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Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) players Hayley Jensen and Corinne Hall have been banned for six months each for betting on matches as Cricket Australia continues its crackdown on any betting involvement from contracted players.Jensen and Hall both voluntarily accepted identical sanctions imposed by Cricket Australia – a two-year ban of which 18 months was suspended – after admitting the charges of betting on men’s international games. South Australia Futures League player Joel Logan also received a suspended ban after he also breached Cricket Australia’s Anti-Corruption Code.Jensen, who has played international cricket for New Zealand and represented Victoria and Melbourne Stars in the 2015-16 Australian domestic season, admitted the charge of placing one bet on the result of the Brisbane Test between Australia and New Zealand in November.Hall, who played for Hobart Hurricanes in the WBBL, admitted the charge of placing two bets relating to two matches in the Matador Cup competition last summer.Logan admitted the charge of placing two bets relating to the World T20 earlier this year.The punishments for Hall and Jensen prevent them from “participating in any form of cricket or cricket-related event” until October 21. Unlike Hall and Jensen, Logan was not on a full state contract and was contracted on a match-by-match basis for the Futures League, which was taken into account in determining his lesser punishment.The bans were not the first to concern Australian cricketers in the past year: ACT and Sydney Sixers legspinner Angela Reakes was handed a suspended sentence last December for betting on the 2015 World Cup final, and Western Australia’s Piepa Cleary was banned in February after betting on the Adelaide Test between Australia and New Zealand last November.Cricket Australia’s Head of Integrity, Iain Roy, said: “We take a proactive, zero-tolerance approach to maintaining the integrity of our sport and this includes any form of betting on cricket globally.”Players in Australia are required to complete an anti-corruption education session before they can compete in any competition, including all players in our Underage National Championships. We continually remind players that betting on any form of cricket is strictly prohibited, and this is written into our Anti-Corruption Code.”These players have accepted the seriousness of their errors and have voluntarily accepted their sanctions. This serves as a timely reminder to all players in cricket that the integrity of our game is a high priority and we won’t accept this being compromised.”

With the PCB looking to raise funds in the absence of international cricket in the country and the deadlock with the BCCI in terms of bilateral series, chairman Shaharyar Khan has suggested that the Pakistan board should receive a ‘higher percentage of the income’ from matches against India at ICC events. According to a paper circulated among the PCB’s directors – accessed by ESPNcricinfo – Khan presented the suggestion while making a strong case for a support system for the board at the recent ICC annual conference in Edinburgh.He also made Pakistan-specific points during the meeting, including a request that the ICC compensate Pakistan for having to arrange home fixtures outside the country.”Pakistan continues to play India in ICC events. The interest and finances that these generate are unparalleled. Tickets for the World Cup matches in Adelaide and Calcutta sold out quicker than other major sporting events – Wimbledon, the Olympics being two examples,” the paper stated. “The financial income in ICC championships benefits enormously from India – Pakistan clashes. Currently, all members benefit from the windfall from these matches. [The] Chairman proposed that Pakistan should be given a higher percentage of this income.”Barring Zimbabwe’s limited-overs tour in May 2015, Pakistan has not hosted an international game since the attack on Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore in 2009. The UAE has subsequently become their new base. However, the paper says, the extra cost that the PCB has borne to host its cricket in the UAE has placed a huge financial burden on Pakistan cricket and is directly hampering the development of the game in the country.During the isolation, the development phase was put on hold in Pakistan and regional academies were gradually closed due to lack of funds. The project has been revived partially under Mudassar Nazar, who was recently appointed director of Pakistan’s national cricket academy.The lack of bilateral series, however, has been a major concern for the PCB at every level, including Under-19s, A team tours and the women’s team. Pakistani teams can tour foreign countries but the cost of hosting matches in the UAE makes it difficult for the PCB to organise reciprocal home series. The report also reflected on how the isolation has upset Pakistan’s capacities in other areas, as curators and umpires are unwilling to come to the country.”Pakistan is the only country that plays its home matches in a third country,” the paper said. “This has placed a huge financial burden on Pakistan cricket. This includes having to play host in one of the most expensive destinations in the world. Dubai, for example, was recently ranked as the most expensive holiday destination. To host two teams – Pakistan and the opposition, scorers, umpires, other officials – in the UAE is prohibitively expensive. In addition, the hiring of grounds is a further drain. Little is recouped through gate receipts. Therefore, every time we play at home it is a further drain on resources.”Pakistan is also suffering cricket-wise. Many of the national teams have never played a match at home against international teams. These cricketers have been denied the opportunity to benefit from home crowds. At the same time the cricketing public is starved of cricket at home – when Zimbabwe toured all five matches [two T20Is, three ODIs] were sold out in minutes.”The political situation between India and Pakistan has also had an impact. The BCCI had signed a Memorandum of Understanding to play six series with Pakistan between 2015 and 2023, with the first to be hosted by the PCB in the UAE in December. As has often happened in the past, the strained political relationship put the series in doubt. The last full series between the countries, including Tests and ODIs, was in 2007 when Pakistan toured India. Since then Pakistan have played only one limited-overs series in India, in December 2012, and the teams have mostly met in multi-team competitions and ICC events. India’s refusal to play has cost the PCB over $80 million in terms of broadcasting and other commercial deals.”This needs to be further put in perspective when we remember that India has refused to play Pakistan since 2006,” the paper stated. “Therefore, the principal source of income has been cut off for a decade. Pakistan, in the meantime, has twice been to India since 2006 without reciprocation and the 2014 MoU has not been fulfilled as the Indian government has yet to lift the embargo on cricketing relations.”

Legspinner Ish Sodhi and batsman Colin Munro have returned to New Zealand’s roster of centrally-contracted players for 2016-17, the first season after the retirement of Brendon McCullum.Alongside his brother Nathan McCullum, Brendon retired from all forms of international cricket last season, while Grant Elliott dropped off the contract list, having retired from ODIs in April. He now plays only Twenty20 internationals.Sodhi and Munro were joined by first-timers Henry Nicholls, the left-hand batsman, and George Worker, the allrounder, as inclusions in a list that has been expanded from 20 to 21 this year. Having made their international debuts over the past 12 months, Nicholls and Worker are now formally part of the international squad.”We’ve built a strong group of core players over the past couple of years and that’s been a key factor to the consistency of the team’s performance,” Gavin Larsen, the selector, said.”When we’ve brought new players into the group, we’ve been really happy with how they’ve adapted and performed on the international stage. Henry and George have made bright starts to their careers and we look forward to watching their ongoing development.”After missing out last year, Ish and Colin have both worked extremely hard on their game, as we saw with their performances for us in the shorter formats this summer. They thoroughly deserve their contracts. It’s also exciting to see Ish make his way back into the Test squad for the upcoming series in Africa.”New Zealand’s cricketers are ranked across each format. Test matches gain twice the weighting of ODIs and T20s.Contracted players for 2016-17: Corey Anderson, Trent Boult, Doug Bracewell, Mark Craig, Martin Guptill, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Mitchell McClenaghan, Adam Milne, Colin Munro, James Neesham, Henry Nicholls, Luke Ronchi, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner, BJ Watling, Kane Williamson, George Worker

A desire to ensure the continued relevance of international cricket – and especially Test cricket – is at the heart of the ECB’s decision to introduce a points system to ascertain the winners of international series this summer.This summer, in a trial announced by the ECB, points will be awarded for games in each format against the tourists, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. The winner of each Super Series, as the ECB is calling it, will be the side which accumulates the most points from the three formats combined.

Bangladesh voice pink-ball concerns

Nizamuddin Chowdhury, the chief executive of the Bangladesh Cricket Board, has given a cautious response to the ECB’s proposal that England’s tour this winter should include a day/night Test.
With the Test series expected to take place in October, towards the start of their domestic season, Bangladesh’s players are understood to have voiced their concerns about gaining sufficient experience of the pink ball.
“We have taken the ECB’s proposal of the day-night Test very seriously but we also have to consider our players’ experience of playing under lights,” Chowdhury told ESPNcricinfo.
“There hasn’t been any further discussion on this matter recently. We will have to make sure we give the players enough time to get used to playing this format under lights before we can take a decision.”

Adopting an idea first used in the women’s Ashes in 2013, four points will be awarded for a Test win and two for a draw. Two points will be awarded for victory in white-ball cricket, with one awarded in case of a tie.Although there is not, as yet, a trophy for the winners and prize money amounts to just £25,000 for each Super Series – not much in today’s sporting terms when split between a couple of dozen squad members – the ECB hope the initiative will encourage more interest and coverage of the sport.”We know that Test cricket is well supported in this country,” Andrew Strauss, the director of England cricket, said. “We know that every English player takes the format incredibly seriously and I can’t see that changing. But we also know that Test cricket is being challenged around the world and I certainly feel a responsibility – I think everyone involved in the game should feel a responsibility – to make sure it remains relevant.”The rationale is that the game of cricket is evolving unbelievably quickly. We feel responsibility to ensure the international game develops and evolves and, central to that, is context and relevance for every game of cricket. We believe the Super Series will provide that context and relevance by connecting the formats and ensuring that every game counts for something more than just itself.”The advantages of this are that, first of all, there is that context and, secondly, fans of a certain format will hopefully feel more connected to the other formats. Also our players in very different and quite separate teams will feel more connected to each other so two separate white-ball and red-ball teams will be connected by something greater than their own immediate interests.”Strauss admits that this summer will, in effect, be a trial period for the idea. He has not, as yet, spoken to the cricket boards in Bangladesh or India about the possibility of utilising the format for this winter’s tours.But the ECB have spoken to the Bangladesh board about the possibility of playing one Test in this October’s series as a day-night match. Agreement has yet to be reached though it appears that, if it were to happen, it would be the second Test of the series. Bangladesh time is six hours ahead of GMT, which might allow viewers in the UK to enjoy a session or two of cricket on TV after work or school and before bed.”I’m a big supporter of the concept of day-night Test cricket,” he said. “I think anyone who saw that game in Adelaide between Australia and New Zealand can see the great benefits if it is done properly. There seems to me a far greater will around the world to play day-night Test cricket and generally we are very supportive of that, as long as we ensure we can prepare properly for any series we play.”Strauss also supports, in theory, promotion and relegation in international cricket and the introduction of a World Test Championship. He admits though that, in both cases, the devil is in the detail.”I think the idea behind the World Test Championship is a very sound idea,” he said. “And it should provide more context to every game you play.”I’m a supporter of that [promotion and relegation]. I’m a supporter of having high quality, meaningful cricket. And any way we can move towards that is a good thing. But like all these things, it’s all about detail.”We need to evolve and innovate. Anyone out there who doesn’t see the need for international cricket to keep moving forwards really does have his head stuck in the sand. The most important thing from my point of view is the ECB and the England team are at the forefront of these innovations rather than lagging behind everyone else. I think that hopefully will ensure that the game continues to grow in this country.”Andrew Strauss, pictured with England assistant coach Paul Farbrace, is in favour of innovation•Getty Images

It might be argued that the introduction of a Super Series will further dilute the importance of Test cricket. Certainly there will be concern if the idea is rolled out to include the Ashes.But the Ashes is, in many ways, the aberration. It is the only series that is all but guaranteed to sell out wherever it is staged in England or Wales (Tests against other nations sell well in London but less well elsewhere, though Trent Bridge fares pretty well) and it is, perhaps, the only series that does not require the added context that the Super Series may offer.Strauss was at pains to reassure spectators – and sponsors – that the Super Series idea is not designed to detract from the stand-alone series in each formats, but designed to bring added exposure to them.”This doesn’t replace any of the individual series awards this summer,” he explained. “So there will still be a Test series victor, one-day series and the T20 match as well. But it sits on top of that, wraps around it and creates something bigger to aim for.”We are quite happy for this to grow organically, we are not pushing it massively. We want people to understand that greater relevance through the course of the summer and it is something that resonates with people as the summer goes on.”If you look at the last two series we played, against South Africa we would have lost the Super Series in the final T20,” Strauss said. “And against Pakistan in the UAE we would have won the Super Series in the Super Over in the final game of the T20 competition. So those are two good examples of it working well. Not every series is going to go down to the last ball of the last game, but hopefully it will provide more relevance.”We have nothing to lose by doing this. We still have all the individual series but then something that wraps around the top of it. We’ll see what the ICC comes up with. I know they are taking this very seriously.”Will it work? Who knows. If not, it can be abandoned without any harm having been done. But it is not hard to envisage a situation where late-season limited-overs games – which do not always sell brilliantly – could win more coverage due to the initiative.It is also intriguing that Strauss, a man who took office a year ago with a reputation as a somewhat conservative character, has introduced this and the North-South limited-overs competition in domestic cricket within a week or so of one another. He clearly has the will to embrace more innovations.Few of these measures will, on their own, help cricket reach a new audience – or re-engage with a lapsed one – but, in conjunction with one another, they may help. Strauss, and the ECB, deserve credit for trying.

They were locked 8-8 in T20Is in the decade leading up to this match, and all signs pointed to the first close contest of this Asia Cup after it kicked off with four mismatches. It was a bit of an anticlimax in the end, however, with Sri Lanka brushing Bangladesh aside by six wickets, with 32 balls remaining.Given the high stakes of this group-of-death contest, Sri Lanka got everything they wanted from it: two points and a massive net-run-rate boost. Bangladesh, who had already copped criticism for taking 17.4 overs to chase down 144 against Hong Kong, now face an uphill task to qualify for the Super Four.Sri Lanka dominated the match from its extraordinary start – Nuwan Thushara and Dushmantha Chameera bowled back-to-back wicket maidens with the new ball – to its breezy finish, with Bangladesh only really competing during an unbroken sixth-wicket stand of 86 between Shamim Hossain and Jaker Ali.That partnership, which began at 53 for 5, gave Bangladesh some sort of total to bowl at. Very quickly, though, Pathum Nissanka’s fluency and Kamil Mishara’s power made it look like no sort of total. Nissanka scored 50 off 34 balls and became the quickest Sri Lankan batter to 2000 T20I runs, while Mishara finished unbeaten on 46 off 32.

0 for 2 in two overs

Sri Lanka found new-ball swing after they chose to bowl, but that couldn’t have been the only reason why Tanzid Hasan and Parvez Hossain Emon struggled to the extent they did. There were signs that this was a slightly two-paced pitch when Tanzid kept failing to find the middle of the bat – or the gaps – in the first over (though two of the mishits were off full-tosses), before Thushara swung his sixth ball through his gate as he attempted a get-out-of-jail drive on the up.1:14

Maharoof: Bangladesh have been lacking in major tournaments

The second-over contest between Chameera and Emon was similar, though it only lasted four balls. This time, the on-the-up drive ended up as an outside edge to the keeper, with the ball swinging less than the batter expected. With Chameera rounding off the over with a pair of dots to No. 4 Towhid Hridoy, the scoreboard was an extraordinary sight: 0 for 2 in two overs.

Hasaranga returns with a bang

Bangladesh sank deeper into misery in the fifth over when Hridoy was run out going for a sharp and needless third run, but Litton Das made sure they didn’t let Sri Lanka have it all their own way. When they tried to slip in a quiet over from their fifth bowler Dasun Shanaka, Litton went after him – after edging his first ball just short of a diving fly slip – and hit him for three fours in the sixth over.That did not signal a shift of momentum, though, as Wanindu Hasaranga, who had missed Sri Lanka’s recent tour of Zimbabwe with a hamstring injury, came on in the eighth over and made an almost instant impact, trapping Mahedi Hasan lbw with his second ball, a trademark wrong’un.Wanindu Hasaranga delivered a deadly opening spell•Asian Cricket Council

He came close twice more with the wrong’un. Litton, given out on-field, successfully reviewed an lbw decision against him, with the inside edge coming to his rescue. Then Jaker, beaten comprehensively while defending off the front foot, was saved by the bails staying put after the ball brushed the off stump.Hasaranga did get a second wicket, two balls later, with Litton gloving an attempted reverse-sweep to the keeper.

Shamim and Jaker lead rescue act

Bangladesh’s sixth-wicket pair came together at 53 for 5 in the tenth over, and walked off together at the end of the innings with unbeaten 40s to their name. That both went at strike rates in the 120s, and both struggled to find the boundary for long stretches – including a barren spell of 21 balls – indicated both the excellence of Sri Lanka’s defensive bowling, particularly that of Chameera whose yorkers achieved a rare level of precision in overs 18 and 20, and the two-paced nature of this Abu Dhabi surface.Shamim hit the only six of Bangladesh’s innings, a pick-up shot over midwicket off Matheesha Pathirana in the 19th over, and that shot and Pathirana’s figures – 0 for 42 in four overs – indicated that batters could feed off pace on the ball in these conditions.

Nissanka and Mishara show off extra gear

Both these teams have had well-documented issues with their T20I scoring rates in recent years, but Sri Lanka have been trendsetters in this format in previous eras. And Nissanka and Mishara showed that that spark might still endure.Pathum Nissanka and Kamil Mishara gave Sri Lanka a big win•Associated Press

Off just the fourth ball of his innings, Nissanka played what was unarguably the shot of the match up to that point, a resounding pulled six, well in front of square, off Mustafizur Rahman. And after Mustafizur hit back by nicking off Kusal Mendis, Nissanka and Mishara continued to pepper the boundary in a way Bangladesh had struggled to do throughout their innings.This was partly down to Bangladesh bowling short balls far more frequently than Sri Lanka had, but Mishara also dispatched them with an easy, stand-and-deliver power that Bangladesh cricket has traditionally struggled to produce. None of this may have come to pass, however, had Mahedi held on to a chance at mid-on when Shoriful Islam got a short ball to get big on Mishara; he was batting on 1 off 7 at that point, and the pitch was still looking two-paced.That spilled chance seemingly transformed the conditions too, with Mishara spanking the luckless Shoriful for 6, 4, 4 off the last three balls of the over. Nissanka, at the other end, sashayed this way and that to manipulate length and line, and timed the ball with a fluency that no one else from either side matched.These two put on 95 in just 52 balls, and Sri Lanka could have finished things off even quicker, but they lost 3 for 18 in a 17-ball spell late in the game when they had the result all but sewn up.

Middlesex 292 for 9 (Fernandes 92, Morgan 61, de Caires 50, Singh 4-27) beat Lancashire 291 for 8 (Harris 64, Blatherwick 48*, Hollman 2-30, Brookes 2-57) by one wicket Nathan Fernandes’ brilliant 92 off 79 balls helped Middlesex conjure an extraordinary one-wicket over Lancashire in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup, a result that also ensures the visitors qualified for the quarter-finals of the competition.But the bland facts tell only half the story. Coming to the wicket with his side in the toils on 105 for five and needing another 186 runs, Fernandes put on 126 for the seventh wicket with Seb Morgan and despite being caught on the boundary in the final over, went on watch Noah Cornwell clinch the victory on an evening that recalled the great limited-overs matches on this ground.Part-time off-spinner Harry Singh had earlier taken a career-best four for 27 and it seemed the visitors’ chances were gone when they were 127 for six, despite Josh de Caires 50. But their hopes were raised in dramatic fashion late in the game by Fernandes and Morgan, whose fearless batting inspired a quite wonderful victory for their team.Having reached his maiden List A fifty, Morgan was eventually caught on the boundary off George Balderson for 61, but Fernandes went on to make his best List A score and the tailenders did the rest.Lancashire skipper Marcus Harris made 64 for the home side but the main acceleration towards a defendable total had come late in the innings from youngsters Arav Shetty and Joe Moores before Jack Blatherwick clubbed an alarmingly violent 48 in 20 balls.Lancashire’s innings had begun poorly when George Bell was caught behind by Joe Cracknell off Cornwell for a first-ball duck in the day’s opening over. Michael Jones and Harris then oversaw a recovery with a partnership of 61 in eleven overs before Jones, who had hit earlier hit two big leg-side sixes was caught by Jack Davies at deep square leg off Morgan for 42 when trying to repeat the trick.For the next 20 overs Lancashire’s batsmen struggled to score fluently on a stodgy pitch against an accurate Middlesex attack. Josh Bohannon made 24 off 33 balls but perished when he skied Luke Hollman to Morgan at mid-off. Hollman was clearly the pick of the visitors’ attack, bowling his ten overs for 30 runs, and in his penultimate over he took the prize wicket of Harris when the Lancashire skipper was lbw for 64 when trying to reverse sweep.It was left to the home side’s youngsters to supply some much-needed acceleration. Shetty made 30 off 23 balls and put on 50 with Singh, thereby hoisting the total to 192. And after Shetty and Balderson had fallen to successive balls from Henry Brookes, Moores clubbed two sixes in his 21-ball 35 before he top-edged de Caires to Noah Cornwell at deep square leg.Put under pressure, the Middlesex attack crumbled a little. Blatherwick maintained the tempo, whacking two sixes off a Cornwell over that cost 21 runs and a remarkable 99 runs were scored off the final nine overs, Blatherwick thrashing four sixes and four fours in an unbeaten innings that changed the shape of the game. Singh was dismissed in the penultimate over caught at mid-off by Ben Geddes off Gilchrist for a 116-ball 38. Apart from Hollman, Brookes was the most successful Middlesex bowler with two for 57.Middlesex’s pursuit began badly when Joe Cracknell was pinned on the back foot by Tom Bailey for ten and their intent to score quickly was constantly hampered by the regular fall of wickets.Sam Robson was bowled via bat, pad and foot by Singh for 31; Geddes lost his stumps in more conventional fashion to the same bowler for eight; Davies shovelled Balderson to Singh at midwicket when her had made only nine; and when Bailey ran across from deep mid-off to catch Hollman without scoring Middlesex were in deep trouble on 108 for five with almost half their overs gone.Seven overs later, de Caires holed out on the deep square leg boundary, Moores taking the catch to give Singh his fourth wicket but the rest of the day belonged to Fernandes and Morgan, whose partnership seems certain to become part of Middlesex folklore.

A dramatic conclusion to the second day in Grenada put Australia under severe pressure as Jayden Seales removed both openers after West Indies had limited their deficit to 33. Australia’s bowlers shared the success but Brandon King’s maiden Test fifty and lower-order resistance lifted West Indies before Australia’s top-order was put under the pump again.West Indies had extended their first innings to the point that Australia had an awkward 35 minutes before the close. Sam Konstas couldn’t make it to the end of the first over. Looking to force through the off side from the back foot, playing away from his body, he dragged the ball into his stumps to leave much for him to ponder ahead of the final Test in Jamaica.Related

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It was tough against the new ball. The first ball Cameron Green faced, reared at him and hit the shoulder of the bat as he tried to avoid it, but it landed short of the slips. Then Usman Khawaja received one that scuttled from Shamar Joseph but wasn’t straight. However, in Seales’ next over, Khawaja was caught on the crease from around the wicket, a familiar line of attack that has troubled him, and was plumb lbw – he also burned a review in desperation.Green and nightwatcher Nathan Lyon, who took a blow on the arm in the dying moments of the day, were able to make it through to stumps but Australia were sitting far from comfortably.West Indies had been twice building a foothold in their innings at 111 for 3 and then 169 for 4 – the latter after a promising stand was formed between King and Shai Hope. Pat Cummins, who earlier in the day claimed a stunning caught-and-bowled to remove Keacy Carty, broke through at a key time and further swift wickets left the home side well behind.However, Alzarri Joseph and Shamar Joseph added 51, a stand littered with some powerful hitting, before the last-wicket pair of Seales and Anderson Phillip survived ten overs. Travis Head ended the innings with the day’s third return catch, a sharp, low effort. Unlike in Barbados, batting did appear more comfortable when the ball got softer, although there remained assistance for the quicks, and signs of unevenness. Lyon, who sent down a 17-over spell, also extracted some bounce.Brandon King hit two fours and a six off Nathan Lyon before falling to him•Associated Press

Bad light had denied Australia the chance of a quick burst at West Indies’ top order the previous night but they wasted little time in making inroads in the morning when Josh Hazlewood held a low return catch to dismiss Kraigg Brathwaite for a duck in his 100th Test. It meant three single-figure scores for Brathwaite in the series, and while the landmark Test is a fine achievement, there are significant questions around his output.For just the eighth time in Test history, the first two wickets of an innings fell to return catches – although that phrasing hardly does justice to Cummins’ outstanding effort. Carty got an inside edge into his pad, which looped towards the vacant short-leg area; Cummins changed direction in his follow through, made it to the other side of the pitch, dived and got his right hand under the ball – as confirmed by the TV umpire. It was a breathtaking piece of athleticism from Australia’s captain.John Campbell had taken an aggressive route, riding some luck and profiting from the positive mindset, which included a pulled six off Hazlewood. But his dismissal was a soft one, walking down the pitch at Beau Webster and looking to clear the on side but only finding mid-on.King, who showed his strength through the off side, and captain Roston Chase took West Indies through to lunch without further loss, with King taking on Lyon with two boundaries in the last over of the session. But in the first over after the break, Hazlewood earned an lbw against Chase when Australia correctly opted to use a review.Alzarri Joseph and Shamar Joseph frustrated Australia with a 51-run stand•Associated Press

West Indies initially took the honours in the afternoon session during a proactive stand of 58 between King and Hope. King took on a short delivery from Hazlewood and pulled him over midwicket for six on the way to a 77-ball half-century, brought up with a slash against Mitchell Starc. His absorbing contest with Lyon continued, too, when he danced down the pitch and deposited him straight for two sixes.It was a threatening stand for Australia but as so often, Cummins struck when needed. It was a wonderful set-up against Hope: the ball before he had made one straighten to beat the outside edge, then nipped one back between bat and pad with Hope’s feet stuck in the crease.Next over, King’s impressive innings ended when gloved a delivery with extra bounce from Lyon down the leg side. Initially given not out on the field, Green at midwicket was convinced it had been touched and Steven Smith, at the time in charge with Cummins off the field, called for the DRS.When Justin Greaves got an inside edge into his pad that popped up to Alex Carey, Australia appeared set for a significant lead, but the stand between the Josephs cut into that. They thought the innings was over on 247 when Phillip was given lbw sweeping at Lyon but it had turned too much and was missing leg.

Tilak Varma, the young Indian batter, has signed a short-term deal with Hampshire that will see him play four County Championship matches for them in June and July.Tilak, 22, has played four ODIs and 25 T20Is for India and impressed for Mumbai Indians in the IPL, but has played only 18 first-class matches. He will look to build on a strong start to his red-ball career in England: he has already scored five first-class hundreds – including one for India A against New Zealand A – and averages 50.16 in the format.Hampshire, who were acquired by the Indian conglomerate GMR Group last year, are seventh in Division One of the County Championship after a mixed start to the season. Tilak’s arrival ahead of their game against Essex at Chelmsford on June 22 should help to bolster a batting line-up that has struggled since James Vince decided to quit red-ball cricket.Related

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Hampshire had initially hoped that Dewald Brevis would be available for their two Championship fixtures at the end of June, but he will instead be with South Africa’s Test squad in Zimbabwe.Brevis and Lhuan-dre Pretorius will both miss the second half of the T20 Blast group stage after their call-ups, and Hampshire’s director of cricket Giles White said on Friday that the club was in “advanced conversations” for replacements. Tilak will not be eligible to play in the Blast, since the BCCI does not allow active Indian men’s players to feature in overseas T20 leagues.Tilak will join a handful of other Indian players in the Championship, with Ruturaj Gaikwad set to join Yorkshire for the second half of the summer and Yuzvendra Chahal due to return to Northamptonshire later this month.Hampshire are yet to announce Tilak’s signing, but his domestic team said on Wednesday: “The Hyderabad Cricket Association wishes him a great stint with Hampshire County.”

Andre Russell, Nicholas Pooran, Shimron Hetmyer and Akeal Hosein have all opted out of West Indies’ T20I squad for their upcoming tour of Sri Lanka for personal reasons. Opening batter Evin Lewis, who had last played a T20I during the World Cup in 2022, returned to the side for the three T20Is in Dambulla. Lewis was also picked for the ODI leg of the Sri Lanka tour.Brandon King also returned to the T20I side after having recovered from the side injury that had forced him to miss chunks of the T20 World Cup earlier this year and CPL 2024. In the absence of Russell, West Indies called up his Trinbago Knight Riders team-mate Terrance Hinds and Antigua and Barbuda Falcons’ Shamar Springer. This was the first international call-up for both allrounders who were impressive in CPL 2024.While Hinds often fronted up to bowl at the death for TKR, Springer emerged as Falcons’ leading wicket-taker in a spin-dominated CPL with 12 strikes in nine games at an economy rate of 9.39. Springer has quite a few slower variations in his repertoire, which could suit the potentially sluggish pitches in Sri Lanka.Related

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• Barbados to host maiden CPL final in 2026

• Johnson Charles switches his T20 fortunes

Rovman Powell will continue to lead the T20I side with Roston Chase, who earned a West Indies central contract earlier this week, retained as his deputy. Lewis’ return comes after the selection system was revamped with coach Daren Sammy now leading the panel.”The tour of Sri Lanka gives us a chance to test our depth and assess players in different situations, especially with several senior players missing out for various reasons, including a need for rest and rehabilitation from injury,” Sammy said in a CWI statement. “We are confident in the squad’s ability to compete strongly against Sri Lanka.”Johnson Charles, who had reinvented himself as a 360-degree batter in St Lucia Kings’ run to the CPL 2024 final, missed the cut, with Andre Fletcher being picked as the reserve opener behind Lewis and King. Alick Athanaze is also another top-order option for West Indies. Finisher Sherfane Rutherford, though, is set to return to action after having withdrawn from CPL 2024 for personal reasons.Left-arm fingerspinner Gudakesh Motie is the only frontline spin bowler in the T20I squad. He will be assisted by offspin-bowling allrounder Chase and left-arm spin-bowling allrounder who had won the LPL earlier this year with Jaffna Kings.Alzarri Joseph, who had been rested for West Indies’ most recent T20I series, against South Africa at home, returned to the side but there was no place for left-arm seamer Obed McCoy, who often operates at the death.

West Indies T20I squad

Rovman Powell (capt), Roston Chase (vice-capt), Fabian Allen, Alick Athanaze, Andre Fletcher, Terrance Hinds, Shai Hope, Alzarri Joseph, Shamar Joseph, Brandon King, Evin Lewis, Gudakesh Motie, Sherfane Rutherford, Romario Shepherd, Shamar SpringerJewel Andrew could become the youngest West Indies player to make his debut in ODI cricket•CPL T20 via Getty Images

Jewel Andrew bolts into WI ODI squad

Seventeen-year-old Jewel Andrew has broken into West Indies’ ODI squad for the three-match series in Pallekele. He could become the youngest West Indian to make his debut in ODI cricket; only Derek Sealy and Garry Sobers have made their international debuts for West Indies at the age of 17.Andrew has played only three List A games and seven CPL matches so far, but has already done enough to attract the attention of some West Indies greats, including Viv Richards and Shivnarine Chanderpaul, his CPL coach at Falcons, and Ian Bishop.The youngest player to ever feature in the CPL, Andrew marked his debut with an unbeaten 50 against a St Kitts & Nevis Patriots attack that included internationals like Anrich Nortje and Tabraiz Shamsi. Andrew had been earmarked to become a future West Indies star right from his age-group days.”As we continue to build our ODI team, this tour offers a valuable opportunity to evaluate strategies and give opportunities to emerging talent,” Sammy said. “We are excited to see young players like Jewel Andrew, who has earned his place as an exciting prospect for the future.”Shai Hope, who won a two-year contract with CWI, will continue to captain the ODI team with Alzarri Joseph his deputy. Matthew Forde, who didn’t find a place in the T20I side, made it to the ODI side. He has had some success with Dambulla Aura in the LPL.The ODI squad has two specialist spinners, with wristspinner Hayden Walsh Jr retaining his place to complement left-arm fingerspinner Motie. Batters Athanaze and Keacy Carty, who were also part of West Indies’ most recent ODI squad, for the Australia tour earlier this year, retained their spots.Carty was also in good form for TKR in the CPL, where he scored 246 runs in ten innings at an average of 30.75 and strike rate of 125.51.West Indies’ white-ball tour of Sri Lanka will begin on October 13 and will run until October 26.

West Indies ODI squad

Shai Hope (capt), Alzarri Joseph (vice-capt), Jewel Andrew, Alick Athanaze, Keacy Carty, Roston Chase, Matthew Forde, Shamar Joseph, Brandon King, Evin Lewis, Gudakesh Motie, Sherfane Rutherford, Jayden Seales, Romario Shepherd, Hayden Walsh Jr

South Africa capped off their Women’s T20 World Cup preparations with an eight-wicket win in the series decider against Pakistan, which was also their joint fifth-highest successful chase in T20Is.Chasing 154, Anneke Bosch retired four runs short of a fifth half-century in the format in extreme heat but had done enough to set up victory. Laura Wolvaardt’s 45 and Annerie Dercksen’s unbeaten 44 took South Africa to the target with nine balls to spare.In the first day game played in the series, Pakistan were on the field at the hottest time of the day and lacked intensity with ball in hand despite a good start. Muneeba Ali pulled off an excellent piece of wicket-keeping to stump Tazmin Brits with her foot just in the air, off Sadia Iqbal’s fourth delivery. The wicket was Sadia’s sixth, and made her the leading bowler in the series, but she lacked support.Diana Baig and Fatima Sana were ineffective on a slow surface, Nida Dar was expensive and though Nashra Sandhu and Tuba Hassan were economical, South Africa could treat them with caution with runs coming off other bowlers.A highlight of South Africa’s chase was the batters’ use of their feet against spin, which has been a concern for them previously. Wolvaardt was characteristically strong down the ground while Bosch and Dercksen opened up scoring areas square of the wicket, leaving South Africa in a good place ahead of next month’s T20 World Cup in the UAE.Anneke Bosch set up South Africa’s chase with 46 before retiring hurt•PCB

Pakistan will feel in the opposite position after they squandered the opportunity to post a bigger total on the back of a strong start. Muneeba and Gull Feroza put on 49 in the powerplay, but they were separated in the next over. Gull chipped a return chance back to Sune Luus, who has been bowling offspin since the tour of India mid-year and took a sharp catch. Two overs later Muneeba was run out and Pakistan needed the middle-order to rebuild.Former captain Nida Dar became Pakistan’s second-highest run-scorer in T20I cricket, and is now only behind Bismah Mahroof. She was given a lifeline when she was dropped on 10 by Nadine de Klerk at deep mid-wicket. But, Dar only added two runs to her score before making room to play for turn against Nonkululekho Mlaba and was bowled. Fatima Sana’s 17-ball 27 was the major contributor in a 46-run fourth-wicket stand with Sidra Amin and set Pakistan up for a strong finish but when she was dismissed, they struggled to add quick runs.Chloe Tryon’s left-arm spin proved particularly difficult to get away. She bowled the 16th and 19th over and gave away just 11 runs to finish with figures of 1 for 23 in four overs. Luus was South Africa’s most economical bowler and conceded just 18 runs in her four overs. Importantly for South Africa, their attack was able to keep Pakistan in check without Marizanne Kapp and Ayabonga Khaka, who were rested from the second and third matches of the series.Fielding remains a concern for both sides, but cost Pakistan more in the final match. They put down Dercksen on 7, which gave her the opportunity to finish the game. In total, according to ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball data, nine catches were put down across the three matches and South Africa were guilty of six of those. Both teams will want to work on their judgement under the high ball ahead, especially with low lights, in Dubai.