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Batting allrounder Dhananjaya de Silva, uncapped left-arm spinner Malinda Pushpakumara, and seamer Nuwan Pradeep returned to Sri Lanka’s squad for the first Test against India, in Galle

Andrew Fidel Fernando23-Jul-20171:18

‘SL looking for Herath’s long-term replacement’

Sri Lanka squad for first Test

Rangana Herath (capt), Upul Tharanga, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Asela Gunaratne, Niroshan Dickwella, Dhananjaya de Silva, Danushka Gunathilaka, Dilruwan Perera, Suranga Lakmal, Lahiru Kumara, Vishwa Fernando, Malinda Pushpakumara, Nuwan Pradeep

Batting allrounder Dhananjaya de Silva, uncapped left-arm spinner Malinda Pushpakumara, and seamer Nuwan Pradeep returned to Sri Lanka’s squad for the first Test against India, in Galle. De Silva, who had been left out of the squad for the one-off Test against Zimbabwe, effectively takes Dinesh Chandimal’s place in the 15-man squad, while Pushpakumara displaces left-arm wristspinner Lakshan Sandakan, and Pradeep pushes out Dushmantha Chameera.Though Pushpakumara, 30, has not played any international cricket yet, he has for long been prolific at the first-class level, where he has 558 first-class wickets at an average of 19.85, and is routinely among the top three wicket-takers in the Premier League Tournament. In the most recent season, Pushpakumara’s 77 wickets at 13.79 put him 20 wickets clear of the second-highest wicket-taker. That he has not already played for Sri Lanka is largely due to the fact that Rangana Herath is the team’s incumbent left-arm orthodox spinner.De Silva’s return to the squad was somewhat expected, following the news that Chandimal would be unavailable for the first Test owing to his hospitalisation for pneumonia on Friday. Though De Silva got a duck against India in the two-day practice match in Colombo, he had impressed in Tests in 2016, when he had highly successful series against Australia and Zimbabwe. His competition for the middle-order spot vacated by Chandimal comes in the form of Danushka Gunathilaka, who is an opener by trade, but has been in excellent form over the past two months, top-scoring in the recent ODI series against Zimbabwe, then hitting a brisk 74 against India in the two-dayer, before he was run out.A hamstring niggle had sidelined Pradeep for two weeks, but Sri Lanka had always hoped he would regain fitness before the India series. That it is Chameera he is replacing, however, is a slight surprise. Chameera’s pace had made him one of the more promising quicks in Sri Lanka’s battery, and he appeared to be making a steady comeback.Vishwa Fernando’s left-arm angle, and perhaps his wickets on Friday, may have swung the decision in his favour, however. He had made his Test debut at Galle against Australia last year, in a match that was so heavily dominated by Sri Lanka’s lead spinners that Fernando was only required to bowl two overs. Suranga Lakmal and Lahiru Kumara are the two other quicks in what is an especially pace-heavy squad.Herath has already been confirmed as captain for the Test that starts on Wednesday.

Victoria Sporting Club allrounder Suhrawadi Shuvo, who was struck on the ride side of his neck by a bouncer, on Saturday has returned home after being released from the hospital

Mohammad Isam19-Jun-2016Victoria Sporting Club allrounder Suhrawadi Shuvo, who was struck on the side of his neck by a bouncer on Saturday, has returned home after being released from the hospital.CT and MRI scans taken immediately after he was struck indicated there was no damage to his brain. Shuvo has been scheduled for further check-ups next week.With 17 wickets at an average of 29.52 and 208 runs at an average of 26, he has been one of Victoria SC’s key performers this season. The BCB doctors are confident he will recover from the neck injury soon, but have not cleared him to play Victoria SC’s remaining Dhaka Premier League matches on June 20 and 22.

Michael Klinger returned to English cricket with a bang, smashing a career-best T20 score of 126 not out to lead Gloucestershire to a 34-run NatWest Blast victory over Essex at Bristol.

ECB/PA24-May-2015
ScorecardMichael Klinger made Gloucestershire’s highest T20 score•Getty Images

Michael Klinger returned to English cricket with a bang, smashing a career-best T20 score of 126 not out to lead Gloucestershire to a 34-run NatWest Blast victory over Essex at Bristol.The 34-year-old Australian profited from being dropped three times to hammer eight sixes and seven fours in a sensational 68-ball innings that enabled the hosts to run up 199 for 4 after losing the toss. Reece Topley escaped the carnage to claim 2 for 28.In reply, Essex were soon 10 for 2. Tom Westley hit 67 off 39 balls to give them an outside chance and Ryan ten Doeschate contributed 54, but in the end they were bowled out for 165 in 18.4 overs as Tom Smith returned 5 for 39, including a late hat-trick.The visitors only had themselves to blame for allowing Klinger, who only arrived back from Australia on Thursday morning after a rare break from cricket, to run riot after Hamish Marshall’s 16-ball innings of 29 had helped Gloucestershire to 58 for 1 by the end of the six overs of Powerplay.The home skipper was dropped on 44 by Ryan ten Doeschate at mid-off and on 46 by Graham Napier at long-on from successive Topley deliveries in the 12th over. And he was spilled again by ten Doeschate at square-leg off the same bowler when on 52. Having reached his half-century off 40 balls, Klinger required only a further 21 to reach three figures and then put Napier to the sword in the final over with his final four sixes as 26 runs were added to an already impressive total.Napier ended up conceding 62 from his four overs as Klinger recorded the highest ever T20 score by a Gloucestershire player. His straight hitting was particularly impressive, but he also survived a straightforward run-out chance on what was definitely his day.”I haven’t slept that well since returning from Australia on Thursday and I needed treatment for cramp at the end after running so many twos, so I’m delighted, but pretty tired,” Gloucestershire centurion Michael Klinger said. “Sometimes you need a bit a luck and I had some today. I still have ambitions to play for Australia so I’ll be doing all I can to keep piling on the runs over here this summer.”It was a great pitch and I can’t praise our groundstaff too highly. For the team it was a great win over a side who on paper are one of the strongest in the competition. I have returned to find a lot of belief in our dressing room.”The outcome looked beyond doubt when David Payne removed Mark Pettini and Jesse Ryder in the second over of the Essex reply. Westley and Ravi Bopara then added 62 in 6.5 overs before the latter perished to a catch at long-off. Westley eased to an impressive 31-ball half-century, with eight fours, but 112 were still needed from the final ten overs.Any chance the visitors retained disappeared in the 14th over, bowled by left-arm spinner Smith. First Westley drove a catch to extra cover, having hit nine fours and a six, and he was quickly followed by Kishen Valani, superbly caught by Marshall running around at long-off and just avoiding the boundary rope. The frustrated ten Doeschate responded with the biggest six of the match off Payne, but it was too little too late as James Foster was caught reverse sweeping Jack Taylor with the required run-rate up around 14 an over.James Fuller had to be withdrawn from the Gloucestershire attack in an erratic 17th over, which featured two no-balled beamers and ended up costing the home side 24. But, despite ten Doeschate reaching a 31-ball half-century, with five fours and two sixes, before becoming the second of Smith’s hat-trick victims in the 18th over, it wasn’t enough for Essex. Smith also sent back Napier and David Masters, stumped to complete the hat-trick, as the Essex tail folded quickly.Essex skipper Ryan ten Doeschate said: “We are all very disappointed and to be frank it is our fielding display that cost us today. t is something that has been creeping up on us for a while. You can’t give chances to a class batsman like Klinger because he will always make you pay.”

ESPNcricinfo’s preview of the first Test between Australia and South Africa in Brisbane

Daniel Brettig08-Nov-2012

Match facts

November 9-13, the Gabba
Start time 1000 (0000 GMT)

Big Picture

Can AB de Villiers prove his batting powers will be unaffected by a longer term role as wicketkeeper?•Getty Images

So Australia has a dossier on the South Africa team. So what? One of the trends of 21st century international cricket is that battles between nations now contain so few elements of the unknown. It should not be forgotten that these two sides played each other over a pair of uproarious Test matches only a year ago in Cape Town and Johannesburg, the series shared 1-1. Between then and now Australian and South African players have shared dressing rooms at the IPL and the Champions League, opposed each other again at the World Twenty20 and tried to prepare as best they can for a Test series with only one warm-up fixture in most cases.But the lack of secrets to be divulged ahead of the first Test does not detract from the prospect of another meeting between two teams to have produced some of the most memorable Test encounters of recent times. South Africa’s first visit to the Gabba in 49 years offers the prospect of plenty that is hair-raising, mainly for batsmen up against six of the world’s best fast bowlers, but spectators too. Graeme Smith’s side is settled and well grooved, their XI set in near enough to stone from the moment their plane touched down in Sydney last week. Smith himself is fired by the desire to ensure South Africa’s hold on the ICC’s top spot is not as fleeting this time around as it had been in 2009.Australia, meanwhile, seek further proof of their rejuvenation. The Test team has not played together since April, and they may be forgiven for blinking just as much as the rest of the world at the fact they have the chance to unseat South Africa from their perch atop the rankings. The fact they have a chance of doing so is the best indicator of how far the team has developed under Michael Clarke’s captaincy since the 2011 tour of Sri Lanka, as over that period the team has won three series, drawn two and shown the importance of incisive bowling to cover for a top six that on paper cannot match South Africa’s. Line these two sides up and the visitors look to have a clear advantage. But contests between these teams have never been decided that way.

Form guide

(Most recent first)
Australia WDWWW
South Africa WDWDW

In the spotlight

Called on to take the gloves in unfortunate circumstances in England, AB de Villiers’ back grew stiffer with each match, and his batting contributions were handy rather than dominant. He has had more time to rest and prepare for taking the gloves in this series, and will be eager to prove that as wicketkeeper he can still make the kinds of scores that marked him as one of the world’s best and most dangerous batsmen.David Warner has escaped much of the scrutiny attached to his opening partner Ed Cowan, but with only one half century in his past eight innings needs to prove his hyper aggressive methods can work consistently at Test level. West Indies and England both did well against Warner earlier this year by pursuing a rigid line and length angled across him towards the slips, while the opener’s tendency to get involved in verbal confrontations will also have been noted by South Africa. Shane Watson’s injury leaves Warner the most senior batsman in the Australian top three.

Team news

Ben Hilfenhaus, Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon are duelling for two spots. Hilfenhaus led the attack with Peter Siddle last year but has only played one first-class match since April. Starc has been a dominant Twenty20 bowler but is still coming to grips with the red ball. Lyon has few wickets behind him entering the Test and forecast Gabba rain may keep the pitch fresh and the pace bowlers dangerous throughout. Ricky Ponting has shrugged off a hamstring niggle.Australia (possible): 1 Ed Cowan, 2 David Warner, 3 Rob Quiney, 4 Ricky Ponting, 5 Michael Clarke (capt), 6 Michael Hussey, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 Peter Siddle, 9 James Pattinson, 10 Ben Hilfenhaus/Mitchell Starc, 11 Nathan Lyon.South Africa’s team is settled, and likely to be unchanged from the XI that defeated England at Lord’s to take the series and top spot on the ICC’s rankings.South Africa (possible): 1 Graeme Smith (capt), 2 Alviro Petersen, 3 Hashim Amla, 4 Jacques Kallis, 5 AB de Villiers (wk), 6 Jacques Rudolph, 7 JP Duminy, 8 Vernon Philander, 9 Morne Morkel, 10 Dale Steyn, 11 Imran Tahir.

Pitch and conditions

The Gabba curator Kevin Mitchell jnr. has predicted a slightly drier surface than that prepared for last year’s Test against New Zealand, increasing the likelihood of a fifth day finish and the involvement of the spinners. However some cloud and rain is predicted over the next five days, and Clarke admitted on match eve he was now considering four quicks more seriously.

Stats and trivia

• South Africa will retain top spot on the ICC Test rankings with a drawn series. Australia will claim top spot from them with a series win
• This is South Africa’s first Test match at the Gabba since 1963
• Michael Clarke needs 55 runs to go past Neil Harvey, another fleet-footed batsman, on Australia’s all-time list of Test run scorers

Quotes

“We know how good South Africa is and respect them for it but we also know we can beat them. We are confident in our ability to beat anyone, anywhere, any time if we play at our best.”

“We have looked at areas that we can exploit within the Australian team as they would do with us. We feel that if we can put pressure on them in certain areas then we can make some plays in those big moments, that is ultimately what the Test series is going to boil down to.”

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Australia were inconvenienced more by rain than South Africa as they rampaged through the hosts in a truncated first ODI at Centurion, winning by 93 runs under Duckworth-Lewis calculations

The Report by Daniel Brettig19-Oct-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke added 102 for the second wicket on either side of the rain break•Getty Images

Australia were inconvenienced more by rain than South Africa as they rampaged through the hosts in a truncated first ODI in Centurion, winning by 93 runs under Duckworth-Lewis calculations.Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and Michael Hussey guided the tourists to 183 for 4 from 29 overs, setting a target of 223, before the debutant Pat Cummins and Mitchell Johnson shared six wickets to lead their team on a merry path in the field.The ball swung and bounced in greasy conditions, and in a significant portent for the matches to come, Johnson gained the kind of movement through the air that had helped make him so fearsome on Australia’s 2009 visit to South Africa.Mitchell Marsh, the other teenaged debutant, claimed a wicket in his first over. The spin of Xavier Doherty was also useful as the Proteas subsided, none passing 30 in a searching captaincy introduction for the interim leader Hashim Amla.Sent off by rain at 3.57pm local time when a promising 96 for 1 after 19 overs, Australia managed to collect another 87 runs in 10 overs when play finally resumed at 8.30pm.Ponting and Clarke resumed at the rapid pace the equation required, before Australia’s captain was unfortunately out when Ponting’s drive rebounded off Johan Botha’s fingers as Clarke was backing up. Hussey, though, scooted along with typical late-innings speed, and Marsh managed one boundary in his first innings.South Africa’s chase was immediately inconvenienced by the sight of Doug Bollinger and Johnson hooping the ball around. Bollinger swiftly accounted for Graeme Smith, given lbw to one that did not swing but may have been passing over the top of the stumps, and Johnson showed the disconcerting swerve he gained two years ago could be repeated this time around.Cummins replaced Johnson at first change, and while his first ball in ODIs was slapped impudently over cover for six by Amla, the 18-year-old was soon repeating the trick of his first two Twenty20 internationals by claiming multiple wickets in an over. Jacques Kallis dragged an expansive stroke onto his stumps, before JP Duminy was dismissed for the third time in as many innings by Cummins when he parried indeterminately to Clarke at second slip.Marsh had Amla caught neatly by Brad Haddin from a squirted drive in his first over, and Doherty struck twice via referrals. First he had David Miller caught at point after the umpires at first adjudged a bump ball, then Mark Boucher was lbw on review to a delivery that drifted towards leg stump and straightened enough to convince Hawk-Eye’s ball-tracker.Johnson added his name to the list of wicket-takers via Faf du Plessis’ desperate swing and an outfield catch, as Australia’s chief concern turned from South Africa’s batting to the skies above. Rain threatened to re-appear, but the final result was not in doubt from the moment the minimum 20 overs had been completed.Australia had been unable to consider Shaun Marsh and Shane Watson due to injury, and so handed limited-overs debuts to the allrounder Mitchell Marsh, a day before his 20th birthday and Cummins who had yet to take a list A wicket for his state.David Warner was joined at the top of the batting order by Ponting, an occasional opener down the years, and it was the younger man who swung into early action, gliding Lonwabo Tsotsobe’s first ball through point, then cracking a trio of boundaries from Dale Steyn, the last two via the generous avenues of a no ball and a free-hit.Next ball Steyn corrected, finding the ideal length and a hint of swing to beat Warner’s forward prod via the inside edge. This left Clarke and Ponting to set the course of the innings against bowlers they will see plenty of throughout the next month.Lights were employed inside 10 overs as the skies darkened, and Clarke and Ponting negotiated the odd awkward delivery by Morne Morkel while keeping the run-rate around five. Steyn swung the ball in his second spell but could not split the partnership before thunder, then rain, arrived.Returning to the pitch more than four hours later, Ponting and Clarke fired off a series of smart strokes before Clarke’s ill-luck, and Ponting went on until he sliced Steyn to backward point. Brad Haddin was sacrificed in the effort to lift the run-rate, before Hussey and Marsh pushed the total into dimensions that proved far too vast for South Africa.

Adam Voges’ unbeaten half-century moved Western Australia to a comfortable five-wicket victory as they took care of the struggling South Australia

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Oct-2010Western Australia 5 for 199 (Voges 81*) beat South Australia 198 (Manou 47*, Marsh 3-37) by 5 wickets

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAdam Voges was in charge for the Warriors•Getty Images

Adam Voges’ unbeaten half-century moved Western Australia to a comfortable five-wicket victory as they took care of the struggling South Australia in Adelaide. Voges guided the chase of the Redbacks’ 198 with a composed 81 off 93 balls as they reached the total in the 40th over.Western Australia took a 27-run lead after the first innings having reduced South Australia to 4 for 75 in 20 overs, and required only 97 in their second bat. Marcus North went for 32 after the break, but Voges, Luke Pomersbach (25) and Mitchell Marsh got them home.South Australia, who are bottom of the table, needed the late contribution of Graham Manou and his 48-run stand with Chris Duval (24) for the ninth wicket. Marsh, the medium pacer, picked up three wickets in five balls to leave the hosts at 8 for 138 and they did well to recover, with Manou finishing unbeaten on 47.Daniel Christian showed his power with 39 but too many of the locals only got starts. Michael Hogan was a handful again with 3 for 49 off 11 overs while the spinner Aaron Heal, who opened the bowling, picked up two wickets, including the early stumping of Michael Klinger.

MS Dhoni has said one of the reasons for the 29-run run defeat to Sri Lanka in Nagpur was because India tend to take Twenty20 internationals as a warm-up for the one-dayers to follow

Cricinfo staff09-Dec-2009MS Dhoni has said one of the reasons for the 29-run run defeat to Sri Lanka in Nagpur was because India tended to take Twenty20 internationals as a “warm-up for the one-dayers to follow”. India have now lost seven of their last ten Twenty20s and two of their three wins were against Bangladesh and Ireland.”I don’t think we were in the groove for a Twenty20 game and too often we treat it as a warm-up for the one-dayers to follow,” Dhoni said. “It’s probably the reason for our defeats in these games.”Another, and more significant, reason for Wednesday’s defeat was India’s terrible fielding. They dropped five chances – two off the Sri Lankan openers before they made a start – and frequently fumbled balls in the outfield. Yuvraj dropped Sanath Jayasuriya on 4, Ishant grassed Tillakaratne Dilshan on 13 and Kumar Sangakkara as well, Rohit Sharma let off Chamara Kapugedera on 14, and Pragyan Ojha failed to reach a tough chance given by Angelo Mathews in the final over after which the batsman hit two sixes.”The catching is a bit of concern,” Dhoni said. “We are not a brilliant fielding side, but we don’t drop too many catches. That also hurt us also to some extent.”Had India taken their chances, Sri Lanka would have struggled to reach 215. In the over after he was dropped, Jayasuriya hit Ashish Nehra for five consecutive boundaries and provided the acceleration after a slow start. The opening stand of 43 set the platform for Kumar Sangakkara to score 78 off just 37 deliveries. Kapugedera provided propulsion by scoring 47 off 20 while Mathews made 15 off four balls.”What really set us up was the two openers batting for six overs, even if they didn’t get a flying start,” Sangakkara said. “They really applied themselves and got those 40-odd runs and we could launch our innings from there. I’ve been in good form, but I’ve been getting out cheaply because I’ve never really applied myself. I thought it was about time I really did something to inspire the side.”Sangakkara also described Jayasuriya’s four-over spell during India’s chase as “magic”. Jayasuriya came on after India had raced to 88 in seven overs and brought down the scoring-rate dramatically. He conceded only 19 off his four overs and also took the wickets of MS Dhoni and Yusuf Pathan. Sri Lanka’s bowlers were also supported by far superior fielding effort and Sangakkara acknowledged as much.”I thought the fielding was outstanding, we were excellent in the first 16 overs and I thought we could have been a little more ruthless in the final four overs and finished the game off,” he said. “Overall, everyone played really hard and they showed a lot of hunger to win.”The second Twenty20 game is in Mohali on December 12.

The final has been allocated to Lahore, but will be played in Dubai if India make the title round

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Dec-2024Dubai has been confirmed as the venue for all matches of the Champions Trophy 2025 involving India, including one of the semi-finals and possibly the final, too, if India get there.The schedule, officially released by the ICC on Tuesday, specifies that “semi-final 1 will involve India if they qualify” and will be played in Dubai, and, similarly, “semi-final 2 will involve Pakistan if they qualify”. Also, Lahore has been finalised as the host city for the final, but “if India qualifies for the final it will be played in Dubai”. Both the semi-finals and the final will have reserve days, an ICC statement confirmed.As reported by ESPNcricinfo on Sunday, the decision to host India’s matches at the eight-team Champions Trophy away from Pakistan, the official host country, and in the UAE was finalised after Mohsin Naqvi, the PCB chairman, met with Sheikh Nahyan Al Mubarak in Pakistan. Sheikh Nahyan is a senior UAE minister and also the head of the Emirates Cricket Board.Related

• Fakhar Zaman aims for Champions Trophy comeback

• The resolution of the India-Pakistan CT standoff was a win? Not by a long shot

• Coach Walter after home whitewash: SA will 'shine through' in CT

• Champions Trophy: India vs Pakistan on February 23 in UAE

Naqvi, the PCB chairman, said, “We are pleased that an agreement has been reached based on the principles of equality and respect, showcasing the spirit of cooperation and collaboration that defines our sport.”Our heartfelt gratitude goes out to the ICC members who played a constructive role in helping us achieve a mutually beneficial solution. Their efforts have been invaluable in promoting the interests of international cricket.”The marquee Pakistan vs India match in the group stage will be played on February 23, a Sunday. The other two teams in that group are Bangladesh and New Zealand. India will face Bangladesh on February 20, and New Zealand on March 2.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Pakistan, the defending champions of the tournament, will start things off on February 19, against New Zealand in Karachi. Pakistan’s last league match, against Bangladesh, will be played in Rawalpindi on February 27.The second group has Afghanistan, Australia, England and South Africa. The matches for both groups – apart from the India games – will be played across Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi.The two semi-finals are scheduled for March 4 and March 5, and with both games being allocated reserve days, it’s not impossible that they end up taking place on the same day, though Dubai is usually dry at that time of the year.The hybrid model was finalised after the parties involved agreed that, in return, Pakistan’s matches at ICC events hosted by India till 2027 will also be at neutral venues. In all cases, knockout games such as the semi-final and the final will also be held at neutral venues.The agreement begins with the Champions Trophy, and will apply to the 2025 women’s ODI World Cup in India, and the 2026 men’s T20 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka. It will also apply to the 2028 women’s T20 World Cup, the first tournament of the next events cycle that has now been awarded to Pakistan.

The captain marked his return to international cricket with a crucial 78, as New Zealand made light work of a chase of 246

Mohammad Isam13-Oct-20231:36

Why is Lockie Ferguson’s form important for New Zealand?

Kane Williamson resumed international cricket by doing , scoring a precise 78 against Bangladesh. He shepherded New Zealand close to the eight-wicket win, but couldn’t quite see the chase through, as he left the field retired hurt in the 39th over. Daryl Mitchell got New Zealand home with 43 balls to spare, putting the seal on the team’s dominating start to this World Cup.Williamson missed seven months of competitive cricket due to a right knee injury he sustained during last season’s IPL, and his World Cup return was thought to be improbable at the time. Even when he was named in the New Zealand side as their captain, he was expected to miss the initial stages of the competition. But not only did he return sooner than expected, Williamson showed little drop in quality, as he went through the gears against Bangladesh.Related

• Bangladesh's middle-order bungle – many questions, no proper answers

• Boult knuckles down in a changing ODI landscape

• How Litton Das' ill-fated flick encapsulated Bangladesh's luckless night

• And just like that, Williamson is back, bringing the warm glow of the familiar

• Bangladesh hoping to bat with 'courage, open-mindedness and freedom'

Williamson struck ten fours and a six in his 108-ball 78, eventually going off with cramps. More than his innings, Williamson’s biggest contribution was to add to two sizable partnerships. First, he made 82 for the second wicket with Devon Conway after New Zealand lost an early wicket. Then alongside Mitchell, he added 108 runs for the third wicket. It made the chase an easy one for New Zealand as they won with plenty to spare.At the start of New Zealand’s 246-run chase, Bangladesh gave their fans some hope when Mustafizur Rahman removed the high-flying Rachin Ravindra, opening for the first time in ODIs, in the third over. Mustafizur produced a second chance shortly afterwards when Conway, batting on 4, drove away from his body, only for Mehidy Hasan Miraz to drop the chance at point. It was a difficult diving chance, but that one sticking could have charged up Bangladesh.Soon after the reprieve, Conway struck Shoriful Islam for two fours to break free. Williamson then took his turn on Shoriful, cracking him over point and through point and cover in the 10th over. Then, it was Taskin who went for two fours in the 13th over, before he dropped Williamson at short midwicket when the New Zealand captain was on 27.Shakib, who suffered that drop, broke the second-wicket stand when he trapped Conway lbw for 45 off 59 balls. Conway’s attempted reverse sweep went awry as he missed the shot, hitting his back leg. The Conway wicket however did little to help the Bangladesh cause as the next batter, Mitchell, immediately picked up the pace.Daryl Mitchell plays a reverse sweep during his half-century•R. Satish Babu / AFP / Getty

He opened his account with a six off Shakib, before Williamson lifted his opposite number over long-on for his first six. Williamson continued to find the odd boundary for the next ten overs, hitting Shakib and Mehidy for four more boundaries before Mitchell got back into action with a stinging pull off Taskin, followed by two straight sixes off Shakib and Taskin.Even after Williamson called off his innings in the 39th over, Mitchell went after the Bangladesh bowling till the chase was completed in the 43rd over. Mitchell smashed six fours and four sixes in his unbeaten 67-ball 89.Earlier, when Williamson put Bangladesh to bat first, it took them little time to fall into their familiar top-order slide. Litton Das clipped the first ball of the innings, from Trent Boult, right into Matt Henry’s lap at fine-leg. It was a well-timed shot that he met after coming down the track but he tried it on a difficult angle with the bat. Litton became only the second Bangladeshi opener to fall in the first ball of a World Cup match, the previous being Hannan Sarkar against Sri Lanka’s Chaminda Vaas in 2003.Tanzid Hasan produced four boundaries in a quick recovery partnership with Mehidy, but the rookie left-hander once again fell on 16. It was a tame dismissal when Tanzid clipped a ball to short square-leg in the eighth over.A third soft dismissal followed in the 12th over when Mehidy pulled Lockie Ferguson into fine-leg’s lap for 30. He struck three superb cover drives in his 46-ball stay but once again, Bangladesh sent him to a batting position which usually takes a bit of time to getting used to.New Zealand reduced Bangladesh to 56 for 4 in the next over when part-timer Glenn Philips had the in-form Najmul Hossain Shanto hit to midwicket. Conway took a tumbling catch but Bangladesh regrouped through their most experienced pair.Mahmudullah gave the ball a good bash towards the end of Bangladesh’s innings•Associated Press

Shakib and Mushfiqur added 96 runs in almost even time by pressing back at the New Zealand side. Mushfiqur wasted little time by hammering Philips with his favoured slog sweep for a six. Two more Mushfiqur fours later, Shakib pulled Henry before smashing Mitchell Santner for a straight four. Mushfiqur hit Ferguson for his second six, over third man, as Bangladesh looked to be on the road to recovery.Shortly after Mushfiqur reached his fifty though, Shakib cramped up. After taking a bit of medical attention, the Bangladesh captain took off his helmet as he smashed Ravindra for a straight four and a six over midwicket. He added another six off Ferguson but he was out next ball, again trying to slog the fast bowler.Mushfiqur followed him back shortly afterwards, though the Henry delivery that bowled him kept really low. It was still a valiant knock given that he had walked in with the task of reviving Bangladesh’s innings.Tohwid Hridoy, now batting out of position at No 7, couldn’t kick on so it was left to Mahmudullah, batting at No 8 for the first time in 13 years, to ensure a decent finish. He ensured Bangladesh batted out the 50 overs, himself remaining unbeaten on 41, but it was still a sub-par team score.

World Cup-winning captain to call time on era-defining seven-and-a-half-year reign

Matt Roller27-Jun-2022Eoin Morgan is expected to step down as England’s white-ball captain and retire from international cricket on Tuesday after seven-and-a-half years in charge.Morgan was appointed in 2014 and has spearheaded England’s revolution in limited-overs cricket, transforming the one-day sides and leading them to their first World Cup in 2019, but his form and fitness have left him considering his future.He has been unable to play games on back-to-back days this year due to regular muscle injuries in his right leg, and missed Wednesday’s third ODI against the Netherlands with a “groin niggle” after consecutive ducks in the first two games of the series.The reported on Sunday night that Morgan was considering his future and he looks set to announce his international retirement. Jos Buttler, who has regularly deputised as captain, is expected to replace him.”He obviously feels like he’s done with international cricket,” Moeen Ali told the BBC’s Test Match Special, “and the team for him still comes first, which just shows how unselfish he is. He’s done a remarkable job and he’s the best we’ve ever had, for sure.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“It is and it isn’t [a surprise] at the same time. It is because of the World Cup not being too far away at the end of the summer and he for us is our perfect leader. He’s done an amazing job, he knows what it takes to win. It’s a shame, it’s strange to comprehend the side without him at the moment. Obviously things move on and you kind of get used to it, but it is sad.”And I’m not surprised at the same time because he’s a very selfless person and he’s thinking about the team more than anything. We’ve been so strong over the years and he probably himself feels like his time is done and he’s given enough time for Jos or whoever the captain is going to be to embed his way.”Morgan enjoyed some of the best form of his career in 2019 and 2020 but his returns have nose-dived in the last 18 months. He has scored a single half-century in 48 innings across domestic and international white-ball cricket since the start of 2021 and failed to score a run in two innings against the Netherlands.It remains to be seen whether Morgan will remain involved with the set-up in some capacity under Matthew Mott, the new white-ball head coach, and whether he will retire from all cricket or continue to play in franchise leagues.Moeen has also deputised for Morgan on occasion, but threw his support behind Buttler. “The great thing is he has captained before,” he said. “Obviously when Morgs doesn’t play, Jos captains when he’s playing and he’s got extreme experience now. He’s been around the world playing franchise cricket and he’s been part of this whole journey. He knows what it takes and he’s tactically fantastic.”Reacting to the news ahead of the final day’s play of the Headingley Test, Nasser Hussain, the former England captain, told Sky Sports:
“Eoin Morgan has been the most influential white-ball cricketer England have ever had. He’s been our best white-ball captain, and he has been a fantastic player. And he gave us the best moment in English white-ball cricket that we’ve ever had, at Lord’s. It was an incredible day, an incredible finale, and a lot of it was down to the skipper.”