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Cameron Green helped lift Western Australia after an afternoon collapse against Cameron Gannon

Alex Malcolm02-Nov-2019Shaun Marsh continued his tantalising form with another half century but a skilful spell of seam bowling from Cameron Gannon helped Queensland restrict Western Australia on an even first day of the Sheffield Shield clash at the Gabba.Marsh, playing his 100th Shield match for Western Australia, salvaged the visitors innings with a sumptuous 77 after they had slumped to 2 for 2 in the third over having been sent in to bat.Marsh struck 13 elegant boundaries in his 167-ball innings. He looked set for another hundred but fell just after tea, getting an inside edge onto pad to be caught at short leg off Mitch Swepson.Marsh now has scores of 77, 82, 85, 85 and 214 in 10 innings for Western Australia across both the Marsh Cup and the Shield this summer although it is unlikely he will be recalled to the Test team.After Marsh’s departure, Western Australia collapsed at the hands of Gannon. Having lured Sam Whiteman into a false drive with his first ball of the day Gannon returned after tea to take three more wickets and leave Western Australia struggling at 7 for 171, having been 2 for 120 prior to tea following a 118-run stand between Marcus Stoinis (44) and Marsh.However, Queensland would not take another wicket for the day with promising allrounder Cameron Green and Jhye Richardson combining for an unbeaten 84-run partnership before bad light stopped play. Green looked very comfortable in making his maiden first-class half-century in his 11th innings and he got good support from Richardson who remained 35 not out.Earlier, there were further concerns for Test aspirant Cameron Bancroft who was caught at leg gully for a duck. It is the third time in three Shield matches he has been dismissed in such fashion.

With Trent Bridge meandering to a draw, Yorkshire thoughts soon turned to a Roses match that could determine both sides’ fate

Jon Culley at Trent Bridge07-Sep-20181:22

Warwickshire’s lead cut as Division Two heats up

ScorecardYorkshire’s thoughts soon turned to next week’s Roses match as play ended with handshakes at 4.20pm as a slow-moving, often attritional contest from drifted to its inevitable conclusion after the rain-reduced third day.Contained within the first half-hour were pretty much all the significant developments on the final day. Tom Kohler-Cadmore completed his maiden first-class century as a Yorkshire player – well-deserved, too – and Yorkshire made the 43 they had needed overnight to claim a fifth batting bonus point.It is the first time this season that Yorkshire have collected all five and will give them a much-needed sense of stability ahead of a contest that could decide the fate of both counties. It leaves them still next to bottom of the Division One table, still behind Lancashire, but only by one point and with a game in hand.A Roses match is always an occasion but next week’s encounter at Headingley, the latest in terms of starting date in the rivalry’s history, thus has more riding on it than most. If there is a positive outcome, whoever wins probably sends the other one down.Certainly, in Lancashire’s case, a victory looks imperative, with only Hampshire at the Rose Bowl to follow. Yorkshire, who won handsomely at Old Trafford in July even with James Anderson in Lancashire’s line-up, are unbeaten in the last five first-class Roses matches.”It’s a massive game,” first-team coach Andrew Gale said. “The ones that come after will be big too, but in the context of things, with both of us where we are in the table, the Lancashire game is huge.”But we have come away from this game after a difficult few weeks having played well, winning the key passages of play. Tom Kohler-Cadmore showed what a good player he is and the batting display overall was really solid.”The lads have got a spring in their step again and we know if we play well over a long enough period of time at Headingley we will win the game. Maybe there is a little bit more pressure on them with one game less to come but they are a good side and they will be confident too.”That aforementioned half-hour was the most exciting of the match, the crucial 110th over – bowled by Samit Patel, which Yorkshire began still needing seven for 400 – a contest all of its own.A single from Kohler-Cadmore preceded a dot ball before Tim Bresnan took a comfortable leg-bye, then Kohler-Cadmore, giving himself room to go inside out against the left-arm spinner, was bowled leg stump. It meant that, with five still needed, new batsman Matthew Waite – playing in only his third first-class match – effectively had to score off his first ball, if only to get Bresnan down to the striker’s end for the last one.The two batsmen conferred in the middle, where the 22-year-old presumably said something along the lines of ‘leave it to me’ to his senior partner. Confidently stepping down the pitch, he drove his first ball through the covers for four and the next past mid-on with the same outcome. Job done. “That’s what you get with young players,” Gale said. “He was fearless.”Waite, who later swept Patel for consecutive sixes, had been Yorkshire’s most effective bowler, also, which would make his omission against Lancashire look a little harsh, although with Steve Patterson likely to return after injury and Ben Coad a possible too Yorkshire may have to decide between him, the legspinner Josh Poysden and the pace of Mathew Pillans, the new arrival from Surrey, who conceded 128 runs in 30 overs in this match without taking a wicket.One selection not in doubt is Kohler-Cadmore, who rounded off his fifth career first-class century by pulling and glancing Harry Gurney for consecutive fours before raising his bat towards the Yorkshire balcony, where all the players and coaching staff had lined up to applaud what had been a measured innings of high quality.Patel, who had not bowled as many overs in an innings since sending down 60 of Durham’s 171 in a September match at Chester-le-Street in 2009, showed patience of a different kind to come through such a long test of his mental agility and was rewarded with 6-114, his best figures in the Championship since his career-best 7-68 against Hampshire in July 2011 and, slightly surprisingly, given his aggregate, only the fifth five-wicket haul of his career.The last of the six, neatly enough, was his 300th first-class wicket for Nottinghamshire as Jake Libby, fielding under the helmet on the off-side, snapped up a catch to dismiss Jack Brooks, to be followed quickly by a first for the county for Libby’s occasional offspin as Bresnan, whose 82-ball half-century had been important in winning the extra point, was well taken at mid-on for 80, his highest Championship score for two years.Nottinghamshire, whose left-arm seamer Harry Gurney left the field mid-over after feeling tightness in a calf, faced 31 fairly meaningless overs in what remained. Jack Brooks did not bowl for Yorkshire, who felt it better to give him more rest ahead of next week. Matthew Fisher and David Willey, who also missed this match, will be assessed over the weekend, although Gale is reluctant to take risks with anyone’s fitness, even with so much at stake.

Durham are in danger of becoming the doormats of the north group in the NatWest T20 Blast after Nottinghamshire wiped the floor with them

ECB Reporters Network25-Jul-2017
ScorecardRiki Wessels saw Notts home•Getty Images

Durham are in danger of becoming the doormats of the north group in the NatWest T20 Blast after Nottinghamshire wiped the floor with them. Notts won by nine wickets with four overs to spare at Chester-le-Street against an inexperienced side who, after five games, remain on minus four points.Being obliged to start with that four-point deficit cannot have helped the morale of a side shorn of five players from the team which reached last year’s final.All out for 123 with 11 balls unused, there was no attempt to exert pressure as 18-year-old debutant Liam Trevaskis was asked to bowl the first over and Alex Hales hit the left-arm spinner for two fours.When Durham’s T20 skipper Paul Coughlin came on for the third over Hales twice drove him straight down the ground. With 15 coming off the over Hales set about finishing it as quickly as possible, only to be bowled for 44 when going down the pitch to Trevaskis in the seventh over.There were already 69 on the board and Riki Wessels was able to continue his good form by coasting to an unbeaten 49. Brendan Taylor finished the match with a six over long-on off Ryan Pringle to finish on 33 not out.Any chance of a contest looked remote from the moment Durham slipped to 8 for 2 after ten balls. They were briefly revived by Graham Clark with 41 off 27 balls, but from 54 for 2 Durham slipped to 65 for 6 with Samit Patel picking up three wickets.On the day he was awarded a full contract until the end of the 2019 season, Cameron Steel cut the first ball of the match, from Patel, for four. But after adding two singles he lifted left-arm seamer Luke Wood’s first ball to extra cover.Paul Collingwood was moved up to No. 3 but fell for nought, skying a pull off Wood to backward square leg. Clark cut, pulled and drove three fours in taking 15 off the first five balls of a Jake Ball over, only for Michael Richardson to bottom edge the sixth into his stumps.Patel was recalled and had Clark caught behind when aiming to leg. Jack Burnham’s fierce drive to extra cover was well held above his head by Dan Christian then Stuart Poynter played all round Patel’s next ball.Coughlin and Pringle could afford few risks but did well to add 39 before Pringle pulled Steven Mullaney straight to deep backward square. Smart work by Mullaney saw Coughlin run out and Barry McCarthy stumped by Tom Moores off Ish Sodi before last man Chris Rushworth lofted to mid-off.It was a tame end to a stuttering innings, leaving Nottinghamshire with a simple task to complete their third successive win.

Callum Jackson answered Kent’s emergency call for a wicketkeeper in Cardiff. He travelled from Kent on Tuesday night to deputise for Adam Rouse who has a broken finger which needs an operation

ECB Reporters Network22-Jun-2016
ScorecardAneurin Donald made runs during a dreary final day•Getty Images

Callum Jackson, who was released by Sussex last year because of financial cutbacks, answered Kent’s emergency call for a wicketkeeper in Cardiff. He travelled from Kent on Tuesday night to deputise for Adam Rouse who has a broken finger which needs an operation.There was little prospect of a result to the game once 104.1 overs had been lost during the first two days, with both teams content with bonus points, although Glamorgan, despite their 12 points, remain at the bottom of Division 2.Had the weather not intervened, there could have been an interesting final day, with Kent chasing a target on a pitch that favoured the seamers.Callum Jackson•ECB

Glamorgan resumed on 22 for 0 on the final morning, but added only seven runs before Jacques Rudolph again failed, pulling a short delivery from Mitchell Claydon to the fielder stationed on the long leg boundary. Mark Wallace, another senior batsman in need of runs, mixed caution with aggression to add 52 with Will Bragg- before Bragg was bowled by Matt Coles for 22. Wallace went on to score 52 with seven fours, until he touched one to Jackson.Callum Jackson•ECB

Chris Cooke quickly followed, leg before playing across a delivery from Claydon, who then dismissed David Lloyd three balls later with the combined efforts of three fielders; the batsman edged the ball to fourth slip who diverted to third slip and eventually to Tom Latham at second slip who held on to spare his colleagues’ blushes.Aneurin Donald and Graham Wagg then averted a total collapse by adding 80 for the sixth wicket, with Donald, scoring an attractive 67- his third championship fifty of the season- from 68 balls with nine boundaries. Wagg went on to score his second fifty of the game, exceed 500 runs for the third successive season, being particularly severe on James Tredwell’s off spin whom he struck for 22 in one over.He was undefeated on 64, and now needs only 42 more runs to become Glamorgan’s leading run scorer in the championship this season .Both teams shook hands at 4.55pm when Glamorgan declared at 279 for 6- a lead of 348.Rudolph was pleased by his team’s overall performance- especially the two seamers Michael Hogan and Timm Van Der Gugten- and felt that” had we not lost so much time because of the weather, we could have won the game. But we are on an upward curve, and we are not far away from that championship win.”Kent captain Sam Northeast said that “after two weeks of white ball cricket, we found it tough to adjust, and we were not clinical enough after reducing them to 137 for 6 in the first innings but I was happy as they progressed from then on”.

Yuvraj Singh unleashed trademark pick-up sixes and lofted drives to hit an unbeaten 77 off 35 and haul in the target of 202 with two deliveries to spare

The Report by Abhishek Purohit10-Oct-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsYuvraj Singh hunted down the target of 202 with the calm of old•BCCI

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Aakash Chopra: ‘Yuvraj, the perennial comeback man’

In his second comeback after recovering from cancer, a leaner and fitter Yuvraj Singh was called upon to do a job he has done numerous times for India in ODIs – revive a floundering chase, with MS Dhoni for company, and only the lower order to follow. Only, this was a T20 and Yuvraj did not have the luxury of building his innings before accelerating. He duly cut out the building part, and unleashed trademark pick-up sixes and lofted drives to haul in the target of 202 with two deliveries remaining. India were facing an asking-rate of nearly 12 at 100 for 4 in the 12th over, but Yuvraj’s response was so forceful, that all Dhoni needed to do was give him the strike. By the end, the partnership was 102 at exactly two runs a ball, Yuvraj’s 77 off 35 showing his dominance.Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina and Virat Kohli had all failed to kick on from starts and India’s innings was in danger of going Australia’s way, who had lost too many wickets in maintaining a frenetic pace of scoring, and had run out of steam at the death. Aaron Finch seemed set to carry Australia way over 200 but his exit in the 17th over for 89 off 52 helped India keep the visitors to 201, as only 29 came off the final four. India themselves needed 49 off the final four, but Yuvraj was in such flow that the big shot was always at hand.Yuvraj first took 18 off Clint McKay in the 14th over, and then, when the pressure escalated again, carted James Faulkner for successive sixes in the 17th. The timing on the boundaries was vintage Yuvraj, as was the effortlessness and grace. George Bailey’s preferred field of three men in the ring around point worked to Yuvraj’s advantage, as did the fact that Australia bowled too full to him.Dhoni did his bit, constantly scampering twos and ones as he does in ODI chases, and coming up with the crucial boundary, a typical stretch-and-club to cover, when it came down to six needed off four.Yuvraj’s cool assault meant Finch’s innings, and Australia’s electric start, were in vain. After being put in, Finch and debutant Nic Maddinson had kickstarted the innings with a 56-run partnership inside five overs. It was the manner in which the openers attacked the offspin of R Ashwin that stood out. The highly-rated Maddinson, 21, calmly stepped out to Ashwin’s first delivery and lofted it cleanly over extra cover for four. Finch set about cutting and lofting with intent, and Ashwin’s first over cost India 17.Maddinson made 34 before missing a slog to be bowled. Vinay Kumar got both Shane Watson and George Bailey in the eighth over. Finch, meanwhile, kept battering boundaries, generating immense power and finding gaps consistently. He was swift and brutal on the cut, played the lofted drive repeatedly and when he went to cow corner, it was more timing and placement than slogging.Glenn Maxwell showed Australia were in no mood to relent even momentarily, swinging Ashwin for three sixes in the tenth over as the score zoomed to 114 for 3 at the halfway stage of the innings. Ashwin’s figures read 2-0-41-0, and Dhoni was forced to turn to Virat Kohli’s mediums for a couple of costly overs.Australia stalled after Finch clubbed a high full toss straight to Vinay. The blow split the webbing on the bowler’s left hand, but did not deter him from sending down a couple of tight overs. A last-ball six from Faulkner took the score past 200, but Yuvraj hunted it down with the calm of old.

Hampshire have proved more than a few times this season that it pays not to write them off and here they did so again to win on the last ball

The Report by Alan Gardner15-Sep-2012
ScorecardChris Wood was the pick of the Hampshire bowlers as they scrapped their way to a second one-day trophy•PA Photos

Hampshire have proved more than a few times this season that it pays not to write them off and here they did so again, denying County Champions Warwickshire despite Ian Bell’s 81 to steal a heart-stopping victory at Lord’s.With the scores tied, Neil Carter, playing his final match for Warwickshire, failed to collect the required single off the bowling of Kabir Ali to give Hampshire the trophy by virtue of having lost fewer wickets. Following their last-over win against Yorkshire in the Friends Life t20, this must surely have been the most dramatic one-day double in county cricket’s history.Bell had seemingly done enough to take Warwickshire home, passing fifty for the fourth time in a domestic one-day final. But Hampshire are more than the sum of their parts and when Bell picked out Michael Carberry at deep square leg with 27 required they had the crucial wicket. Just as during the 2005 C&G Trophy final, Bell’s half-century against Hampshire was to be in a losing cause.Until then, he had guided the chase in phlegmatic style. Wickets fell around him but although 83 were needed from the final ten overs, and 52 from the last five, Bell exuded a sense of control. Even when he departed, Chris Woakes took up the challenge and, with seven required from the last six balls, Warwickshire appeared to be the favourites. But Ian Blackwell was bowled and despite Carter’s shovelled four off the penultimate delivery, Ali, like Chris Wood in Cardiff three weeks previous, held his nerve, beating the bat before sprinting off to be engulfed by his team-mates in celebration.It was a poignant moment for Ali, born in Birmingham but discarded by Warwickshire at a young age, and came after he had dropped Bell earlier in the innings, a difficult chance at long leg when the batsman had 41.Wood was also magnificent, his concession of just a single and a leg bye from the 35th over, in which he also dismissed Rikki Clarke, a crucial point in the match. His 3 for 39 followed 3 for 26 in the FLt20 final and, having scored his maiden first-class century the day before that, it is fair to say he has had quite a month.This has not been a stellar year for Bell, by his his own high standards, but one-day cricket has been his tonic. Put him in a snooker hall and he would likely chalk up a 147, such has been his affinity for the white ball. A conversion to opener for England’s ODI side brought a century and four fifties and it seemed as if his season would end with a match-winning hundred in a one-day final at Lord’s. It wasn’t to be.Warwickshire, mssing the services of William Porterfield, at the World Twenty20 with Ireland, curiously preferred Darren Maddy as Varun Chopra’s opening partner. Bell had previously guided them to victory in the 2002 B&H Cup final – scoring 65 not out batting at No. 3 – and against Somerset in the CB40 in 2010 – when he scored 107 at No. 4 – but it was to be his 54 in vain seven years ago that provided the precedent.With Hampshire in dark blue and Warwickshire in black, both offset by yellow piping, there was little to tell the sides apart visually. In such a tight finish, even the scorers had trouble – Carter was not stumped off the last ball, as he appeared to have been in the frantic finale. The association was more than kit deep, too: both had won a title already this season; both had won Lord’s finals of recent memory (Hampshire in 2009, Warwickshire in 2010); and both line-ups featured veterans from 2005.Hampshire were led to victory by a Sean Ervine hundred that day and he made his side’s most vibrant contribution with the bat this time around. After the final-day draw that sent last season’s Championship pennant to Lancashire, Warwickshire fans will likely swear off holidays to the New Forest for a while.Even with an attendance of 16,000 and a fair proportion of the white seating left empty, Lord’s still jostled and thrummed with the excitement of a crowd that seemed demob happy, eager to drink from the county cup one last time. Children played kwik cricket on a section of the nursery ground, young men in ties mingled with old men in baseball caps, while the interval entertainment was provided by a troupe of schoolgirls performing a dance routine on the outfield. The atmosphere was lively and expectant and the spectators were treated to a denouement that will resonate long in the memory. The one-day competition needed a final like this.Put in to bat under milky blue skies after Warwickshire won the toss, Carberry and James Vince set about the task with the sort of cold-blooded violence that marked their decisive 129-run opening stand in the semi-final against Sussex. Carter started with a leg-side wide that set the tone and neither he nor Woakes could curb the enthusiasm of Hampshire’s openers.Vince pushed his “Michael Vaughan” buttons early on, strictly come dashing out of the crease a couple of times and threading one exquisite drive between extra-cover and mid-off. Having taken Carter for successive boundaries, however, he pulled the next ball flat to deep square leg. Carberry, meanwhile, left-hooked Woakes for six over deep midwicket during an over that cost 14 but he too departed tamely soon after. From 70 for 2 after 11 overs, Warwickshire steadily obtained a handle on the scoring rate, as spinners Blackwell and Jeetan Patel wheeled away in bright sunshine.A dogged innings from Hampshire’s captain, Jimmy Adams, kept the scoreboard ticking but it was left to Ervine and Simon Katich to haul Hants up towards 250, as they turned on the tap in the final overs. Carter was handled without a trace of sentiment as the fifth-wicket pair put on 69 from 43 balls before Ervine was cramped for room after making a breezy 57.It was becoming difficult to get Carter’s selection, other than on nostalgic grounds, until the final over, when he could not be got at, conceding just four singles. In the end, however, it was Carter’s inability to get anything on the last ball of the day that proved decisive.

James Taylor’s 106 and a buccaneering 26-ball 59 from Jonny Bairstow set up England Lions’ 97-run win over Sri Lanka A at New Road

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Aug-2011
Scorecard
James Taylor’s 106 and a buccaneering 26-ball 59 from Jonny Bairstow set up England Lions’ 97-run win over Sri Lanka A at New Road.Having been inserted after losing the toss Taylor, who made 76 and 98 in the four-day fixture against the same opposition last week, ensured his side posted a tough target by anchoring the innings. Joe Root offered bright support initially with a boundary-studded 62 from 66 balls. On a day when his England batting rival Ravi Bopara made 7 against India, Taylor’s century was excellently timed.Though less expansive than Root – and later Bairstow – Taylor was still positive. He struck seven boundaries and a six in all, bringing up his century from 115 balls. His partnership with Bairstow, though, was the biggest entertainment of the day. Coming in with 9.1 overs left in the innings he bashed the ball to all parts.In 26 deliveries he smashed four fours and four sixes getting to his half-century in 22 balls. After he was out with 15 balls left a flurry of wickets followed but the 311 set for victory always looked a difficult task.Sri Lanka A weren’t really up to the chase with only 21-year-old Lahiru Thirimanne, who has had a good tour so far, showing any resistance with the only half-century in the innings until he fell to Scott Borthwick’s first delivery, a leg-break that beat his defences.Steven Finn struck early, castling Dimuth Karunaratne in his second over, but it was Surrey’s Stuart Meaker who took the most wickets with three. Borthwick’s 10 overs of legspin yielded two wickets, and only cost 42 runs, his second scalp a lovely googly to remove Kanishka Alvitigala.”I’m delighted to get my first win as captain under my belt and to get a century after getting so close last week in Scarborough was really pleasing,” Taylor said. “I thought we played well today. We got a decent total and then put them under real pressure from start. It was a solid performance with bat and ball and we’ll be looking to continue that on Sunday.”With only two more games to go, the tourists will have to fight back immediately.

A round-up of action from the Clydesdale Bank 40

08-Aug-2010Sussex’s bid for a third successive 40-over league title gained momentum as they eased to a six-wicket win over Surrey at Guildford. An unbroken fifth-wicket stand of 113 in 14.5 overs between skipper Mike Yardy and Andrew Hodd saw Sussex home with 10 balls to spare and took them a point above their rivals and into second place in Clydesdale Bank 40 Group A, although Surrey do have a game in hand.Michael Comber and Adam Wheater, both aged 20, were the Essex heroes as the home side beat Northamptonshire by five wickets in their clash at Southend. They came together with Essex struggling on 100 for 5 in the 22nd over in reply to a total of 215 for 6. But both displayed a cool head on young shoulders to see their side home with nine balls to spare.Jon Lewis smashed 20 off the last over of the game from Tim Murtagh to seal a remarkable three-wicket victory for Gloucestershire over Middlesex . Owais Shah (111) and John Simpson (82) led Middlesex to an imposing 299 for 8 but Gloucestershire were kept in the hunt by Steve Snell (95) and Chris Taylor (85), who plundered 158 in 18 overs for the fifth wicket.Kent recorded their third win of the Clydesdale Bank 40 campaign in emphatic style with an eight-wicket drubbing of Leicestershire with more than 13 overs in hand. Having won the toss and elected to bat, Leicestershire made a stunning start to reach 41 without loss after four overs, only to be dismissed for 148 in 30.1 overs.Tom Smith produced a sparkling all-round performance and Steven Croft weighed in with a career-best 93 not out to help Lancashire seal an eight-wicket victory over Glamorgan at Colwyn Bay. Smith followed up figures of three for 49 with a fine half-century as Lancashire registered their fourth win in the tournament by chasing down 212 to win. Croft’s effort from 90 balls hastened Lancashire’s victory charge as they won with 16 balls to spare.Opening batsmen Michael Lumb and Jimmy Adams led Hampshire to a resounding six-wicket win over Durham at the Rose Bowl with 31 balls to spare. Lumb signalled his return to form after a poor first half to the season by making 75, while Adams top-scored with 86. Chasing Durham’s 205 for 8 from their 40 overs, a total which never looked like being enough, Hampshire got home in the 35th over.A century from Jacques Rudolph set Yorkshire on their way to an eight-run victory over Derbyshire at Chesterfield to keep them top of Group B in the Clydesdale Bank 40. The South African scored 105, sharing a second-wicket stand of 144 in 22 overs with Adam Lyth, who made 91, as Yorkshire made 276 for 6 from their 40 overs. Chesney Hughes hit 54 and Wayne Madsen 65 from 57 balls but, despite a late charge from Graham Wagg (27) in his first game since late April, the Falcons came up short on 268 for 8.Powerful half-centuries from David Hussey and Chris Read set Nottinghamshire on their way to a comfortable 75-run victory over Scotland . After coming together in the 24th over with the score at 116 for 4, the pair put on 89 for the fifth wicket with Hussey smashing 80 from 67 balls, including two sixes and six fours, before being caught on the midwicket boundary. Read also hit two maximums and six boundaries in his 69 not out from 50 balls as the hosts finished on 260 for 5, having added 115 in the last 10 overs.Somerset limped to their seventh Clydesdale Bank 40 win in seven games by beating the Unicorns by three wickets at Exmouth. Marcus Trescothick’s side shook off the loss of their skipper to a second ball duck to chase down their target of 167 with two overs to spare. A second-wicket stand of 67 in 14 overs between Nick Compton (64) and Craig Kieswetter (30) broke the back of the semi-professional team’s resistance. The result was rarely in doubt after the Unicorns made just 166 for 9.

Bangladesh’s chances of making the semis took a big hit after they faltered with both bat and ball

Srinidhi Ramanujam10-Oct-2024Karishma Ramharack’s four-wicket haul and Hayley Matthews’ quickfire 34 helped West Indies coast to an important eight-wicket victory against Bangladesh, in Sharjah. Having chased down the target of 104 in 12.5 overs, West Indies, with their second win in three matches, moved to top of Group B. Three teams from this group are now in contention for the two semi-final spots with South Africa and England also on four points, but the latter have played only two matches.Bangladesh succumbed to their second straight defeat in three matches and their chances of advancing to the knockouts took a big hit. Batting once again hurt Bangladesh as they lost six wickets for 27 runs after they were sent in to bat.

Ramharack rips through Bangladesh

West Indies used as many as seven bowlers but it was Ramharack who stood out by taking a wicket each in her four overs across different phases of the game. The offspinner struck with her very first delivery when opener Shathi Rani tried to sweep and missed. Shemaine Campbelle took the bails off in a flash to effect a stumping. In her second over, the last one in the powerplay, Dilara Akter moved across to sweep but missed, only to expose her middle stump and be bowled. When Ramharack came out to bowl in the 13th over, she mixed her lines well but kept the ball outside off. She had Sobhana Mostary stumped by making her come down the track to an outside offstump delivery. That ended the 40-run third-wicket stand for Bangladesh.Stafanie Taylor and Hayley Matthews added 52 for the opening wicket•ICC/Getty Images

Just when Nigar Sultana and Ritu Moni were looking to stitch a stand during the death overs, Ramaharack came back and knocked Moni out. Chinelle Henry took an excellent running catch after the batter came down and miscued a lofted shot to deep midwicket. Ramharack finished with 4 for 17.

Sultana’s slowdown

Bangladesh showed positive intent with the bat early on, with the openers charging down as early as the second over to go aerial. Nigar started briskly after the openers fell in the powerplay. She particularly took legspinner Afy Fletcher on and smacked three fours off her second over and moved to 20 off 17 balls. However, once Mostary fell in the 13th over and Fletcher struck twice in the 15th, Nigar, who was on 27 off 27, slowed down despite West Indies’ sloppy fielding. Her next 17 deliveries fetched just 12 runs and eventually, she fell to Matthews in the final over attempting a big heave towards deep midwicket.

Matthews steers WI’s chase

Bangladesh struggled to pitch the ball up and got punished as they erred on the shorter side. It allowed the West Indies batters to rock back and play their shots. Matthews, in particular, pounced on this opportunity in the powerplay and blunted the Bangladesh attack. After being on a run-a-ball seven, Matthews lined up the left-arm spin of Nahida Akter with a punch off the backfoot, piercing the gap between cover and extra cover. Two balls later, Nahida bowled short again and received the same treatment.Legspinner Fahima Khatun, after having given away just four runs off her first over, bowled short on off stump in the fifth over and Matthews stayed back and punched uppishly to find her third boundary on the off side. Marufa Akter overpitched the last ball of the powerplay, which Matthews drove through cover to bring up her sixth boundary. But she was bowled by a nip-backer from the fast bowler in the eighth over for a 22-ball 34. At the end of Marufa’s over though, West Indies needed just 49 off 72 balls which was taken care of by Stafanie Taylor – before she limped off retired hurt – and Deandra Dottin, who smashed an unbeaten 19 off just seven balls.

He has resigned after just four months into his stint citing personal reasons

Danyal Rasool10-Aug-2023Four months after he was appointed head coach of the Pakistan women’s side for the second time, Mark Coles has resigned with immediate effect citing personal reasons. Coles had earlier served as the head coach of the team from 2017 to 2019.The resignation comes at a less-than-ideal team for the women’s side, who take on South Africa in a high-profile series at home that begins on September 1 in Karachi. The sides play three T20Is and three ODIs, with all six games taking place in Karachi. The PCB said a new coach will be announced “in due course” though there is no guarantee a permanent replacement will be in place by the time that series begins.Pakistan have a busy upcoming schedule, playing 15 ODIs and 17 T20Is in the upcoming year. Aside from South Africa, they host the West Indies at home, and travel to Bangladesh, New Zealand and England.It is understood the resignation came as something of a surprise to the PCB, and Coles has not made any public comment on the matter. When he was announced as Pakistan’s head coach alongside Nida Dar as the new captain, he said he was “excited to lead the team in the upcoming events”.”It has been a privilege to work with such a talented group of players and I look forward to the exciting times ahead as we aim to improve our previous performances and achievements,” Coles had said at the time. “We have a lot of potential in the team, and I look forward to helping the players give their best and achieve success on the international stage.”In the end, he would oversee no games during this second stint. He did enjoy a relatively successful time on the pitch when he was first appointed in 2017. Pakistan won nearly half of their ODIs – 7 in 16 – including a famous come-from-behind series win against West Indies. They also won 15 of 32 T20Is before Coles quit because of “family commitments”.The PCB said in a statement that it would “like to extend its gratitude to Mark Coles for his brief stint with the women’s side and wishes him well in his future endeavors.”