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The captain’s unbeaten 88 against Nepal led Scotland into the Super Sixes stage of the World Cup Qualifier and one step closer to the showpiece event in England in 2019

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Mar-2018
ScorecardScotland celebrate progress into Super Sixes•IDI via Getty Images

Kyle Coetzer might well remember his 27th List A fifty with a great amount of fondness. His unbeaten 88 against Nepal led Scotland into the Super Sixes stage of the World Cup Qualifier and one step closer to the showpiece event in England in 2019.Considering he only had to chase 150, the bowlers deserve a lot of credit as well. Stuart Whittingham and Safyaan Sharif ran through Nepal’s top order with the new ball, taking four wickets in the first five overs. With Nepal struggling at 14 for 4, captain Paras Khadka (63) did his best to keep the scoreboard ticking along. He helped Nepal reach 100 in the 29th over, but fell soon after and the tail was left with too much to do.Opening batsmen Matthew Cross (14) and the captain Coetzer were watchful at the start of Scotland’s chase. They added 33 at the top before Cross fell to Sandeep Lamichhane’s legspin. Basant Regmi, too, took two wickets as Scotland’s middle order wobbled just a bit, but Coetzer’s half-century ensured they could overcome it and seal victory with four wickets and 51 balls to spare.

England’s all-consuming emphasis on World Cup preparations could kibosh the tournament in 2019, but Andrew Strauss imagines it might return in an expanded form

David Hopps24-Mar-2018The North v South Series is unlikely to take place before the start of next season because of the all-consuming emphasis on England’s staging of the 2019 World Cup.The likelihood that the series will be suspended was confirmed by Andrew Strauss, the ECB’s director of England cricket, after the North had taken the series 2-1 with victory in the final match in Barbados.”We do these things on a year-by-year basis, so we’ll review this one,” Strauss told ESPNcricinfo. “Next year, the challenge is it’s getting very close to the World Cup, and operationally there’s a lot of things going on. However, I think what we’ve found is that this has stuck, and interest had built.”Far from quietly shelving the tournament, Strauss floated the suggestion that the North v South rivalry could even be extended into red-ball cricket – an area that might be viewed as a higher priority given England’s recent Test struggles.”I really think we’ve got something to build on here – and in my mind this North-South rivalry has a really strong future,” he told the ECB website.”We’ll take a bit of time to speak to everyone involved and review this year’s series, but we’ve got an opportunity to think about it creatively – whether as a way of ensuring our leading white-ball cricketers have the stage to play some high-quality 50-over cricket after the introduction of our new domestic structure from 2020, or maybe taking this North-South rivalry into red-ball cricket.”Strauss’ bullish tone came despite the fact this year’s tournament was affected by a number of injury withdrawals.”There was a real feeling of taking a step forward this year in terms of the way the rivalry had become established between the teams, and also in the level of media interest in the series,” he said.”Barbados has proved an excellent venue, most importantly for the quality of cricket facilities but also in encouraging some spectator interest and creating a bit of a buzz at the grounds.North captain Steve Mullaney receives the trophy from Andrew Strauss•Getty Images

“The coaches play a big part in setting the tone for what has been a seriously hard-fought series, and I’d like to thank them and all the players for that.”One player whose stock has risen during the tournament is the Worcestershire and England Lions batsman, Joe Clarke, who picked up the Man of the Series award after a matchwinning century in the final game.”I’m absolutely delighted,” Strauss said. “What we were trying to do is give an opportunity for some of these guys to show what they can do in a different environment from the county setting, and we’ve had a lot of individual performances that have been quite illuminating.”For those of us that are here scouting players, we’ve had plenty to ponder. I think when we’re looking beyond 2019 to the 2023 World Cup, there’s a lot of reason for optimism.”

George Hill steers hosts on shortened day with both dressing rooms eyeing Hampshire result

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay26-Sep-2025Yorkshire 465 for 9 (Hill 88, Raine 4-79, Ghafari 4-114) lead Durham 346 (Raine 101, White 5-69) by 119 runsYorkshire are closing in on Division One survival in the Rothesay County Championship, but Durham are not quite sure of the size of their task heading into day four at Headingley.Should Hampshire – 148 for 9 chasing 181 to beat Surrey at the Utilita Bowl – lose, seventh-placed Yorkshire would be safe no matter the result here in this season finale. Second-bottom Durham would need a draw to be safe.Should Hampshire win – they are eighth in the table – Yorkshire would need to draw here, which they are very well placed to do. But Durham would need a miracle victory to get out of trouble.Yorkshire, replying to a first-innings 346 all out, started a weather-affected day on 314 for 5 and advanced to 465 for 9 in the 51 overs possible, with George Hill compiling a skilful season’s best 88.It’s difficult to see how Durham can win, so they desperately need Surrey to do so down on the south coast.Bad light interrupted play on three occasions at Headingley, with the bulk of the evening lost. No play was possible beyond 3.25pm.Hill impressively supplemented Indian batter Mayank Agarwal’s superb 175 on day two with his fourth fifty of a season which has seen him excel with the ball. His seamers have accounted for 47 Championship wickets.He shared in half-century stands with fellow allrounders Matthew Revis and Jordan Thompson, the latter contributing an unbeaten 44.The morning session was a relatively quiet affair, with Yorkshire advancing to 365 for 7. Ben Raine, who has been excellent with 4 for 71 from 33 overs added to his first-innings century, and Matthew Potts struck for Durham.Raine broke a sixth-wicket stand of 50 between Revis, 38, and Hill. Revis, crowned Yorkshire’s members’ player of the year at the end of day two here, was trapped lbw by an in-ducker before Dom Bess pulled Potts to deep backward square-leg.Hill was a calming presence for Yorkshire as they stretched their lead. In all, he hit 14 fours in 175 balls. Thompson was more expansive, whipping Will Rhodes over deep midwicket for six.Hill moved to a fifty off 105 balls shortly before the hosts reached 400 for 7 in the early stages of the afternoon. By this stage, Yorkshire led by 54 and Durham’s need for wickets was becoming more desperate.Hill did fall short of what would have been his season’s first century when bowled trying to attack the legspin of Afghanistan’s Shafiqullah Ghafari. But Yorkshire’s lead was 97 at 443 for 8.Hill and Thompson had shared an eighth-wicket 86, the latter allrounder playing his last match before a winter move to Warwickshire.Matt Milnes edged to slip to hand Ghafari a fourth wicket before the third bad light stoppage at 3.25pm was the last. With the players off the field at that stage, Durham’s dressing room would have been buoyed by news from Southampton.Yorkshire will head into day four in a much more relaxed state given their strong performance here. Durham, on the other hand, will be on tenterhooks not quite knowing the size or shape of their task in hand.

Wicketkeeper Tom Latham has resumed training at full tilt and is set to return from a finger injury

The Preview by Deivarayan Muthu31-May-2019

Big Picture

New Zealand’s turbo-aggressive yet endearing cricket turned a rugby-mad nation into a cricket-loving country in 2015. Brendon McCullum, the (Super)man who was at the forefront of New Zealand’s surge then, will breathe easy in the commentary box this time. Sure, Kane Williamson hates it – but the focus will be on him this time. The current New Zealand captain is more endearing than turbo-aggressive, and he recently led the side to No. 2 in the Test rankings, for the first time. Can New Zealand go one step better in the 2019 World Cup?New Zealand had suffered a premature exit in the 2017 Champions Trophy in England – partly due to the absence of bonafide power-hitters on flat pitches – but they have now remedied that. The latest version of James Neesham can go boom from ball one – just ask Thisara Perera. The latest version of Mitchell Santner and big-hitting allrounder Colin de Grandhomme can provide more spark with the bat in the lower order.ALSO READ: ESPNcricinfo’s fantasy cricket tipsBut there’s a major concern right at the top. Colin Munro is no longer the white-ball monster who spooks bowlers and was struck flush on the foot by a Jasprit Bumrah yorker in the first warm-up and missed the second game against West Indies. Henry Nicholls got the rather unexpected nod to open alongside Martin Guptill in four ODIs at home earlier this year and gave a good account of himself. He looks set to bed in at the top – whether Munro is fit or not.On the other hand, Sri Lanka have had a more chaotic build-up to the tournament: they nearly missed automatic qualification and all told they have lost 41 of the 55 ODIs they have played since the start of 2017.Dimuth Karunaratne, who has played all of one ODI since the previous World Cup, finds himself in the middle of chaos as the captain. Despite the promise of Kusal Mendis and the experience of Angelo Mathews, Sri Lanka’s batting line-up doesn’t quite make you sit up and take notice of them. Oh, and their fielding can make you lol.Sri Lanka’s two-in-one players Thisara and Isuru Udana will have to do the heavy lifting if they are to spring a surprise.ALSO READ: Matt Henry interview – ‘I’m most effective when I’m operating at 140kph’

Form guide

Sri Lanka WLLLL (last five completed matches, most recent first)
New Zealand WWWLW

In the spotlight

Lasith Malinga claimed two in two balls•AFP

James Neesham missed the cut for the 2015 World Cup and instead watched semi-final against South Africa from the Eden Park grass banks – although his tweets suggested he was still having fun. Neesham had fallen out of love with cricket in 2017 and even contemplated retirement, but he’s now back in the frame as New Zealand’s premier allrounder. He has already had a rousing start to the month: a central contract and a CPL gig with defending champions Trinbago Knight Riders. Is it going to get better?Creaky knees and all – Lasith Malinga is gearing up for his fourth World Cup. He showed he still has it – in case anybody doubted him – delivering the IPL title for Mumbai Indians with a series of yorkers and one mean slower dipper. How about another four in four this World Cup?

Team news

Lahiru Thirimanne is set to open with Karunaratne, but the rest of the line-up is pretty difficult to predict.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Dimuth Karunaratne (capt), 2 Lahiru Thirimanne, 3 Kusal Mendis (wk), 4 Kusal Perera, 5 Angelo Mathews, 6 Dhananjaya de Silva, 7 Thisara Perera, 8 Jeevan Mendis, 9 Isuru Udana, 10 Lasith Malinga, 11 Nuwan Pradeep/Suranga LakmalNew Zealand’s first-choice wicketkeeper Tom Latham has resumed training at full tilt and is available for Saturday’s game. New Zealand might have to make a choice between left-arm spinner Santner and Ish Sodhi on the spin front. Tim Southee missed training on Friday and is a doubt with a calf strain, meaning Matt Henry could keep his place despite leaking 107 runs in nine overs in the warm-up against West Indies.New Zealand (possible): 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Henry Nicholls/Colin Munro, 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Tom Latham (wk), 6 James Neesham, 7 Colin de Grandhomme, 8 Mitchell Santner/Ish Sodhi, 9 Lockie Ferguson, 10 Trent Boult, 11 Matt Henry

Pitch and conditions

The pitches during the Champions Trophy provided a fair amount of assistance to the seamers in 2017, but the most recent ODI at this venue saw 646 runs being racked up. However, the pitch was so green on the eve of the match that it was indistinguishable from the outfield. Cardiff has had some spells of rain in the past week, but the weather is expected to be fine for the duration of the match.

Stats and trivia

• Among seamers, only Kagiso Rabada (108) has more wickets than Trent Boult’s 107 since the 2015 World Cup. However, Rabada has had the benefit of playing 12 more matches than Boult.
• New Zealand have lost all of their last three games at Sophia Gardens.
• Sri Lanka’s ragtag squad has an average age of 30.43 – the highest among all sides in the World Cup.
• Legspin-bowling allrounder Jeevan Mendis, like his captain Karunaratne, has played just one ODI since the 2015 World Cup.

Quotes

“We had a couple of really good warm-up games and it was good to get the boys back together. I was delighted with both workouts; we were put under pressure. All in all, confidence levels are high going into the World Cup.”

Head spent more than a year on top of the rankings, but last played a T20I in September 2024

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Jul-2025India batter Abhishek Sharma has overtaken his Sunrisers Hyderabad opening partner Travis Head to go top of the T20I batting rankings.Head had held on to the No. 1 position since June last year, when he toppled Suryakumar Yadav, but having last played a T20I in September 2024 and opting to sit out of Australia’s five-match series in West Indies, he slid down a slot as Abhishek became the third Indian to top the T20I batting charts after Virat Kohli and Suryakumar.Abhishek last turned out for India in the five-match T20I series against England in February, scoring a 54-ball 135 in the final game of that series.Josh Inglis, who racked up 172 runs in the five matches against West Indies and finished as the third-highest run-scorer of the series, moved up six places to ninth in the rankings. Shai Hope, despite a century helping him finish as the second on the run charts in the series, stayed tenth.

Full rankings tables

• Click here for the full team rankings

• Click here for the full player rankings

While Tim David moved up 12 places to 18th after he scored the fastest T20I century for Australia, and Brandon King made gains by moving up nine places, Cameron Green was the biggest mover from the series, shooting up 64 spots to sit at No. 24.Among the bowlers, fast bowler Nathan Ellis jumped up nine spots to go joint-eighth.Meanwhile, England captain Ben Stokes’ century and five-wicket haul at Old Trafford saw him move up three spots to No. 3 in the Test allrounders’ charts, which is still led by India’s Ravindra Jadeja, who has been in fine form in the ongoing series between the two teams.Washington Sundar, who brought up his maiden Test century in Manchester, moved up eight places to go joint-thirteenth, with career-high ranking points of 193.

In what may be the first of several departures in the PCB’s coaching and management set-up, Inzamam is set to leave his post after a three-year stint

Danyal Rasool and Umar Farooq17-Jul-2019In what may yet be the first of several departures in the PCB’s coaching and management set-up, Inzamam-ul-Haq is set to leave his post of chief selector once his contract ends at the end of this month. Addressing the media at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, Inzamam said he would not be interested in seeking out an extension, drawing the curtains on a three-year stint in the role.”After more than three years as Chair of the Pakistan Men’s Selection Committee, I have decided not to seek a renewal of my contract,” he said. “With the ICC World Test Championship due to get underway in September and the ICC T20 World Cup in 2020 and the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, I believe it is the right time for the Pakistan Cricket Board to appoint a new chief selector who can bring new ideas and fresh thinking.”I spoke to PCB Chairman Ehsan Mani and Managing Director Wasim Khan on Monday and conveyed my decision to them separately. I also thanked them for backing and supporting the selection committee since taking over the reins of Pakistan cricket.”The Pakistan cricket team has come a long way since the departures of stalwarts like Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan in May 2017 and is now destined for improved results as the youngsters have grown in experience and stature. They are now ready to excel and perform consistently across the three formats.”The writing had been on the wall during the course of Pakistan’s roller-coaster World Cup 2019 campaign, during which Inzamam was seen in England and often with the players in the dressing room, most notably following an alleged spat between players and coach that Inzamm had apparently mediated upon. Wholesale changes to the management set-up were expected following the tournament, in which Pakistan narrowly missed out on a semi-final berth by finishing fifth, and Inzamam is the first person out of the door.He began his stint in August 2016, and at the time, Pakistan were so eager to appoint him they bought out the last year of his contract with the Afghanistan Cricket Board, where he had served as the head coach. His time saw several players enter the Pakistan international set-up, who are now mainstays, such as Fakhar Zaman, Hasan Ali, Shadab Khan, Imam-ul-Haq, Faheem Ashraf and Shaheen Afridi. The biggest success of this period was lifting the Champions Trophy in 2017, when Pakistan beat India in the final to win their first ICC tournament in nearly a decade. Six months later, they would beat New Zealand in a three-match T20I series to ascend to No. 1 in the T20I rankings, a position they still hold.”The most important aspect is when we got the team, there were many players at the end of their careers,” said Inzamam. “We had to pick young players and I strongly believe that these 15 to 16 players can serve around 10 to 15 years. Our job was to pick potential new players and we took a chance on many players. We had picked over 15 young players in this tenure and now in every format we have young world-class players.”There were also accusations of nepotism, both whispered and more loud, surrounding the inclusion of Inzamam’s nephew Imam for a tour against Sri Lanka in the UAE. Imam has since gone on to become an ODI mainstay, cementing the opening position in both ODIs and Tests. He scored a century on ODI debut, becoming only the second Pakistani to do so, and averages a shade under 55 in the format after playing 36 matches.”It has been a pleasure to see these players grow and make names for themselves in international cricket,” Inzamam said. “I will follow their progress with interest because I firmly believe these players have all the ingredients to take the Pakistan cricket team to greater heights.”The team could have performed better during my time than the results reflect and I may have inadvertently overlooked some potentially deserving players, but I have always had the best interests of Pakistan cricket foremost in my heart. I hope the passionate Pakistan cricket fans will understand and can see this in my decisions.”I would like to take this opportunity to thank my fellow selectors, who worked tireless behind the scenes, as well as captain Sarfaraz Ahmed and coach Mickey Arthur. I think we worked very well as a group, stayed together in difficult times, and continued to collectively move in the same direction.”I wish the new chief of the selection committee and the Pakistan cricket teams all the best in what will be exciting but competitive times in international cricket.”

The Afghanistan Cricket Board has given a one-month ultimatum to Mohammad Shahzad to shift to Afghanistan from Pakistan or risk having his national contract terminated

Umar Farooq14-Apr-2018Two weeks after his Man-of-the-Match performance in the final of the World Cup Qualifier, Afghanistan’s Mohammad Shahzad has been asked by the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) to reside permanently in Afghanistan or risk having his contract terminated. Shahzad currently resides in Peshawar, Pakistan. He has also been fined AFN 300,000 (USD 4000 approx) for participating in a local tournament in Peshawar without permission.The ACB this week chalked out a strict policy and gave a one-month ultimatum to players who live abroad to return to Afghanistan. Peshawar, a northern city in Pakistan, is close to the Afghanistan border.”They [contracted players] are not allowed to travel to any country without permission,” ACB chairman, Atif Mashal, told . “Those players who are living on foreign land are given a month to move back to Afghanistan with their families, otherwise the cricket board will terminate their contracts. Afghanistan Cricket Board has made a strict rule about player discipline and given them a one-month notice to adhere firmly with the policy. All players and employees should be based in Afghanistan and they are not allowed to play in any foreign country without ACB’s approval.”Shahzad, 30, had spent his early years in a refugee camp in Peshawar, but his parents are originally from Nangrahar, Afghanistan. He, along with various team-mates, grew up near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, and he was married in Peshawar and spends most of his time in Pakistan. There is a significant number of Afghans, once refugees, who now reside in Pakistan, mainly in Peshawar, registered in the country as temporary residents.Shahzad was found to be breach of the ACB’s code of conduct by playing in the local Peshawar tournament. “He played in a club-level tournament without NOC which is against the ACB code of conduct,” Mashal said.Shahzad had missed out on national duty through much of 2017 due to an ICC suspension over a positive drug test. He became eligible to play again on January 17 this year, returning for the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe.

Patel will look to build on his unbeaten 74 to help Gujarat pocket the 28 runs they need for the decisive first-innings lead

Shashank Kishore20-Feb-2025Eight games into his maiden season, 22-year old Jaymeet Patel has already made massive contributions as a batting allrounder. Like his quarter-final century against Saurashtra or his twin half-centuries in a must-win against Himachal to qualify for the knockouts.On Friday, he’ll have a chance to put impactful performances like those to shade, if he can build on his unbeaten 74 to help Gujarat pocket the 28 runs they need for the decisive first-innings lead against Kerala. The first innings hasn’t yet been decided in the game, but the scorecard hardly reveals how fascinating this slow burn of a contest has been – purely for the contrasting approach of both sides.Kerala went slow and steady for two full days and posted 457; Gujarat responded with slightly more urgency, led by the experienced Priyank Panchal who made 148 to lay the foundation of their heist. But when things started to happen early on day four, batters went into their shell as the pressure mounted, before Jaymeet absorbed all of it to grind his way to what could be a career-defining half-century yet.Related

• Jalaj Saxena: 'My emotions, heart, everything is with first-class cricket'

• Panchal leads strong Gujarat reply with unbeaten century

Gujarat’s hopes of a lead had all but vanished at 357 for 7. Jaymeet and Siddharth Desai, the left-arm spin allrounder, have since put on 72 in 36.4 overs, batting through the final session, to keep Gujarat’s hopes of making their first final since 2016-17 alive.When stumps were drawn, Kerala’s spinners two frontline spinners – Jalaj Saxena and Aditya Sarwate – had bowled a combined 97 out of the 154 overs. Jalaj, who bowled unchanged right through the morning session, bowled 61 of those himself, to have figures of 4 for 137 – a spell that could yet prove to be the turning point if Kerala go on to nip out the three remaining wickets early to take the first-innings honours.Resuming on 222 for 1, Kerala struck early when Manan Hingrajia was lbw to Saxena’s straighter one from around the stumps. The ball of the day, however, was the one Saxena bowled to dismiss the set Panchal, the ball ripping in from the rough to dip and beat Panchal’s inside edge to crash into the stumps. Then he had Urvil Patel stumped after beating him in flight and skid. At this point, Kerala were gung ho, as Gujarat slipped to 292 for 4.Hemang Patel, the bowling allrounder who came in as a concussion sub for Ravi Bishnoi, earned a promotion up the order and walloped a quick-fire 28. The decision to replace Bishnoi was made after he experienced delayed concussion this morning, for a fielding effort on Day 3 where the ball bounced onto his forehead as he tried to stop the ball at point.Hemang’s impetus for quick runs briefly put Kerala on the back foot, but an attempt too play one shot too many had him miscue a hoick that was brilliantly taken at square third man by substitute Shoun Roger. When Chintan Gaja was lbw, a decision that was upheld through DRS, Gujarat were right on the edge. Until they were brought back to life by Jaymeet, who stands in the way of Kerala and a maiden Ranji final.

Shift of venue from Bangladesh to UAE presents unique challenge

Matt Roller29-Aug-2024England are anticipating empty stadiums at October’s Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, but believe that their upcoming training camp in Abu Dhabi will mitigate the impact of the late change in venue from Bangladesh to Dubai and Sharjah.The ICC confirmed last week that the tournament will no longer be played in Bangladesh after weeks of civil unrest which prompted the prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s resignation. England’s squad did not change as a result of the shift but they are expecting a difference in conditions in the UAE – not least off the field, with attendances likely to be low.”It’s going to be a bit different,” Heather Knight, England’s captain, said. “There definitely would’ve been bigger crowds in Bangladesh, having played there in 2014 in the World Cup. We actually got some really good crowds, particularly in Sylhet… It’s become the norm for us to have people around. It is something we’ll talk about, but it’s a World Cup: it shouldn’t take too much to get up for that.”Related

• ICC moves women's T20 World Cup out of Bangladesh to the UAE

• Women's T20 WC: Australia begin title defence on October 5; India vs Pakistan set for October 6

• Kemp, Heath in England's T20 World Cup squad but Filer misses out

England will play their first three fixtures at Sharjah Cricket Stadium (16,000 capacity) and their final group match at Dubai International Stadium (25,000). Neither venue managed to attract big crowds for games which did not involve India or Pakistan during the men’s T20 World Cup in 2021, nor do they regularly stage women’s international cricket.”Some people thrive off the noise and the energy from the crowd, so [it’s about] making sure, individually, that everyone is prepared for potentially what we’re going to get. I don’t think, suddenly, there’s going to be a big rent-a-crowd. But it is what it is, and obviously safety and things like that are probably the most important things,” Knight said.While England have spent the past 18 months planning for a tournament in Bangladesh, doubling down on a spin-heavy strategy, Knight backed the ICC’s decision to shift the venue. “It’s obviously a shame for the Bangladesh team that they’re not going to have a home World Cup,” she said. “But I think it’s probably the right decision… the conditions will be slightly different, but not hugely.”England will arrive in Abu Dhabi on September 13, three weeks before their opening World Cup match, for a training camp. “[That is] the bit that’s a big advantage for us,” Jon Lewis, their head coach, said. “We’ve asked them to prepare wickets that are similar to what you would expect in the two stadiums, so by the time we get to the tournament itself, we think we’ll be really ready.”Dubai and Sharjah have only sporadically hosted women’s T20Is: Sharjah has staged 10 – most recently in 2017 – and Dubai only five, all between UAE and Namibia a year ago. It means that England are relying on data from men’s matches in their preparation, and are wary of going into the World Cup with too many preconceived ideas about conditions.”There’s obviously not been a huge amount of women’s cricket there, so you’re going off men’s stats,” Knight said. Lewis expects the toss to play a major role in floodlit games, as in the men’s T20 World Cup three years ago: “It will be a factor,” he said. “There are some subtle differences in terms of the wickets in Sharjah and the stadium in Dubai.”Lewis and Knight confirmed that England would have selected the same squad even if the tournament had stayed in Bangladesh, and played down concerns that they are one seamer light. “I don’t feel like we are,” Lewis said. “The thing that may be trickier for the spin bowlers is gripping the ball with some dew… but we do know that spin is really effective in the women’s game in general.”Lauren Filer was the only player to feature in England’s home T20Is this summer to miss out on selection, though will travel to Abu Dhabi for next month’s training camp. She was edged out by Linsey Smith, the left-arm spinner, who Lewis suggested covered more bases: “In the Powerplay, she’s a really effective bowler, and then she can bowl through the middle and the death.”Knight described Filer as being “really unlucky to miss out” and was impressed by her performances during the Hundred, despite her only taking six wickets in eight matches. “She bowled brilliantly without taking the wickets that she deserved,” Knight said. “But the squad we’ve picked gives us the most flexibility around potential conditions that we might face.”

SL scored 156 in rain-reduced game, with WI’s target revised to 195, and Sherfane Rutherford smashed 50* off 26 deliveries

Madushka Balasuriya26-Oct-2024(23 overs) After a series in which they consistently failed to get the rub of the green, the stars finally aligned for West Indies as they ended their tour of Sri Lanka with a morale-boosting win. Evin Lewis, playing his first ODI since 2021, struck an unbeaten 102 off 61 balls, as West Indies chased down a DLS-adjusted target of 195 in a rain-reduced game of 23 overs with eight wickets to spare. In fact, they got the required runs with an over to spare. It was their first ODI win in Sri Lanka following ten straight defeats, and their first win on this tour since the first T20I.Sri Lanka, for their part, had put up a valiant effort after their innings had been cut into less than half. The first 17.2 overs had come prior to the rain intervention, and upon resumption, they were given just a further 5.4 overs to set a competitive total.Enter Kusal Mendis, who bludgeoned an unbeaten 56 off 22 deliveries – he got the half-century off 19 balls – as Sri Lanka themselves struck 75 runs in those final 5.4 overs to end on 156 for 3, and gave themselves a fighting chance. In the end, though, a combination of a wet outfield, wet ball and a laser-focused Lewis proved too much to overcome.Brandon King (18 off 19 balls) and Shai Hope (22 off 27) had kept Lewis company for most of the chase, but it wasn’t until Sherfane Rutherford joined him in the middle that West Indies truly took control of proceedings.Rutherford’s brisk cameo saw him plunder 50 off just 26 deliveries, including four fours and three sixes, with his partnership with Lewis amounting to an unbeaten 88 from just 45 deliveries. It was a pivotal stand in the context of the game, as it came just as Sri Lanka might have been harbouring thoughts of a late heist.Kusal Mendis blasted a 19-ball fifty•AFP/Getty Images

With the required run rate at roughly 8.5 an over from the outset, West Indies had done well to just about keep up with it over the opening ten overs – there was at least one boundary in seven of the first 11 overs. But in such a short chase, even a couple of quiet overs can heighten the pressure – and so it proved to be.Between the 11th and 17th overs, Sri Lanka gave away just 40 runs as the required rate rose to above 11.50 runs an over. Skipper Charith Asalanka had done well in this period by shuffling his pack to sneak in some cheap overs from himself and Kamindu Mendis – both of whom made up the fifth-bowler quota after Wanindu Hasaranga had struggled with controlling a wet ball.Where Asalanka erred was in bowling himself for one over too many, which allowed Rutherford and Lewis to go after him. That 14-run over set the tone, after which the pair never looked back. The miserly Maheesh Theekshana was rinsed for 18 in the next over, while even the excellent Asitha Fernando was hounded for 26 off his final two. Dilshan Madushanka, playing his first ODI since March, went for 50 in five.Sri Lanka, though, will have positives to take away from this game, particularly in how aggressively they approached the post-rain period, knowing that they didn’t have much time to scrounge up a competitive total. The opening 17.2 overs had seen Sri Lanka stitch together a measured start, with openers Pathum Nissanka and Avishka Fernando putting on 81.That, though, owed much to West Indies dropping three chances – two of Nissanka and one of Avishka – inside the opening ten overs. This poor catching did not get much better after the five-hour rain delay, with Kusal also dropped twice on the way to becoming the third-quickest Sri Lanka batter to 4000 ODI runs.Sherfane Rutherford hit four fours and three sixes•Associated Press

It all began with the four balls left in Roston Chase’s second over, as Kusal proceeded to clatter each of them for boundaries – two precise pulls, one stunning straight drive, and finally a fortunate inside edge down to fine leg. In all, Sri Lanka struck 12 boundaries in the final 34 deliveries they faced.The shortened game also had some knock-on effects on West Indies’ bowling plans, as the new provisos meant three bowlers were given a quota of five overs each, while two others were handed four apiece. Once Chase’s over, in which Kusal had struck four consecutive boundaries, was belatedly completed, and with Sri Lanka in raucous mood, West Indies were suddenly faced with the proposition of figuring out how Gudakesh Motie, Jayden Seales, and Alzarri Joseph – who had bowled four, four and three overs, respectively – would split the remains.And with the economical Matthew Forde already having bowled five overs prior to the rain break, it meant only two more bowlers could bowl five; so they needed to find one more over from somewhere.With Chase having been dispatched upon the resumption of play, it was left to Rutherford to roll his arm over, and he was duly taken for 17 runs courtesy two fours and a six. And as Kusal’s carefree innings continued in earnest, Sri Lanka eventually managed to muster up a competitive total – though it proved to be just not good enough on the day.