at a few temperatures there. It’s going to be 37 [degrees Celsius] feels like 45 kind of thing.”Litchfield, 21, has not played in a World Cup. Despite making her international debut just prior to the 2023 World Cup in South Africa Litchfield was not part of the squad that went onto win the title.She had an extended run in the side last summer in the middle order and performed superbly at times, particularly against West Indies in the first series of the season. But she only played two of the three T20Is in Bangladesh. She did not get a bat in the first game and then opened in game two when Australia completely changed the order to give some of their players a hit, before being left out of game three.Litchfield was unsure whether she was a guaranteed starter for the upcoming series against New Zealand and the World Cup but believes she will probably bat in the middle order again.”I assume it’s probably going to be similar to what I’ve been doing before, if I do play,” Litchfield said. “It’ll be going through the middle order and hopefully building off the back of some top order brilliance.”Both Australia and New Zealand arrived in Mackay on Monday with the first two matches of the series to be played on Thursday and Sunday before the teams move to Brisbane for the final game next Tuesday. Both squads will fly straight to the UAE next Wednesday.

Two weeks ahead of the Champions Trophy, both teams have an air of vulnerability

Karthik Krishnaswamy05-Feb-20250:52

What will India’s playing XI for the first ODI be?

Big picture: An air of vulnerability in both camps

There are two Indias.There’s the India of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, an India that is, for the moment, scarred and uncertain.There’s also, at the same time, another India, an India of an assuredly post-Rohit, post-Kohli era, an India that has flown to dizzying heights over recent months.There are two Indias, but there are three formats. So where exactly do they stand, as the awkward middle format gets this rare chance in the spotlight? India in ODIs are still the India of Rohit and Kohli, but what does that mean for India, Rohit, and Kohli? There are several questions hanging over India ahead of these three ODIs against England and the Champions Trophy that will follow, but this one, for now, seems the most urgent.Related

• Rohit: Varun 'definitely in contention' for Champions Trophy

• Rohit and Kohli's form in focus; Rahul or Pant as wicketkeeper?

• Sam Curran on omission: 'I've got to keep banging the door down'

• Varun added to India's ODI squad for series against England

India last played ODIs in August, when they lost 2-0 to Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka. It seemed like an anomalous result then, but events that followed it have cast it in a different light. As India return to the 50-over format, then, they find themselves in an odd position. They are still more or less the same team that looked like one of the greatest of all time during their run to the World Cup final in 2023. But even if the players are largely the same, they no longer play together day in and day out, so are they still the same team? And so many of them carry wounds from other battles, bringing to this group a distinct air of vulnerability.But airs of vulnerability – and invincibility – come and go depending on results. India – the other India, admittedly – are fresh off a 4-1 T20I series win, and should count themselves as heavy favourites against an England side that’s coming off that T20I result, and is still trying to find its feet in ODIs after a poor 2023 World Cup.And England, too, are fighting the awkwardness of this middle format. This is still the England of Jos Buttler and Joe Root, but neither played a single ODI in 2024.So here we are, then. The India of Rohit and Kohli versus the England of Buttler and Root, both unsure of where exactly they stand in ODIs, with a major ODI tournament starting in two weeks’ time.

Form guide

India LLTWL (last five completed ODIs, most recent first)
England LWLLWJoe Root has been out of England’s ODI side since their league-stage exit from the 2023 World Cup•Michael Steele/Getty Images

In the spotlight: Hardik Pandya and Joe Root

Rohit and Kohli may be under more scrutiny at the moment, but arguably, no player is as important to India’s Champions Trophy hopes as Hardik Pandya is. Until his premature departure from the 2023 World Cup with an ankle injury, Hardik’s presence allowed India to have six bowling options, and gave them the luxury of playing a third frontline seamer or spinner depending on conditions. Hardik hasn’t played an ODI since that tournament, and as the next big one looms, India will hope his body can take a genuine allrounder’s workload once again.He has been out of England’s ODI side since their league-stage exit from the 2023 World Cup, but Joe Root is back, and will bat at No. 3. “He’s one of the great players of the game, in all the formats,” England’s captain Buttler said of Root in his pre-match press conference. “I’m excited to see him in this sort of phase of his career where I look at what he’s done in the Test stuff, where he’s not had the captaincy. He’s sort of back with that cheeky smile on his face, and really enjoying his cricket. I expect him to do exactly the same in this environment.” Apart from the smile, Root will also be expected to bring backbone to a line-up that has sometimes struggled to find the right tempo for 50-over cricket, as England have lost eight or more wickets in seven of their 11 ODIs since the World Cup.KL Rahul or Rishabh Pant? India have a choice to make against England•Getty Images

Team news: England rest Mark Wood

India are expected to line up with their first-choice top six from the 2023 World Cup, with only the wicketkeeper’s slot under debate. Rishabh Pant could potentially come in ahead of KL Rahul thanks to his left-handedness. Meanwhile, Nagpur, with its large outfield and tendency for slow turners, is likely a three-spinner venue, which leaves India to choose two out of their three spin-bowling allrounders to partner Kuldeep Yadav, who returns for the first time since his hernia surgery.India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 KL Rahul/Rishabh Pant (wk), 6 Hardik Pandya, 7 and 8 two of Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Washington Sundar, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Arshdeep Singh, 11 Mohammed ShamiEngland have named their XI for the series-opener, with Mark Wood rested and Saqib Mahmood partnering Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse in the pace attack. With only four frontline bowlers, part-time spinners Liam Livingstone, Root and Jacob Bethell are expected to shoulder a considerable bowling workload.England: 1 Ben Duckett, 2 Phil Salt (wk), 3 Joe Root, 4 Harry Brook, 5 Jos Buttler (capt), 6 Liam Livingstone, 7 Jacob Bethell, 8 Brydon Carse, 9 Jofra Archer, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Saqib Mahmood

Pitch and conditions

A clear, sunny day is expected in Nagpur with daytime temperatures in the low 30s. The pitch at the VCA Stadium over recent years has tended to offer a good amount of help to spinners, who also appreciate the long boundaries at this ground. The last three ODIs in Nagpur were all India-Australia contests won by the hosts: a memorable chase of 351 in 2013 powered by one of Kohli’s great hundreds, followed by significantly lower-scoring matches in 2017 and 2019.

Stats and trivia: Virat Kohli on cusp of 14,000

• Both India (2-3) and England (4-7) have negative win-loss records in ODIs since the end of the 2023 World Cup.
• Kohli is 94 runs away from the 14,000-mark in ODIs. Only Sachin Tendulkar (18,426) and Kumar Sangakkara (14,234) have more runs in the format.
• Mohammed Shami is five wickets away from becoming the eighth India bowler to take 200 in ODIs.
• Since the last time they played together, which was at the 2023 World Cup, Buttler has played 23 games for England (three ODIs and 20 T20Is) and Root 17 (all Tests).

Quotes

“World Cup was one and a half years back, so clearly we need to regroup as a group now and think about what we need to do here […] It’s just about coming together now – because it’s been a while since we’ve played this format – it’s just about coming together and trying to [carry on from] where we left [off] during the World Cup. If it takes a little bit of time, so be it. It’s not easy to start what we did in the World Cup.”
“I look back on [the 2023] World Cup, and the two teams in the final were playing a really positive and aggressive brand of cricket. You think of the way Travis Head took that final on with the bat, you see it can be successful. This can be a great part of the world to play that fashion of cricket. Obviously Rohit [Sharma] takes a lot of credit for the way he’s come out and played himself as a captain and pushed India more towards that style of cricket. So, absolutely, we want to do exactly the same. We believe that’s the way that’ll give us the best chance of getting positive results.”

He is expected to travel out of Sri Lanka over the next week and consult doctors overseas about chronic pain in his left heel

Andrew Fidel Fernando26-Mar-2024Wanindu Hasaranga is expected to be unavailable for Sunrisers Hyderabad for at least another week as he consults doctors overseas about chronic pain in his left heel.Although Hasaranga played in Sri Lanka’s limited-overs series against Bangladesh in March, ESPNcricinfo understands he did so through substantial pain. Sri Lanka Cricket’s medical staff have assessed him, and suspect the pain is down to musculo-skeletal apparatus in his left heel having become worn.SLC’s doctors have asked Hasaranga to seek further medical opinion on the exact nature of the injury, and how best to manage it. He is expected to travel out of Sri Lanka to do so next week.In any case, he has not joined the Sunrisers squad yet, and there is no set date on when he will do so. The target, for both SLC and Hasaranga himself, is likely to be the T20 World Cup in June, where he is set to captain his national team.If his condition requires further rest, treatment, or rehabilitation, his return to the IPL will likely be delayed further.Hasaranga had a spectacular 2022 IPL season for Royal Challengers Bangalore for whom he took 26 wickets at an economy rate of 7.54. Sunrisers had paid INR 1.5 crore (approx USD $181,000) for him at the most-recent auction.Earlier this month, Hasaranga was suspended from playing Sri Lanka’s ongoing Tests against Bangladesh, after racking up eight demerit points for breaching article 2.8 of the players’ code of conduct during the third ODI against Bangladesh. Had Hasaranga, who had just come out of Test retirement prior to the ban, been unavailable for the red-ball games, he would have missed the initial matches of Sri Lanka’s next international assignment: the T20 World Cup in June.SLC, however, dismissed claims that Hasaranga’s return from retirement was a ploy to make sure he was available for the T20 World Cup, stating that he had informed them in an email on March 16 of his desire to be considered for Test cricket selection going forward, citing his improved fitness levels.

He shares second-wicket stand of 157 with Sam Curran as Surrey post their highest Blast total

ECB Reporters Network09-Jun-2023Surrey’s batters rampaged their way to a total of 258 for 6 as they hammered Sussex Sharks by 124 runs at the 1st Central County Ground, Hove, giving their run rate a boost on the way.It was their highest ever score in the Vitaly Blast – and the fourth highest by any side – beating their 250 for 6 against Kent in 2018. It left for dead their previous best against Sussex at Hove, the 221 for 8 they scored here in 2004.The Sussex bowlers had no chance as Surrey replicated their form of two days before, when they piled up 236 against Glamorgan. And once again it was Laurie Evans (93) and Sam Curran (68) who created most of the mayhem, with a second-wicket stand of 157, the highest for any wicket against Sussex. Surrey, one of the strongest sides in the competition, have lost just twice in eight outings – and one of those defeats, surprisingly, came against Sussex at The Oval last month.Sussex had gone into the match after their thrilling four-run victory at Lord’s the previous evening, but still knowing they had to win virtually all their remaining fixtures to progress in the competition.They got off to an encouraging start when Nathan McAndrew bowled Will Jacks with the last delivery of the opening over. But that was as good as it got for them.The form of Evans, who scored a century in the Glamorgan game, was a painful reminder of how many top-class white-ball players Sussex have lost in recent seasons. Evans was a member of the star-studded Sussex side that reached finals day in 2018, as was the Surrey captain, Chris Jordan.After ten overs Surrey were 107 for 1 (they were 107 without loss at the same stage against Glamorgan). Evans reached his fifty off just 28 deliveries when he pulled Henry Crocombe to cow corner for six – over the hospitality tents in the south-east corner of the ground.The 150 came up off the last ball of the 13th over, as Evans square-drove McAndrew for four. Curran was finally out at 163 when he edged Tymal Mills to short third man. He had hit six fours and four sixes, two in succession over wide mid-on.Evans looked destined for his second hundred in three days but he was caught at wide mid-on by James Coles off the bowling of Crocombe. But for Surrey there was no loss of impetus as Jamie Overton thumped 24 runs off 11 balls and Tom Curran 29 off nine, with three sixes and two fours. Crocombe and Mills went for 51 and 50 runs respectively, while Fynn Hudson-Prentice’s three overs cost 46. All the bowlers looked shell-shocked as they dragged themselves off the pitch.Sussex needed 13 runs an over and their task looked hopeless, especially when they lost Coles, pulling to backward square-leg, in just the second over. But after five overs they were 54 for 1, and ahead of where Surrey had been at that stage. But then the impressive Tom Clark was stumped for a 23-ball 43.It needed something special from the Sharks captain Ravi Bopara. But he had scored just one when he attempted a slog-sweep against Sunil Narine and skied the ball to the keeper.The Sussex batters had to keep swinging in pursuit of their improbable target and, inevitably, the wickets tumbled as the required run rate soared to 20 an over. They were all out for 134 in the 15th over and after Clark, Tom Alsop and Danial Ibrahim tied for the second-best score, 17.

Tahlia McGrath was the only Australia batter to get to 50 as India bowled them out for 219 on day one

Ashish Pant21-Dec-2023Having played a crucial role in India’s big win over England last week, Pooja Vastrakar was at it again, this time with Australia in her sights. The fast-bowling allrounder presented a masterclass in swing bowling, making the ball talk both ways to pick up career-best figures of 4 for 53 as Australia were bowled out for 219 in their first innings of the one-off Test at the Wankhede Stadium.Vastrakar picked up two wickets apiece in the first and second sessions while Sneh Rana returned 3 for 56 as India continued their impressive Test bowling show. In reply, Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma added 90 for the first wicket in 16.4 overs. Shafali fell six minutes before close of play, but India comfortably held the upper hand after day one, ending it 98 for 1 in 19 overs and trailing Australia by 121 runs.Australia could not have foreseen a worse start after winning the toss when Phoebe Litchfield was run out for a diamond duck in the first over. Beth Mooney tapped a Renuka Singh delivery to the left of gully and set off. Miscommunication ensued and Litchfield was found nowhere in the frame.Vastrakar then rattled Elyse Perry’s middle pole with an inswinging jaffa. The ball pitched outside off and deviated sharply back in through the gap between Perry’s bat and pad as Australia were reduced to 7 for 2 ten balls into their innings.With the ball hooping around and also keeping low, Mooney found the going tough. The ball slid past her outside edge several times and she also had an umpire’s call verdict going her way when she missed a Renuka Singh indipper from around the stumps.Ellyse Perry was cleaned up by a jaffa from Vastrakar•BCCI

Tahlia McGrath, however, decided to go the counterattacking way. She got her innings going by creaming Vastrakar through the covers twice in two balls before tapping her past point. India had the chance to dent Australia further but Deepti Sharma failed to hang on to a tough chance over her head at second slip when McGrath slashed at Renuka and edged thickly in the seventh over.McGrath cashed in, going on a boundary spree even as Mooney continued to struggle. Then the introduction of spin stemmed the flow of runs to an extent. McGrath raised her fifty off 52 balls but failed to go further. It was Rana who ended the promising 80-run stand with McGrath flicking to a leaping Rajeshwari Gayakwad at short midwicket.While Alyssa Healy made a bright start, getting off the mark with a six over long-on, Mooney’s luck ended when she fell off the final ball of the first session courtesy a sharp Vastrakar bouncer that she could only fend to first slip as Australia reached lunch at 103 for 4.Healy and Annabel Sutherland started confidently after the break. Both batters used their feet to good effect, collecting boundaries at every given chance. They had added 40 off 96 balls when the sweep brought about Healy’s undoing. Deepti switched her angle to around the wicket and Healy immediately brought out the sweep only to miss the ball completely and find her stumps in a mess.Vastrakar then ended Sutherland’s dogged stay with a nip-backer that caught her right in front of the stumps. The first ball of her next over, she had Ashleigh Gardner poking at an away-swinger outside off with Yastika Bhatia doing the rest as Australia were reduced to 160 for 7.Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma added 90 for the first wicket•Getty Images

That soon became 168 for 8 when Rana had Alana King caught behind, with a little help from the DRS. Jess Jonassen and Kim Garth took Australia to tea at 180 for 8.The duo hung around for 93 balls but added only 30 as the spinners tightened up after the break. India stitched six maidens between the 63rd and 70th overs and that contributed to the wicket of Jonassen, who was sent back via another DRS overturning. Jonassen shaped up for a reverse-sweep to a full Deepti ball and was struck in front, with ball-tracking indicating that the ball would have smashed into middle stump.Garth and debutant Lauren Cheatle added 21 for the last wicket before Rana claimed her third wicket to close out the Australia innings in 77.4 overs. The only blemish in a largely professional performance from India were three catches dropped by Deepti in the slips.Mandhana and Shafali then came out and immediately found their bearings. All the demons in the surface seemed to have subsided as they feasted on the Australian bowling. Mandhana got off the mark with a cut for four off Garth before Shafali struck Cheatle for two successive cover drives. India raced past fifty off just 46 balls with neither opening bowler looking particularly threatening.Shafali and Mandhana rode their luck to an extent with a a few inside and outside edges falling safely. Shafali fell close to stumps on day one when she missed a straight Jonassen delivery to be trapped in front on 40. Mandhana and Rana then took India safely to stumps with just a wicket down.

Delhi Capitals appealed the suspension but the match referee’s decision was upheld by the BCCI ombudsman

ESPNcricinfo staff11-May-2024Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant has been suspended for one match for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct after his team maintained a slow over-rate during the match against Rajasthan Royals in Delhi on May 7. It was Pant’s third over-rate penalty this IPL and, as a result, he will miss DC’s crucial fixture against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday. Axar Patel will lead DC in Pant’s absence, with both teams desperately needing a win to keep their playoff hopes alive.”Axar Patel will be our captain tomorrow,” DC’s head coach Ricky Ponting said on the eve of the match in Bengaluru. “He’s obviously been vice-captain of this franchise now for the last couple of seasons. Obviously very experienced IPL player, experienced international player, very sensible guy, understands the game really well. He’s really excited, to be honest. We started talking about it a couple of days ago when there was a possibility that Rishabh might be banned, so he’s got his head around it, we’ve done our bowlers’ meetings today. He’ll catch up with all the guys tonight, go through all the plans, and make sure he’s ready to lead the team well tomorrow. What I know about him is, you’ve only got to watch the way he goes about his cricket to understand that he is a sensible guy that’s always involved and in tune with the game, so I’m sure he’ll lead the team really well tomorrow.”Pant was also fined INR 30 lakh while the rest DC’s playing XI in that game, including the Impact Player, were fined either INR 12 lakh or 50% of their match fees, whichever is lower. A BCCI release said DC filed an appeal challenging the ruling of the match referee, following which the issue was referred to the board’s ombudsman for review. The ombudsman conducted a virtual hearing and upheld the match referee’s decision. Along with Pant, DC’s director of cricket Sourav Ganguly, Ponting, and CEO Sunil Gupta were at the hearing.In their appeal, DC cited multiple reasons for the delay, including that the RR batters had hit 13 sixes and that the Sanju Samson dismissal had consumed extra time. However, it was ruled that there was no statistical information submitted explaining exactly how much time was additionally consumed by these events. Each team in the IPL is allowed 85 minutes (4.25 minutes per over) to complete their 20 overs. In the match against RR, DC took 117.82 minutes to complete their 20 overs, which was in violation of the minimum over-rate requirements under the Code of Conduct.”As a team, we’ve obviously known for six, seven, eight games now that he’s [Pant] been on the two strikes, so there was a chance,” Ponting said. “We could have actually stood him down from the captaincy to potentially stop this happening, but at the end of the day, like it or not, it’s the captain’s responsibility – the time that’s taken out on the field. He hasn’t got full control over everything and I think, circumstantially, he was probably a little unlucky in the last game where, going into Khaleel’s last over, the over that Khaleel bowled the four wides in, at that stage of the game we were only three minutes behind. So if Khaleel bowls a regulation over there without the extra balls and then Kuldeep bowls the next over and gets a wicket, like he did, we would have got all of our time back. So the fact that Khaleel’s over went for nine minutes put us further behind and then, that late in the game, there’s no way you can drag your time back.”Once the game is started and the innings is started, when you get behind at the halfway mark, 10-over mark – if you’re four or five minutes down in a tight game, you’re never going to pick your time up, and that’s one thing we’ve been really conscious of talking to all the boys about. It is what it is for us now. Rishabh’s not there, one of the best players in this particular IPL, I think our leading run-scorer, to have him not there is a loss for us, but it’s also a great challenge for everybody else. Knowing that our captain is not there, our rock in the middle order is not there, but it presents an opportunity to somebody and it makes the other guys that are in the team now have to work that little bit harder to make sure they get the job and the result done for the team.”DC are among the eight teams fighting for playoffs qualification and will need to win their remaining fixtures – and have other results go their way – to be in contention. They are currently fifth on the table with 12 points and a net run rate of -0.316.

“My contract is till November 2023. I am fully committed to the BCB for the next 15 months”

Mohammad Isam25-Aug-2022Russell Domingo has reaffirmed his commitment as Bangladesh’s head coach in the Test and ODI formats after reports on Thursday morning said that he had resigned. Domingo and the BCB have both denied those claims, saying that Domingo’s contract remains intact till November next year.Domingo, who is currently in South Africa, said that he would get back to work in October with the Bangladesh A side that takes on Afghanistan A in the UAE, before joining the senior team ahead of their preparation for the India series at home in December.”This is to confirm that all the rumours and speculations that I have resigned from the Bangladesh Cricket Board are not true,” Domingo told ESPNcricinfo. “I am trying to get our cricket to where it needs to be in the one-day and Test format. I will be going to Abu Dhabi in October to work with the A side. I will then join the national team in December. As far as I am concerned, it is business as usual. I will continue the journey that I have started. My contract is till November 2023. I am fully committed to the Bangladesh Cricket Board for the next 15 months.”Earlier this week, the BCB replaced Domingo with S Sriram as the one in charge of the T20I side, although they stopped short of calling Sriram the head coach, using the term “technical consultant”. Domingo said at the time that he was happy with the arrangement as it gave him more time to prepare for the ODI and Test teams, as well as giving him time with his family back in South Africa.Domingo took up the Bangladesh job in September 2019. Since then, he has overseen the ODI side into the second position in the World Cup Super League, while winning a Test in New Zealand. His record in T20Is, however, came under scrutiny after Bangladesh’s underwhelming performance at the T20 World Cup last year. This year so far, the team has just two wins from seven completed T20Is.Bangladesh are currently in Dubai for the Asia Cup. After that, they will play a T20I tri-series in New Zealand that also involves Pakistan, before heading to Australia for the T20 World Cup in late October.