All posts by csb10.top

Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane won the toss and asked Rajasthan Royals to bat first on a dry surface in Guwahati. KKR were forced to make one change, with Moeen Ali replacing an unwell Sunil Narine. KKR mentor Dwayne Bravo handed Moeen his first KKR cap. Left-arm quick Spencer Johnson kept his place in the XI ahead of Anrich Nortje.Nortje, though, was part of KKR’s Impact subs bench along with Angkrish Raghuvanshi, who is likely to slot in as the Impact Player when KKR chase.As for RR, they handed a franchise debut to Wanindu Hasaranga and listed him at No.7. As the only allrounder in the XII, Hasaranga could lend some balance, which they had missed in their season-opener against SRH. Hasaranga replaced Afghanistan left-arm swing bowler Fazalhaq Farooqi and reunited with his Sri Lanka team-mate Maheesh Theekshana, the mystery spinner. RR kept faith in Jofra Archer, though he had bowled the most expensive spell in the IPL (4-0-76-0) against SRH on Sunday. Former Mumbai Indians fast bowlerAkash Madhwal might come in as RR’s Impact Player later tonight.KKR’s bowling first XI 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Venkatesh Iyer, 3 Ajinkya Rahane (capt), 4, Rinku Singh, 5 Moeen Ali, 6 Andre Russell, 7 Ramandeep Singh, 8 Spencer Johnson, 9 Vaibhav Arora, 10 Harshit Rana, 11 Varun Chakravarthy.
Impact Subs: Anrich Nortje, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Manish Pandey, Anukul Roy, Luvith SisodiaRR’s batting first XI: 1 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2 Sanju Samson, 3 Nitish Rana, 4 Riyan Parag, 5 Dhruv Jurel, 6 Shimron Hetmyer, 7 Wanindu Hasaranga, 8 Jofra Archer, 9 Maheesh Theekshana, 10 Thushar Deshpande, 11 Sandeep Sharma.
Impact Subs: Kunal Singh Rathore, Shubham Dubey, Akash Madhwal, Kumar Kartikeya, Kwena Maphaka

Big picture: Australia have denied India before

“[T]here’s nothing more satisfying than hearing a big crowd go silent.”Pat Cummins won’t be in Dubai on Tuesday, but the words he spoke on November 18, 2023, will be. The players may not themselves be thinking about them, but viewers around the world quite likely will – if not about the words themselves, certainly about the broader theme they represent.Since winning their quarter-final game at the 2011 World Cup, India have met Australia four times in ICC ODI tournaments, winning twice and losing twice. The two wins came in round-robin matches at the 2019 and 2023 World Cups, and the defeats in the 2015 semi-finals and the 2023 final.Related

• 'We guessed right in the end' – Smith relieved tangle worked out

• Connolly replaces Short as India's spinners loom for Australia

• Rohit: 'Dubai not our home, it's new for us as well'

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Many months have passed since November 19, 2023, and Tuesday’s Champions Trophy semi-final will pit a different India against a vastly different Australia, but the truth of that momentous day will hold just as good. In that World Cup, India assembled a team for the ages and plowed through opposition after opposition like a battering ram; then they ran into an Australia side that was very, very good, though perhaps not as good as India, but certainly good enough to beat them in a one-off contest. If ever there was a cricketing parallel to Maracana 1950, this was it.The gap between the two teams in this tournament is wider, with Australia missing their entire first-choice pace attack, and the conditions in Dubai only widen this gap. These gaps, however, matter less in one-off contests than over a series or a league, and there is enough quality in Australia’s line-up to make light of them, particularly in the game-changing potential of Travis Head at the top of the order (do India ever need reminding of what he can do?), the quality running through their middle order, and the legspin of Adam Zampa.2:56

What will India’s batting template be in the semi-final?

For India, meanwhile, questions that simmered unnoticed during the group stage now gain greater urgency. Virat Kohli has just played his 300th ODI; how many more will there be? And what of Rohit Sharma? And Ravindra Jadeja? These three retired from the shortest format after India’s T20 World Cup victory last year; how much longer will they go on in ODIs? Do they still have 2027 in their sights, or could this Champions Trophy be it?Whenever they go, they would desperately want another ODI trophy to take with them. All three won the 2013 Champions Trophy, and Kohli has a World Cup medal from 2011, but the current generation that they have done so much to nurture may well be India’s best-ever in ODIs. As of now, they don’t have the silverware to show for it.Australia have denied them before. Australia stand in their way again.

Form guide

Australia WLLLL (last five completed ODIs, most recent first)
India: WWWWW1:04

Kumble: Maxwell against spinners is the contest to watch out for

In the spotlight: Glenn Maxwell and Rohit Sharma

Of all batters to have scored at least 200 ODI runs against spin since the start of 2022, Glenn Maxwell (141.49) has the best strike rate. Of the top 12 batters in that list, however, Maxwell (37.81) is the only one to average under 40 against spin. He can take spinners apart like no one else, but he also gives them a chance. The yin and yang of Maxwell’s game, then, may go on to have an outsize influence on a contest against an India side that will certainly have three top-class spinners and potentially even four. Maxwell’s offspin could be just as crucial to Australia’s hopes; his dismissal of Rohit was one of the foremost match-turning moments of the 2023 World Cup final.Just under a month ago, at a time when questions about his international future swirled furiously around him, Rohit Sharma scored a breathtaking hundred against England that showed he remains among the world’s most dangerous ODI openers. He got off to starts in all three of India’s group games, but his highest score of this Champions Trophy, at this point, is 41. India would be thrilled if he could better that in this semi-final.

Team news

Australia have brought Cooper Connolly into their squad in place of the injured Matt Short, and it seems likely that the left-arm spin-bowling allrounder will slot in immediately, given the likely conditions in Dubai and the fact that Australia have lost not just an opener in Short but also an offspinner who went 7-0-21-0 in their last match. If Connolly plays, however, Australia will have to decide who opens alongside Head. Josh Inglis seems the likely option; he opened throughout Australia’s three-match home ODI series against West Indies last year, scoring 65, 9 and 35*. There is also the chance that Australia could pick a second frontline spinner in Tanveer Sangha if the look of the pitch persuades them to do so.Australia (probable): 1 Travis Head, 2 Josh Inglis (wk), 3 Steven Smith (capt), 4 Marnus Labuschagne, 5 Cooper Connolly, 6 Alex Carey, 7 Glenn Maxwell, 8 Ben Dwarshuis, 9 Nathan Ellis, 10 Spencer Johnson, 11 Adam Zampa1:25

Kumble feels India should play all four spinners in semi-final vs Australia

Four spinners or three? And if three, which three? These are the big questions India will wrestle with following Varun Chakravarthy’s five-wicket haul against New Zealand on Sunday. The pitch they play on will likely determine the answers.India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 Axar Patel, 6 KL Rahul (wk), 7 Hardik Pandya, 8 Ravindra Jadeja, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Mohammed Shami, 11 Varun Chakravarthy

Pitch and conditions

The pitches in Dubai have shown a clear tendency to slow down over 100 overs. Across the three matches played here, spinners have averaged 42.22 in the first innings while going at 4.81 runs per over. In the second, they have averaged 24.76 and gone at 4.18. This, along with dew not being much of an issue at this time of year, may persuade the captain winning the toss to bat first.A clear, sunny day is expected in Dubai with a maximum temperature of 29 degrees Celsius.3:58

Smith on India’s spin threat – ‘We’re ready and up for the challenge’

Stats and trivia

• Since the start of 2010, India have positive win-loss records against all their ODI opponents other than Australia, against whom they are dead even: 23 wins and 23 defeats.
• India have won two and lost one of their four Champions Trophy meetings with Australia. They haven’t met each other in the tournament since a rain-affected no-result at Centurion in 2009.
• Beginning with that Centurion game, Australia have had seven result matches in the Champions Trophy, and six that were either washed out without a result or abandoned without a toss.
• India have lost their last 13 tosses in a row, with Rohit captaining them in ten of those games, and KL Rahul in three.
• Maxwell needs 17 runs to get to the 4000 mark in ODIs, while Rahul is 33 away from 3000.
• Between them, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis and Spencer Johnson – Australia’s three main seamers in this tournament – have played just two ODIs against India.

Quotes

“The clear message was given to him when we started the ODI series against England, that no matter what the situation is, you will bat at [No.] 5. And the kind of improvement he’s shown with his bat over the last year or so is superb to watch […] He likes to take the game on, likes to play his shots. And sometimes you are in trouble, you want to always take that positive route. And with Axar, we definitely can do that. He showed it in the T20 World Cup final, which was a very, very crucial knock. Again, in that game as well, we were three down and for him to come out and bat like that was superb, and got us to a decent total in the end. And that is what we expect. Whenever he’s gotten an opportunity, he’s shown that he can do just a bit more than what we expect him to do.”
“We guessed right in the end. Ideal to be here and have a couple of days’ preparation. Had we stayed and waited for last night’s result, we wouldn’t have had a chance to train here and get used to the conditions. It made sense to us.

West Indies, well off the pace in both men’s and women’s international cricket in recent times, will now hope to benefit from what CWI has called a “groundbreaking, data-driven scouting system aimed at identifying and developing the best cricketing talent across the region”.The system will involve senior talent managers, territorial talent identifiers, and a network of scouts combining “to provide a structured, analytical approach to talent identification”. With the West Indies Championship as their first major assignment, the scouting team will ensure that every performance is tracked, analysed, and reported, creating a clear pathway for emerging cricketers to progress to the highest levels.”Former West Indies captain Ramnaresh Sarwan heads the team of six territorial talent identifiers, looking after Guyana, with Henderson Broomes (Barbados), Delroy Morgan (Jamaica), Samuel Spencer (Leeward Islands), Gibran Mohammed (Trinidad & Tobago) and Craig Emmanuel (Windward Islands) for company. The senior talent managers are Jamal Smith (men’s cricket) and Ann Browne-John (women’s cricket), and with four regional scouts, they would be “managing senior player data, collaborating with analysts, and assisting in selection decisions”.Related

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“We are moving beyond just relying on what we see on scorecards. This system ensures that performances are seen with context and with a focus on the skill sets displayed, tactical acumen and game awareness,” CWI director of cricket Miles Bascombe said. “We are collecting real-time data, analysing performances consistently, and making informed decisions about player development.”The key responsibilities of the territorial talent identifiers are:

• Scouting and evaluation: attending matches and training sessions to assess players’ technical skills, physical attributes, and mental strength
• Reporting and analysis: compiling detailed scouting reports and maintaining player performance records
• Collaboration: working closely with coaches, selectors, and high-performance staff to refine the development pathway

“Players in the region will now be seen and evaluated by multiple talent identification operatives resulting in more information gathering, and better-balanced data on performances,” Bascombe said. “With this accountability metric in place, our network of scouts ensures that no talent goes unnoticed.”We are moving into a new era of role-based, data-driven selection that will have ripple effects across our cricket system from the way players prepare to the way we measure performances. In addition, it allows us to examine deficits in players and to optimise through our high-performance framework. However, I would like to reiterate that data-driven does not only quate to stats-based, huge emphasis will be placed on qualitative data. Beyond selection, this data will be used to refine player programming ensuring a targeted approach to getting players international-ready.”Though women’s cricket falls under the ambit of the new plan, no details have been made available yet•BCCI

The latest edition of the first-class West Indies Championship is already one round old, but will run till April 2025 and take in 24 more matches featuring eight island teams: Barbados, Combined Campuses and Colleges, Guyana, Jamaica, Leeward Islands, Trinidad & Tobago, West Indies Academy and Windward Islands.”The West Indies Championship is where we expect to see our next generation of Test cricketers emerge,” Bascombe said. “With this new system, we will have more eyes on players than ever before and clarity about what we are looking for. This ensures that selection methods are consistent over time and based on merit and data-backed insights.”Both West Indies’ senior men’s and women’s have underperformed on the whole of late with only the rare bright spark – like the Shamar Joseph-inspired Test win over Australia in Brisbane in January 2024 and the recent win in spin-friendly Multan over Pakistan. The men finished one from the bottom in the latest cycle of the World Test Championship and have failed to qualify for the upcoming ODI Champions Trophy, to be played in Pakistan and the UAE. The women, too, have been well behind the top teams – less than a decade on from when they were T20 world champions – and are now outside the top five in both the ICC’s ODI and T20I team rankings.

The draft for the tenth edition of the PSL will take place on January 11. The date for the draft is later than PSL drafts have historically taken place, though that is partially down to the window for the tournament being pushed back by a month; it will now take place in a four-week slot between early April and mid-May, with the PCB no longer viewing a clash with the IPL as a no-go area.While no further details of player availability have been announced, the draft is likely to heavily tap into players who went unsold at the IPL auction. One of the factors that influenced the PSL moving into the IPL’s slot was the greater degree of certainty that players not at the IPL would be available due to the near-complete lack of any international fixtures during that period.At the IPL this year, David Warner, Kane Williamson, Akeal Hosein, Jonny Bairstow, Adil Rashid and Keshav Maharaj were among the players that went unsold, and while many may have had international commitments during the PSL’s window in other years, that will not be the case this time around.Related

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This does not guarantee that all those players will be available to the PSL. The England Cricket Board (ECB) is currently embroiled in a dispute with the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) after they announced they would not issue NOCs for first-class cricketers to play any overseas league apart from the IPL that clashed with the domestic season. While the T20 Blast, which starts on May 29, will not clash with the PSL, the County Championship starts on April 4, and almost certainly will. What the terms of any resolution are is likely to have a significant impact upon the PSL, which has historically drawn overseas talent quite heavily from England.The move into the IPL window, which ESPNcricinfo first reported on in 2022, is one the PCB is looking to make permanent as it tries to move away from the increasingly cramped December-March window in which it operates currently, where it clashes not only with four other T20 leagues, but also a busy international cricket calendar. By contrast, moving to the April to May window means little to no Full Member international cricket and only the IPL, against which, officials acknowledge, it can’t compete but can try to co-exist with. And if, as expected, the PSL inducts two new teams from 2026, there remains potential to accommodate a longer season in that window.In the medium term, it will also help the PSL avoid being played almost entirely in Ramadan, as would have been the case in 2025. As part of the lunar calendar, Ramadan starts ten days earlier every year on the Gregorian calendar so it would clash with the PSL’s usual February-March window for the next few years. Ramadan not only affects timings of games and crowd turnout, it is also a big window for advertising; playing the PSL in Ramadan would impact advertising and sponsorship revenues for the league.The decision to switch windows was by no means one that met universal agreement. ESPNcricinfo understands a number of franchise owners were sceptical, if not outright opposed to the move at the time. However, the decision did not necessarily require the support of the franchises, with the PSL’s governing council possessing the authority to make a unilateral decision on the matter.

Ben Stokes, England’s captain, said he had apologised to his players for his show of frustration on the third evening in Multan, at the point that the second Test against Pakistan began to slip out of his team’s control in a spate of dropped catches and fielding lapses.Stokes, back in the side for the first time in nine weeks after a hamstring tear had ruled him out of their home series against Sri Lanka as well as last week’s first Test, told Sky Sports that he had behaved like a “tired and grumpy old man” when bawling out his players at a critical juncture of Pakistan’s second innings.The flashpoint came in the midst of a wholehearted spell of reverse-swing bowling from Brydon Carse, who had just dismissed Mohammad Rizwan for the third time in the series to raise England’s hopes of restricting Pakistan to a sub-150 second-innings total.Two overs later, however, with Salman Agha in his sights, Carse suffered two drops in the space of three balls – first as Jamie Smith spilled a regulation nick behind the stumps with Salman on 4, and then again on 6 when Joe Root, standing unusually close at first slip, couldn’t close his hands around a fenced edge off the back foot. Salman would go on to make an innings-defining 63 from 89 balls.Then, when Jack Leach fumbled at point to give away an unnecessary single in Carse’s subsequent over, Stokes let out a roar of exasperation – which, while understandable in the circumstances, was out of character for a captain who has extolled a blame-free environment in the course of his two-and-a-half year reign.Related

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“I actually apologised to the group up there last night,” Stokes said afterwards. “It’s the first time in my captaincy that I’ve let my emotions show in my body language, with how I was feeling as the game was unfolding. I owned up to that, and I’m very annoyed at myself for letting that out.”It’s something that I don’t want to do, or be seen to be doing,” he added. “No one means to drop catches, but it just proves how important catches are out in these subcontinent conditions, because they don’t come along that often. So I apologised to the group and said that was poor of me. I was a tired and grumpy old man last night. You won’t see that happen again.”Brendon McCullum, England’s head coach, admitted he had been surprised that Stokes had felt it necessary to speak out on the matter, but put his annoyance down to the passion that epitomises his character. Without it, he said, Stokes could not have driven himself back to full fitness so soon after suffering a serious hamstring tear.”I was a bit surprised, but we all know how passionate Ben is, and how much it means to him to play for England,” McCullum told Sky Sports. “We’ve seen that through his bloody-mindedness to get back from the injury, which was significant, and to do so in a nine-week timeframe, and in extreme conditions of 40 degrees.”I think maybe that’s where some of that frustration led to, certainly it wasn’t directed at any of the players,” he added. “It was more about trying to assess the rhythm of the game and to impact on it. But look, he’ll be better for the run. And I thought in the second innings [where he made 37 from 36 balls] he looked like he had that method where he could put pressure on the opposition. He’s at his best when he’s doing that.”Stokes himself acknowledged that the challenge of getting back to match fitness had been a tough one, having played no competitive cricket since tearing his hamstring while batting in the Hundred in August.”I’ve worked so, so hard to get fit for this Test match, but nothing can prepare you for standing out on the field in hot weather,” he said. “Training doesn’t do that, so it was great to be able to get through this Test match, it fills me up nicely going into next week, and it was nice to get some overs under the belt as well. That was the one thing which I felt like I was lacking. But obviously, when you get into the game, and you feel like it’s on the line, nothing can stop me from doing that.”In a match dominated by spinners, with Pakistan’s Sajid Khan and Noman Ali becoming the first bowling pair to share all 20 wickets since 1972, both Stokes and McCullum agreed that Carse’s luckless display had been one of the outstanding aspects of the contest. He finished with match figures of 5 for 79 across 29 overs, bowling with heart, pace and skill throughout, while also contributing a spirited innings of 27 from 32 balls on the final morning.”He’s been fantastic,” Stokes said. “He’s shown in these two games why we picked him in all formats, not just Test cricket, going forward. He just keeps charging in, ball after ball, spell after spell. Obviously, when the ball starts reverse-swinging, he comes into the game even more. Having his batting ability down the order again is massive for us. He’s been really good, and he’s going to raise his stock even higher than what it was already.”Ben Stokes disappointed after being stumped for 37•Getty Images

McCullum agreed Carse had been the “standout” of England’s attack. “I wouldn’t say he surprised me, because he came with the reputation of someone that could bowl good pace with a big heart, to keep charging in with some steepling bounce,” he said. “To be able to do it in England is one thing, to do it on a surface which didn’t offer a whole lot for fast bowlers is simply outstanding. We’re trying to build a battery of fast bowlers, and Carse has certainly put his name into that.”As a former Test wicketkeeper, McCullum also defended Smith’s display in the wake of his costly lapse on the third evening. After three sharp takes in the first innings, it was a rare blemish in what has been a fine start to Smith’s England career, while his twin scores of 21 and 6 amounted to his smallest contribution with the bat in course of eight Tests.”You will not get a tougher set of conditions to keep wicket on,” McCullum said. “Jamie’s very disappointed about dropping that catch. But you take that out, I thought his keeping was as good as I’ve seen in these conditions, particularly from a foreign wicketkeeper.”He’s just continuing to impress, and obviously in both innings, he’s trying to put pressure on the opposition on that surface, which is very difficult, but that’s his natural game. He’s turning into a really big player for us.”But that’s where you got to have the ability to turn the page pretty quickly as well, because if you ever let your mistakes dictate your attitude and your confidence, then you’re in for a hell of a time. Mistakes in this game are going to be part of it, but 99% of what Jamie has done in this Test match has been absolutely outstanding. And that’ll be the message to him.”

Rohit Sharma has said that “three hours of bad cricket” does not define this Indian team and it would be unfair to judge his players on the basis of that.”I am not going to look too much into this Test match honestly because those three hours [when India were bowled out for 46] are not going to dictate what this team is,” Rohit said after India lost the first Test to New Zealand by eight wickets. “Even here, there are a lot of good things that happened as well along with the three-four hours of bad cricket.”I think it’s important to keep a consistent message in the group, which is that whenever we are put under pressure, we try to make a way into the game in whatever possible way – that is what we have been talking about.Related

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“And we really found a way to come back into this game with the bat in the second innings. Of course, we lost a Test match. That’s why it probably won’t make sense what I am talking about. But I honestly feel there have been a lot of good things that happened in this game. So it’s just about keeping a very calm atmosphere, not to send panic messages.”After conceding a lead of 356, India made a sterling comeback in the second innings with Rohit and Yashasvi Jaiswal giving them a good start before Virat Kohli and Sarfaraz Khan’s partnership took them forward. And when Rishabh Pant and Sarfaraz joined forces, India started dreaming of the unimaginable – a win.While that didn’t happen, Rohit was proud of India’s fightback.”It was brilliant, especially being behind in the game, it is easy to let the game drift away, but that is not what this team is all about. This team wants to stay in the game as long as possible and not give it to the opposition that easily. After day one [two], obviously nothing went our way. We got bowled out for 46 and then they were 190 [180] for 3 and for us the start of that second [third] day was very important, to not let them get too far ahead.Sarfaraz Khan played the way he knows best•AFP/Getty Images

“But that partnership between Rachin [Ravindra] and [Tim] Southee actually just went a little ahead than what we thought. But again, in the second innings with the bat to come out and play like that, it felt like we were ahead in the game at one stage. We didn’t feel like we were 350 [356] behind and that is something that I am really proud of.”When the guys are showing that kind of attitude on the field with the bat, it shows that the mindset is very clear, and the guys want to go out there and play with freedom and try and see how we can put the pressure back on the opposition. All in all, I thought, except that first couple of hours, three hours, I thought we played a very good Test cricket.”It was not just the amount runs India scored in their second innings but also how they went about it, scoring at close to four runs an over throughout their innings. When Sarfaraz and Pant were together, they added 177 runs for the fourth wicket off 211 balls. Sarfaraz struck 18 fours and three sixes in his 150, and Pant smashed nine fours and five sixes during his 99.Rohit said India are not going to change their aggressive attitude, irrespective of whether they are ahead in the game or behind.”When we are behind the game, that is where you want to press your pedal even more, and try to make an impact, try to not let the opposition know that we are under pressure or we are behind the game. When you are actually behind, you want to try and do extraordinary things and play without any fear. It’s one thing to talk about it, but actually we went out there and played some fearless cricket.”Some of the shots some of the guys played in the middle knowing that we were 350 behind shows what we have been talking about and what they want to do out there. And that is how it’s going to stay here.Rachin Ravindra took the attack to the India spinners•AFP/Getty Images

“Even if we find ourselves ahead in the game, we are not going to change our attitude. And on the other side as well, even when we are behind the game, we are going to try to see how we can put the pressure on the opposition. Some of the Test matches we played recently show what I am talking about and that’s how it’s going to be.”We are not going to fear losing a Test match by changing our mindset. We want to have that consistent mindset of trying to find a way to win Test matches. Even though you are behind in the game, you have to find a way whether it is putting the bowler under pressure or putting the batters under pressure by doing different things.”India went in with three spinners – R Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja – for this Test but the move backfired with the trio not being as penetrative as usual. A key reason behind that was Ravindra, who scored 130 of his 173 runs across two innings against spin at a strike rate of 100. Rohit accepted he was the difference between the two sides.”In the first innings, I thought whatever we could extract from the pitch, our spinners tried and did everything possible. But some of the shots Rachin played were really, really good and he played very good cricket. He played well against the spinners, they challenged him but you got to give credit to him.”He understood what our spinners were trying to do and didn’t back off from playing his natural game, which is what gave him the result against our quality spinners. Sometimes it happens where… not sometimes actually, there will be times when some of the batters who come to India will play well against our spinners.”We saw in the England series, in the first Test match, a couple of their batters got hundreds and even here, Rachin, [Devon] Conway, they played well, put our bowlers under pressure, spinners under pressure by playing different shots which can happen, which we are expecting as well from their batters.”Anyone who is coming to India now, they are trying to put the pressure on the bowlers by doing different things, different methods but we know exactly what we are supposed to do when a situation like that arises.”

Sri Lanka didn’t need long on the final morning in Galle to wrap things up, taking just 15 minutes to grab the final two New Zealand wickets and secure a 63-run win in the first Test. The result means Sri Lanka go 1-0 up in the two-match series, while also leapfrogging New Zealand up to third place in the World Test Championship (WTC) points table.Prabath Jayasuriya was at the forefront of Sri Lanka’s charge, finishing with figures of 5 for 68 – his eighth five-wicket haul, and his seventh in Galle. He ended with match figures of 9 for 204, taking home the Player-of-the-Match award.After having fought so hard the previous day, Rachin Ravindra lasted just eight deliveries into the first session of the final morning as Jayasuriya trapped him in front with an arm ball for 92 off 168 balls. Coming around the wicket, Jayasuriya tossed one up on leg as Ravindra was caught in the crease playing down the wrong line. He reviewed, but once it was confirmed to be pitching in line, there would be no saving him.And any lingering hopes of a famous rearguard were then swiftly quashed, as Will O’Rourke kept out just five deliveries before the sixth slipped past his forward defence and on to off stump to hand Jayasuriya his fifth wicket of the innings.O’Rourke wouldn’t quite be satisfied with how the game ended after an impressive showing in the game as he finished with eight wickets to his name – the second-most across the Test, and the same as Ajaz Patel.In terms of how this result impacts the WTC, it keeps Sri Lanka’s outside hopes of a berth in the final alive. But for New Zealand, it makes their task considerably tougher, with an away series against India and a home series England coming up in the next few months.There will be no time to dwell on this result for either team, with just a two-day break before the second Test gets underway on Thursday – also in Galle.

A Brydon Carse century on his return after suspension was not enough to prevent Durham slipping towards likely defeat on the third day of the Vitality County Championship Division One match with Somerset at Taunton.The visitors began by adding 64 runs to their overnight first innings score of 272 for six before being bowled out for 336, Carse contributing a valiant 104 and Ben Raine making 62. Jack Leach finished with five for 124 off 41.1 overs.That gave Somerset a first-innings lead of 156. They declined to enforce the follow-on and posted 263 for five in their second innings, Tom Abell leading the way with top score of 56.After an hour’s delay for bad light, the home side declared, setting their opponents an unlikely victory target of 420 on pitch offering increasing assistance for the spinners. By stumps, they had stumbled to 15 for three and face a backs-to-the-wall final day.Durham began the morning session needing 71 runs to avoid the prospect of following on, with Carse, in his first game back after serving a three-month ban for historic breaches of betting rules, unbeaten on 59 and Raine 51 not out.The pair added 15, extending their seventh-wicket stand to 117, before Raine edged Leach into the bucket hands of Craig Overton, who claimed his fourth catch of the innings at slip.Seamer Kasey Aldridge then took a hand, sending back George Drissell, who fended a steeply rising ball to short leg, and Daniel Hogg, caught by diving wicketkeeper James Rew, to leave Durham 305 for nine.Carse had already cleared the ropes off Leach and went to his hundred with two more sixes off successive deliveries from Aldridge, having faced 161 balls and hit 11 fours and four maximums. It was a faultless knock by the England white ball international, but before he could face again, last man Callum Parkinson was caught at silly point off Leach to end the innings.Somerset’s second innings plan appeared to be to bat aggressively while Lewis Goldsworthy played an anchor role. Fellow opener Andy Umeed made a rapid 28 off 31 balls before lofting a catch to long-off in the penultimate over before lunch, Drissell taking the chance off Parkinson. At the interval, Somerset were 41 for one, with a lead of 197, and poised for an afternoon assault.Tom Lammonby launched it with 36 off 34 balls, looking in excellent touch until beaten by a perfectly pitched off-break from Drissell, which turned and clipped the left-hander’s off stump. Abell then added 36 with the patient Goldsworthy, whose 99-ball innings ended when he was caught behind, driving at Parkinson, having matched his first innings score of 38.Tom Banton provided just the acceleration his team needed, smashing two sixes in a Drissell over and also clearing the ropes twice off Parkinson as he raced to 46 off 28 balls before miscuing a catch to mid-off to give Carse a wicket. By then Somerset were 353 ahead at 197 for four.Abell was unbeaten on 45 at tea, which was taken at 209 for four. He reached a confident 69-ball half-century with an exquisite extra cover drive for four off Bas de Leede, but fell soon afterwards edging the same bowler through to wicketkeeper Ollie Robinson to make it 228 for five.Rew and Archie Vaughan had added a further 35 to take the lead past 400 when, with the floodlights blazing brightly, the umpires decided the light was too poor to continue. An hour later play resumed at 6.05pm with the declaration made and Durham facing a maximum of 13 overs before the close.They made a disastrous start against spin from both ends, Alex Lees calling for a quick single to cover off the first ball of the second over, bowled by Vaughan, and Ben McKinney unable to beat Abell’s throw to wicketkeeper Rew.Overton’s close catching prowess was evident again when Lees edged Leach to leg slip and departed for six. Then Vaughan bowled Scott Borthwick, turning the ball past his outside edge, to leave Durham with two nightwatchmen at the wicket and facing a massive uphill battle.

Rohit Sharma has hailed the processes and preparations India have gone through over the last few years, which culminated in them winning the T20 World Cup title in a tense final against South Africa in Barbados.”We wanted to win this, but I know to win a tournament like this, a lot goes behind the scenes,” Rohit said at the presentation ceremony. “A lot of effort, lot of minds need to come together, and I’m very, very proud of the bunch of boys that I have, and the management as well.”For giving us the liberty to go and play and execute and having that trust in each one of us. That has to start from the management, coach-captain, and the players go out there to do it. Throughout the tournament, we were fantastic.”Rohit praised India’s ability to come back from an extremely tough situation, when South Africa needed just 30 runs off 30 balls with six wickets in hand. Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh pulled it back after that to secure a seven-run victory.Related

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“We have played a lot of high-pressure games in the past as well and been on the wrong side of it as well, but guys do understand when the pressure is on, what needs to be done,” Rohit said. “Today was the perfect example of when the back is against the wall what is required.”We stuck together as a team, all of us, even though at one point it was looking South Africa’s way, but I thought overall as a group, on the field, we wanted this really bad. It’s very hard to sum up what we have been through for the last three-four years.”We worked really hard as individuals and as a team, a lot has gone on behind the scenes for us to be here today and winning this game. It’s not what we did today, it is what we have been doing for the last three-four years, that’s the result that has come for us today.”The Player of the Final award went to Virat Kohli, whose 76 helped India score 176 for 7 after they were 34 for 3 in the fifth over. He had endured a tough T20 World Cup until then, scoring only 75 runs in seven innings, but Rohit said the team never was in doubt that Kohli would come good.”Nobody was in doubt about Virat’s form,” Rohit said. “We know the quality he has, he has been on top of his game for the last 15 years, come the occasion we know big players will stand up. Virat was obviously holding that one end which was very, very crucial for us, and the others played around him. For us to get to that total was a team effort as well. We wanted somebody to bat as long as possible.”These are not the wickets where you can come and bat freely and keep the scoreboard ticking straightaway. We do understand that, and we wanted somebody to bat as long as possible and Virat did that perfectly. That is where experience, all the years he has played, comes into the picture. And the other guys played really well, Axar’s [Patel] knock of 47 was very crucial as well.”While India appeared to be ahead during large parts of South Africa’s chase, David Miller and Heinrich Klaasen plundered 38 runs off the 14th and 15th overs, from Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav, to turn the game on its head. But with 29 to defend of 30 balls, Rohit turned to Bumrah, who gave away just four runs in his third over and then just two runs in the 18th over to heap pressure on South Africa.Bumrah finished the T20 World Cup with 15 wickets, second only to Fazalhaq Farooqi and Arshdeep Singh, at an average of 8.26 and economy of 4.17 to earn the Player of the Tournament award. “I’ve been someone who has seen him for so many years, playing alongside him, even I don’t know what exactly is with him,” Rohit said. “I know exactly what he brings to the table, but how he does that is just masterclass to be honest.”And he backs his skills, which is more than enough and he’s a very confident lad, whatever he wants to do, he executed that to perfection. In one word, he’s a class act. And Hardik was brilliant as well, bowling that over, no matter how many runs is required to book that last over, nerves and all of that, I’m very proud.”

Gulbadin Naib, who orchestrated Afghanistan’s historic win against Australia, was a figure of relief when he collected his Player-of-the-Match award for his spell of 4 for 20. Drenched in sweat while sporting a beaming smile, he held the award while soaking in the feeling of “at last” beating Australia.”We were waiting [for this] for a long time. It’s a great moment not just for me but for my nation and my people,” Naib said at the presentation. “[It is a] big achievement for our cricket. I have no words to say but thanks to the fans for supporting our career and cricket journey. It’s a great teamwork, we worked hard for the last two months and the result is in front of you.”Thank god we at last beat Australia. It’s a great achievement for our cricket in Afghanistan. If you look at history of our cricket, it is not much. Last 10 years, we achieved a lot of goals. This is a big achievement.”Related

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Australia’s fourth-wicket pair of Marcus Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell were threatening to take the match away from Afghanistan in the 149 chase, when captain Rashid Khan turned to Naib for his eighth bowling option. Naib picked a wicket off his third delivery, removing Stoinis for 11. Bowling four overs straight, he then dismissed Tim David in this next over and then got the prized wicket of Maxwell, for 59, in the 14th to all but end Australia’s hopes.Naib thanked Rashid for trusting him in the crunch moments of the game and further said Afghanistan’s “journey starts now”.The win was sweeter for Afghanistan, who dealt with a heartbreak against the same opponents at the ODI World Cup last year. With Australia on 91 for 7, a one-legged Maxwell, battling severe cramps, took them to a stunning win with an unbeaten double-century.Naib expressed relief at the result in Kingstown that opened up Super Eight Group 1 standings.”We played very good cricket and in the first round we beat New Zealand,” he said. “Then [to beat] Australia is not easy. They are a world champion team and it is a big achievement for our cricket. We can carry this to the next level.”Our journey starts now. We are very lucky to have such a staff and management.”

Rashid Khan: ‘It’s something we missed in last two years’

After being asked to bat, Afghanistan were given a strong platform with an opening stand of 118 between Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran before they lost 6 for 23 with Pat Cummins picking up yet another hat-trick. Afghanistan were only able to post 148 for 6.Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran put on another strong opening stand•AFP/Getty Images

Rashid said they were confident of defending anything over 130, adding the importance of having many allrounders in the team.”The thought was although we didn’t finish as well as we would have liked to, but this is how this wicket is,” Rashid said at the presentation. “The more important thing was that the opening partnership gave us the best start. That let us get to a total we had in mind. We all watched two games before, and on this wicket anything 130-plus we said we were capable of defending. We keep calm and have that belief.”The beauty of this team is having too many allrounders gives you options. As a captain, it makes it easy.”Beating Australia is a “great feeling” and will make Afghanistan fans “proud”, Rashid said.”It’s a massive win for us as a team and as a nation,” he said. “In the World Cup, beating champions is a great feeling. It’s something we missed in last two years – in 2023 World Cup and also in 2022 in Australia where we lacked some runs.”It is so much important for people at home and for everyone all over the world where Afghans are there. They were badly missing this win. I am sure they would be proud of this and would have enjoyed the game. It is just the beginning for us, big game next and we have all the chances of making the semis.”