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South Africa made full use of the second new ball to rip through Sri Lanka’s last five wickets and complete a 206-run win in Port Elizabeth, an hour and 10 minutes into day five

The Report by Karthik Krishnaswamy30-Dec-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details5:25

Five things we learned in Port Elizabeth

Abject SL, awesome Rabada

• 9 Number of losses from 11 Tests for Sri Lanka in South Africa. They have the third-worst loss percentage in the country behind Zimbabwe and Bangladesh who are yet to win in South Africa.

• 2.5 Win-loss ratio for South Africa in 2016. They end the year as the second-most successful team after India. South Africa have won five Tests and lost two.

• 68.22 Average of Angelo Mathews in the fourth innings of Test matches. Only Bruce Mitchell, Jeffrey Stollmeyer and Don Bradman average more (min 500 runs). Mathews top-scored for Sri Lanka with 59.

• 36.6 Strike rate of Kagiso Rabada in 2016 – the best for any fast bowler this year (min:20 wickets). He also has four five-wicket hauls, which is also the most for any fast bowler in 2016.

South Africa made full use of the second new ball to rip through Sri Lanka’s last five wickets and complete a 206-run win in Port Elizabeth, an hour and 10 minutes into day five. Once Kyle Abbott broke through early to dismiss Angelo Mathews and Dhananjaya de Silva, there was little Sri Lanka’s lower order could do. The margin of Sri Lanka’s defeat belied how comfortable their top-order batsmen had looked on day four, and reflected how so many of them had thrown their wickets away.Chasing 488, Sri Lanka started the final day 248 adrift with five wickets in hand and their last two recognised batsmen at the crease, one of them batting on 58. That man, Mathews, had added only one run to his score when Abbott nipped one in sharply and had a loud lbw shout upheld. Mathews had taken guard on off stump right through the Test match, and this probably played a major role in his dismissal. Jumping back and across, Mathews had to open up to access the ball that was jagging back into the stumps, and before his bat could come across to meet it, the ball had struck his retreating front pad, right in front. He reviewed more in desperation than hope.A near-replay, down to the failed review, sent de Silva on his way 3.5 overs later. Again the batsman was standing on off stump, and again was forced to play across the line. Again the review returned an umpire’s call verdict on height.In between, Abbott had also dealt Rangana Herath a blow with a sharp lifter that struck him on the bottom hand. Having strapped up his fingers, Herath lasted a further nine balls before Vernon Philander had him caught and bowled, diving across the pitch to catch it low to his left, landing painfully on his arm, after getting the ball to stop on the batsman.Kagiso Rabada got into the act next, finding away seam movement and extra bounce in the corridor to catch the shoulder of Dushmantha Chameera’s bat. The last wicket went to Keshav Maharaj, who finished with a three-wicket haul that was reward for some skillful, tight bowling while getting through 29 overs on day four. He only needed to bowl nine balls on day five, the ninth an absolute ripper, turning past the outside edge of Nuwan Pradeep’s defensive bat to knock back off stump.

England secure their largest T20I win in terms of runs after home side records lowest total in the format by a Full-Member nation

The Report by Valkerie Baynes08-Mar-2019
Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentarySam Billings rescued England before Chris Jordan’s four-wicket haul demolished West Indies for a paltry 45, handing the tourists a 137-run victory in the second T20I and an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series.Man of the Match Billings’ career-best knock of 87 off 47 balls and a return to T20I form for Joe Root, who made 55 off 40, resurrected England’s innings from a dire 32 for 4 after 5.2 overs.Then Jordan’s remarkable 4 for 6 off two overs meant West Indies were never in the contest and they fell for the second-lowest T20I total, behind Netherlands’ 39 against Sri Lanka at the World T20 in 2014. It was the lowest total by a Full-Member nation, worse than the 60 posted by New Zealand against Sri Lanka at the same tournament and West Indies’ 60 against Pakistan in Karachi last year.With the top order tumbling around him, Root produced a composed innings, sharing an 82-run partnership with Billings to reach his half-century. It was the first time Root had reached double figures in four T20I innings and his tenth knock since he last reached fifty, in the 2016 World T20 final won by West Indies in Kolkata.When Root was run-out, scrambling to the danger end for a second with the fleet-footed Billings as Fabian Allen threw the ball in to wicketkeeper Shai Hope, the rescue mission fell to Billings and he chose to accept it willingly. Billings racked up 17 runs in one Sheldon Cottrell over, including a six to bring up his 50.Carlos Brathwaite had been economical through his first three overs, claiming 1 for 11, but he conceded 22 off his last over, including three fours to Billings and a six to David Willey. The pair put on a 68-run stand for the sixth wicket, before Billings was dismissed on the last ball of the innings, but not before he had scored 22 off the over, bowled by debutant quick Obed McCoy. Billings was dropped by Shimron Hetmyer on the third ball of the over and then picked up six thanks to a fumble by Brathwaite, who was trying to palm the ball back into play. Billings punished the next one for four before attempting another big hit and edging to the keeper.By then, he had led England to a respectable total, especially given their early position. West Indies had won the toss and sent England in on a pitch that was expected to improve as the match went on. Unfortunately for them, they were not in long enough for that to play out.Willey, who had questioned the noise around Jofra Archer’s World Cup prospects in the lead-up to the match, continued to press his own claims for a berth when he snared the wicket of Chris Gayle for just 5, caught simply by Root at mid-on. Willey had West Indies’ other opener, Hope, out cheaply too with Eoin Morgan holding the catch despite colliding heavily with Tom Curran as he took the ball.Then Jordan went on the rampage. He claimed the wickets of Darren Bravo, one of only two West Indies batsmen to reach double-figures, and Jason Holder with consecutive balls, and then dismissed Nicholas Pooran and Allen in his second over.The damage done, Adil Rashid and Liam Plunkett cleaned up the West Indies tail, with England’s largest T20I victory secured inside 12 overs.

He will be replaced in the squad by fast bowler Kwena Maphaka

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Dec-2024In a huge blow for South Africa, fast bowler Gerald Coetzee has been ruled out of the second Test against Sri Lanka in Gqeberha as well as the upcoming all-format series against Pakistan, due to a groin injury.Coetzee, who picked up the injury while bowling on day four of the Durban Test against Sri Lanka, is expected to be out for up to six weeks after scans revealed a muscle strain in his right groin. He will be replaced in the squad by fast bowler Kwena Maphaka, who made his international debut earlier this year in the T20Is against West Indies.Coetzee bowled in the morning session of the Durban Test on Saturday, beginning proceedings with Kagiso Rabada, but stopped after a three-over spell. His second spell of the morning was off just two overs, as Dhananjaya de Silva and Dinesh Chandimal staged a spirited fightback for Sri Lanka after they had started the day five down and looking at a bigger defeat than they eventually suffered. Coetzee didn’t bowl again after that in the session, but did bowl three overs after lunch, sending back Chandimal caught and bowled.Shukri Conrad, the South Africa coach, said after the day’s play that Coetzee had spoken to him at lunch and told him he “felt a groin niggle”, and went back after the break “strapped up”.Coetzee’s absence adds to South Africa’s injury woes, as they are already without Wiaan Mulder, the fast-bowling allrounder, due to a fractured right middle finger.Two of South Africa’s three quicks that played the Durban Test – Rabada and Player-of-the-Match Marco Jansen – are fit for the second Test, and Dane Paterson is the other quick in the squad. However, Nandre Burger is out for the summer with a lower back stress fracture, while Lungi Ngidi is out till January.South Africa will play Sri Lanka in the second Test at St George’s Park between December 5 and 9. After that, they will host Pakistan for three T20Is, three ODIs, and two Tests.

K Sriram was part of the Anil Kumble-led Karnataka team that won the Ranji Trophy in 1995-96

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Feb-2017Former Karnataka batsman K Sriram died at the age of 43 in Bangalore on February 16, following a cardiac arrest. Sriram, who was unwell for the last two months, is survived by his wife and two children – a son and a daughter.Sriram played 15 first-class matches for Karnataka and scored 644 runs, including a hundred and a fifty. He was also part of the Anil Kumble-led Karnataka team that won the Ranji Trophy in 1995-96. In the final against Tamil Nadu, Sriram was pitted against his older brother Srinath, who opened the batting and made 85 runs in the first innings.Sriram, who had worked with Canara Bank, was a qualified BCCI level-two coach.

Mashrafe Mortaza said Bangladesh would be trying to focus on an improved performance in their second group game, rather than an rare win over Australia

Alan Gardner at The Oval04-Jun-2017Bangladesh have only ever beaten Australia once in a full international. Across all formats, starting with their first encounter in an ODI in Sharjah 27 years ago, one victory – and perhaps all the more memorable because of its rarity. The summer of 2005 is much-fabled in English cricket but it held significance for Bangladesh, too.

‘Such things are happening everywhere’

Mashrafe Mortaza has said Bangladesh were unconcerned about the security situation at the Champions Trophy after the terrorist incident in London on Saturday – despite the team’s hotel being close to London Bridge, where the attack took place. He also suggested that the realisation “this is happening all over the world” might encourage teams to tour Bangladesh in future.
In 2015, Australia pulled out of a tour over security concerns, while England’s visit to Bangladesh last year took place without Eoin Morgan, their ODI captain, and Alex Hales. Mashrafe reiterated that Bangladesh had been “grateful” for England coming and said it was up to host countries and the ICC to ensure adequate security measures were in place.
“We stay in the hotel most of the time, and the security is quite good,” he said. “Such things are happening everywhere. I think now people will be encouraged to come to Bangladesh, in a way. These things depend on the hosts and the ICC, who always keep adequate security.
“We have been grateful of England for touring Bangladesh last year, although Morgan and Hales opted out of the tour. Now I think they will understand that it is happening in their country. But these incidents have become hard to stop. But given the security here, I don’t think there will be any problem.”

It was in Cardiff, 12 years ago, where Aftab Ahmed hit Jason Gillespie down the ground for six and then inside-edged the winning run, sealing Bangladesh’s chase of 250 in the final over. For England, this was another sign that Australia could be beaten in the tumultuous Ashes series to follow; for Bangladesh, one more staging post on their journey to being recognised as a serious cricketing nation. And Mashrafe Mortaza was there.Mashrafe, now Bangladesh’s captain, was 21 years old and playing his 20th ODI. He remembers removing Adam Gilchrist, lbw for 0, in the first over of the match (how could he forget?) and he also recalls travelling around in a limousine to celebrate victory later that night. No one else from that NatWest Series match will be involved when the two teams meet again in the Champions Trophy on Monday – but Mashrafe will be able to look to his players in the dressing room at The Oval and say he knows how it feels to beat Australia.”Yes, Cardiff – 12 years back,” he said with a smile of recollection at Bangladesh’s pre-match press conference. “Obviously, tomorrow is a new day and it has been a good memory for us. We are confident enough to play against them. We will try our level best.”I can remember only that I got Gilchrist out – and in the night time we were driven in a limousine. It was a great memory for us, especially for me, in this team. That’s what I can remember. But the team has changed. The team is playing good cricket now. So let’s see what happens.”Bangladesh’s meetings with Australia have been infrequent over the years. Their group fixture at the 2015 World Cup was rained off – a threat which lingers over south London, too – and they last contested an ODI in 2011. Steven Smith’s well-intentioned referencing of Mushfiqur Rahim as “a good young player” (Mushfiqur, 29, has played 286 times for his country and debuted on that same Bangladesh tour of England in 2005) before this game hinted at the lack of familiarity.Beyond reminding Australia of who they are, Bangladesh are aiming to make an impact at the Champions Trophy, having missed out on the last two editions of the tournament. They gave a good account of themselves in the first half of their opener against England, posting 305 for 6 thanks to Tamim Iqbal’s hundred, but lacked penetration with the ball in an eight-wicket defeat.In that match, Bangladesh left out Mehedi Hasan, a frontline spinner, in favour of playing Imrul Kayes at No. 3 and asking Mosaddek Hossain, Soumya Sarkar and Sabbir Rahman to deliver ten overs with the ball. Mashrafe conceded that the balance of the side was something they were likely to address, with Mehedi or Sunzamul Islam perhaps likeliest to come in given the game will take place on a used pitch (the same as that for South Africa’s win over Sri Lanka on Saturday).Aftab Ahmed celebrates after leading Bangladesh to victory in Cardiff 12 years ago•Getty Images

“In our previous match, I thought we could defend 305 but we couldn’t get wickets in the middle period,” Mashrafe said. “Getting wickets really matters in cricket, so we definitely have to think about our combination. Since we could score 300-plus with eight batsmen, then why wouldn’t be able to do with seven batsmen? What can happen if we don’t play five bowlers, that is also in our mind.”But one thing is clear, we have to score a large total. Normally 300 in one-day cricket is good enough, but with the [fielding restrictions] they have got now, and if the wicket is like this, you have to rethink it.”Before the start of the Champions Trophy, Bangladesh rose to their highest ODI ranking of No. 6. Since 2015, they have knocked England out of a World Cup, and won bilateral series against India, South Africa and Pakistan. A second-ever victory over Australia would ice the cake nicely – as well as keep alive their hopes of reaching the semi-finals – but Mashrafe, as ever, was focused on deflecting pressure from his side.”Yes, we’re playing so far good cricket,” he said. “But overseas we have to improve a little more. We are learning, and hopefully we’ll cope with all the pressures tomorrow and we will try to deliver our best. Whatever I say, we have to calculate a bit more, which area we need to do a little bit more like batting – an 30 extra runs – or when bowling, for the batters’ benefit, if we can get ourselves into a bowling groove, if we can cut down 30 more runs, that will really help the team win.”Pull it off and Mashrafe’s players can head to Cardiff, where they play New Zealand, with an eye on the last four. Is it too much of a stretch to think they might need that limo again?

England players express disappointment with final act of Lord’s ODI

Valkerie Baynes24-Sep-2022Harmanpreet Kaur contended that no “crime” had been committed. England were “not fans”. The two opposing views summed up the divide that inevitably follows the dismissal of a batter who is run out while backing up.So when Deepti Sharma held the ball as she started her action with Charlie Dean out of her ground and broke the bails to seal victory for India by 16 runs and a 3-0 ODI series sweep at Lord’s on Saturday, it was met with booing as well as cheers among the crowd of 15,187.Dean had scored a fighting 47 batting at No. 9 and shared a 35-run stand with No. 11 Freya Davies to put England within reach of what had looked like being an unlikely win when the hosts had slumped to 65 for 7 chasing 170.Related

• Mitchell Starc calls for short-run penalty if non-striker strays out of crease

• 'We had warned her' – Deepti Sharma on the Charlie Dean dismissal

• Jhulan Goswami's fairytale Lord's farewell takes unexpected twist

• Stats: Jhulan Goswami, the most prolific bowler of women's cricket

• Goswami farewelled with victory as last wicket Dean is run-out backing up

“Today whatever we have done I don’t think it was any crime,” Harmanpreet said during her post-match press conference. “It is part of the game and it is an ICC rule and I think we just need to back our player.”I’m actually very happy she was aware of that, and the batter she is taking too long a stride I think. I don’t think she has done something wrong and we just need to back her.”Harmanpreet also suggested her team had been hard done by when Sophie Ecclestone took a catch to dismiss opener Smriti Mandhana in the third match of their T20I series, which England won 2-1, that touched the ground but was deemed to have been controlled beforehand and therefore legal.She also rejected suggestions that the incident detracted from Jhulan Goswami’s final match of an international career spanning two decades.”I don’t think so because, like I said, I don’t think we have done any crime,” Harmanpreet said. “It’s part of the ICC rules, it’s called a run-out and we’ve done that.”I don’t think we need to talk about that because the first nine wickets were also very important and everybody was working so hard. It was a chaseable total but the way our bowlers bowled and the whole team putting in the effort, there were a lot of things to celebrate other than just talking about the last wicket.”Kate Cross, England’s senior seamer who took 4 for 26 to help bowl India out for 169 inside 46 overs, said it was a mode of dismissal she would not use.”Losing any game of cricket is disappointing,” she said. “Ultimately it’s Deepti’s choice how she goes about that, and we’ve lost that game of cricket. What we did say in the dressing room was that we didn’t lose that game of cricket because of that last wicket.”I think it’s a dismissal that’s always going to divide opinion. That’s all that’s ever going to get said about it: some people are going to like it, some people aren’t. Deepti chose to dismiss Charlie Dean that way. I’m more disappointed for Charlie Dean that she couldn’t get a fifty at Lord’s today because she looked set to do that.”If we’re looking at the real positives, then maybe that’s the only way they could have got Deano out today.”After an initial show of anger, throwing her bat to the ground and shaking her head with tears streaming down her face, Dean composed herself and walked over to the Indian team huddle to shake their hands.”That’s professional sport,” Cross said of Dean’s reaction. “Everyone is human before they’re a cricketer, whatever sport they play. The emotion is always what you get first, and it’s how you react to that.”I thought Deano was absolutely brilliant – the way she went over and shook hands immediately. If you’re talking about the spirit of cricket, I thought that was just fantastic from Deano.”Kate Cross knocked over India’s top four•Getty Images

Amy Jones, England’s stand-in captain throughout India’s tour with regular skipper Heather Knight recovering from hip surgery and vice-captain Nat Sciver taking a mental health break, echoed Cross’s disapproval of the dismissal.”Obviously not happy with the result,” Jones told Sky Sports. “We bowled really well and we just needed a bigger partnership in the middle. The last wicket divides opinion, not a fan, but depends on how India feel about it. It is within the rules… Disappointing but hopefully doesn’t take shine off a what was a good summer and a good series in the end.”In March, the MCC changed the wording that covers a player being run out by the bowler while backing up – often referred to as Mankading – moving it from Law 41 (Unfair play) to Law 38 (Run out). The change, due to come into force next month, attempts to remove some of the stigma around such dismissals.Cross added: “It’s going to divide opinion and it’s going to get talked about. There are a lot of things that are going to get talked about as well – Jhulan’s last game is a massive thing in Indian cricket, and for her to retire at Lord’s is a very special occasion for her and the Indian team. Them winning the series 3-0… there’s a lot to talk about and a lot to dissect.”From our point of view, we were 2-0 down going into this, we’d lost the series already. We were out there to win [ICC women’s] championship points and we didn’t lose that game by losing that 10th wicket there… The game was lost because we weren’t able to keep them to 150 and then we weren’t able to build those partnerships earlier on and back for a little bit longer.”Cross could have had her own piece of history at Lord’s, hosting its first women’s international since England defeated India in the 2017 World Cup final. She bowled brilliantly to remove India’s top four and then returned to the attack towards the end of their innings, only to fall one wicket shy of her third international five-for.”I don’t think I’m ever going to get a better chance to get my name on the honours board than having a four-for bowling at No. 11,” Cross said. “But what frustrated me most about not being able to get the five-for was that it felt like an opportunity that we don’t get often.”It feels like probably a wider picture, but it feels like in women’s cricket, when you get these opportunities you have to take them because you don’t know when the next game is going to be at the home of cricket.”Hopefully that’s what’s going to start changing. We’ve seen that with the way that the Ashes fixtures have come out and we’re playing at some really high-profile grounds. But it definitely felt like when I was on the four-for I was probably thinking about it a little bit too much.”But you know what? The girls were unbelievable. All of them came up to me and said I’ve never wanted someone to get a five-for more which was really sweet. But yeah, not to be.”

Bangladesh’s limited-overs captain Mashrafe Mortaza reached out to the England players with whom, he said, a deeper bond can be developed if the October tour goes ahead

Mohammad Isam24-Aug-2016Bangladesh’s limited-overs captain Mashrafe Mortaza reached out to the England players with whom, he said, a deeper bond can be developed if the October tour goes ahead. The three-member ECB delegation, which recently completed a security assessment ahead of England’s tour to Bangladesh and India, are due to brief the one-day team on Thursday. England are scheduled to arrive in Dhaka on September 30 for two Tests and three ODIs.”I would tell all the players to come to Bangladesh,” Mashrafe said. “I can assure you that you can play cricket here wholeheartedly. You don’t have to think of anything else. It will be a competitive series. Our friendship will get deeper if we play in this series. It is not just about the game. There are a lot of things connected to this series. We are hoping that they would come here to play. From what I have heard, our security forces are giving it the highest attention. I have confidence in them since we have hosted many big tournaments in the recent past.”As a player I would urge for cricket to continue. These incidents are happening all over the world and if we postpone playing now, there will be a time when we would have to stop the game. We all have to keep our faith on the ECB team that visited recently as well as the two boards.”Last month, after the ECB said it would follow government advice on touring Bangladesh following the terror attack in Dhaka on July 1, Mashrafe had said he was hopeful of the tour going ahead. He didn’t rule out communication initiated by Bangladeshi cricketers to urge their English counterparts. He also said that England’s participation in this year’s Under-19 World Cup gave them confidence that the tour will go ahead.”If some of the players have a friendly relationship, they may knock each other. But these things are mainly dealt by the boards, on whom we have to depend upon,” he said. “I believe that the ECB is taking it very seriously, and they will be satisfied with our security plan.”England has been with us from day one and I believe they will be with us now as well. They sent their team to the U19 World Cup.”Mashrafe also said that the Bangladesh players’ body, the Cricketers’ Welfare Association of Bangladesh (CWAB), could still play a role in discussing player safety with their counterpart, the Professional Cricketers’ Association.”I think steps can be taken through our players association, because it does have an impact. Maybe our players’ body isn’t the strongest but I still feel that if there’s an opportunity, we can venture into that avenue too. A lot is at stake here.”

Daryl Mitchell’s 129 propelled New Zealand to their highest ODI total in Pakistan, but hosts went 2-0 up in the series

Danyal Rasool29-Apr-2023When Fakhar Zaman has these kinds of days, there’s very little any side can do about it; and what makes him so special is he has days like these with frightening regularity. A third successive ODI hundred – this one a monster century – by Pakistan’s premier ODI opener blitzed New Zealand, as he cracked an unbeaten 180 off 144 balls.It helped his side coast to their second-highest chase in the format, running down New Zealand’s 336 with seven wickets and almost two overs to spare. A 135-run stand with Babar Azam, who scored 65, formed the backbone of the chase, while a devastating counter-attacking partnership with Mohammad Rizwan swept the game out of New Zealand’s reach.New Zealand had done plenty of things much better than they did in the first ODI, and yet, this game simply felt like a repeat. Daryl Mitchell scored a hundred, and New Zealand set themselves up for a huge total. And while they did get much further along than they managed in the first ODI by posting 336, a tight final three overs from Pakistan ensured the hosts grabbed some momentum at the death.And Pakistan began the chase brightly once more, though Matt Henry did strike to remove Imam-ul-Haq in the final over of the powerplay; but the hosts kept coasting at above seven runs an over. Coming in at No. 3, Babar struggled through the first few overs of the innings, scoring just 16 runs in his first 25 balls. Thus, the onus fell on Fakhar to ensure Pakistan remained on top of the asking rate, a burden he fulfiled with aplomb.The real acceleration came in the 21st over when he launched Ish Sodhi for 17, speeding along to his tenth ODI hundred. He had brought up three figures in 83 balls, before launching Rachin Ravindra for a huge six over midwicket, as by now Pakistan were purring. Babar had rediscovered his own touch too with a pair of boundaries against Henry Shipley, and was coasting towards another half-century.Daryl Mitchell and Tom Latham put on 183•AFP/Getty Images

New Zealand ran through the bowling changes but could simply find no way through, until an unforced error from Babar himself provided the breakthrough. He had tonked Sodhi for a six and a four in the 30th over, before a leading edge saw the ball fly up to Chad Bowes at short cover.The visitors were then provided a glimmer when debutant Abdullah Shafique was prised out by Shipley, but Rizwan hit back with another effective counterattacking knock. It began with a regal cover drive off the first ball and continued with the same elegance. Fakhar had much of the pressure taken off him as both experienced batters tore chunks out of the bowlers, particularly the inexperienced Ravindra.Fakhar brought up 150 and carried on, while Rizwan’s own half-century arrived off the penultimate ball he faced as Pakistan eased to the win in the end.Earlier, Mitchell’s second successive hundred of the series had helped New Zealand to an imposing total of 336. A 183-run stand for the third wicket between him and his captain Tom Latham was the foundation of New Zealand’s biggest ODI total in Pakistan, with Latham’s 98 from 85 balls ensuring his partner had plenty of support at the other end.Unlike the first ODI where New Zealand fell away sharply in the final ten overs thanks to a rock-solid bowling display by Pakistan, there would be less of a let-up at the death this time. New Zealand cranked through the gears in the final few overs to press home the advantage of the dominant position they had worked themselves into by plundering 98 runs in the final ten overs, with their innings featuring Mitchell’s career-best 129 off 119 balls.Tom Latham fell for 98•AFP/Getty Images

Pakistan had won the toss and reprised the decision to field first, and while New Zealand made a more urgent start than they did on Thursday, Haris Rauf struck to remove Will Young early. But aside from Naseem Shah, whose accuracy and menace forced them into caution, no pace bowler was really spared. Ihsanullah, making his debut, bore the brunt of the third-wicket partnership’s punishment. Rauf wasn’t spared either, and in the 17th over, Mitchell tonked him for a four and a six, bringing up the side’s 100.Haris struck again after Bowes reached his maiden fifty, but it brought together the defining stand of the innings when Latham and Mitchell got together. Latham had found strokeplay a struggle on Thursday, but had no such problems on the day, getting off to a brisk start and milking the spinners effectively. Mitchell looked characteristically imperturbable, and New Zealand’s platform was being built beautifully.Pakistan were sloppy in the field in the first game, and must have rued the chance to get rid of Mitchell before he brought up three figures on Saturday too. Naseem put down a dolly at mid-on in the 39th over, with Mitchell four away from the milestone, thus denying Usama Mir the wicket his bowling deserved. Four balls later, Latham pulled Mir away for four to bring up his own half-century, while Mitchell eased his way to a hundred the following over.The shackles were broken at that point, and in the absence of the same quality from the Pakistan bowlers as in the first ODI, run-scoring was easier. The final 11 overs brought 107 runs for New Zealand, with Latham central to much of the boundary-hitting. He was denied a century when, in the 47th over, Pakistan reviewed a not-out verdict to find that Latham had inside-edged to the wicketkeeper off Rauf when on 98. And eventually, a tight final three overs from Pakistan ensured New Zealand were kept below the 350 they had threatened.But with Fakhar and Pakistan in this chasing form, there’s little to suggest even that would have been enough on a day Pakistan motored along in Rawalpindi, while New Zealand petered out.

Clare Connor has described the decision to drop her old friend Charlotte Edwards as “the hardest thing I have ever had to do in my working life”

George Dobell at Lord's11-May-20162:02

Connor praises ‘selfless decision’ from Edwards

Clare Connor has described the decision to drop her old friend Charlotte Edwards as “the hardest thing I have ever had to do in my working life”.Connor, Head of Women’s Cricket at the ECB, played for England U19s with Edwards from the age of 15 – Edwards was just 12 – before they went on to represent the senior team together.But, with recent results disappointing, and the new head coach of the women’s team, Mark Robinson, indicating that he wanted a new direction, it was Connor’s duty to bring down the curtain on a remarkable 20-year international career.”We go back a long way,” Connor said. “We are close and she is very special to me and to the game, so it was immensely difficult.”It was instigated by Mark Robinson. He felt a fresh vision was what the team needed in terms of leadership. She has captained the team for ten years and environments do need to be refreshed. You sometimes need a new voice, almost a disturbance to the dynamics to kick-start a different style of play or culture.”Lottie could see the team is the most important thing.”Connor admitted there had been some concern from the ECB management about recent results, but insisted that the introduction of the Super League and the advent of the professional era will bring improvement.”I was at the ECB AGM yesterday and Colin Graves did mention it has not been as successful a period as people would have liked,” Connor said. “I think everyone recognises we are in a period of change.”I have no doubt Mark will have a huge impact. We will have some wobbles along the way but we do need to disturb the norm. He is perceptive. He has a lovely balance of kindness but also trying to get players to understand the brutality of professional sport.”The challenge is how you harness that passion and innocence and genuine love for the game and keep everything that is special in a new professional era.”If some of those 1.3 million girls who have started to play through Chance to Shine convert into cricketers we will have a more athletic talent pool. Cricket is going to be a viable option and just as normal as picking up a netball or tennis racquet. The professionalism of the game helps us achieve that, but it will not happen immediately.”

West Indies women drew level in their five-match one-day series against England, thanks to a dramatic fightback in another low-scoring contest at Trelawny Stadium

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Oct-2016West Indies 148 (Taylor 56, Hartley 4-31) beat England 110 (Dottin 4-19) by 38 runs

ScorecardDeandra Dottin sealed victory for West Indies•WICB Media/Athelstan Bellamy

West Indies women drew level in their five-match one-day series against England, thanks to a dramatic fightback in another low-scoring contest at Trelawny Stadium in Jamaica.After batting first, West Indies made 148 all out from 50 overs – one run fewer than England’s winning score at the opening fixture on the series on Saturday.England’s slow left-armer, Alex Hartley, took 4 for 31 in 10 overs to give England the upper hand, with Stafanie Taylor top-scoring with 56. In reply, England’s captain Heather Knight made 26 and Natalie Sciver 27, as England reached 107 for 4 in the 37th over.However, they then imploded in spectacular fashion, losing six wickets for three runs to collapse to 110 all out with sevenovers left unused. Deandra Dottin claimed the last four wickets for figures of 4 for 19.”Dottin came on and had a magnificent spell,” England’s Laura Marsh told the BBC. “It’s unfortunate really. We played really well for the first half but credit goes to Dottin because she’s won the game for them. We put ourselves in a brilliant position, the bowlers did a great job. We fancied chasing that score so we’re pretty disappointed.The teams now relocate to Kingston for the final three matches of the series, starting on Friday at Sabina Park.