Category: Cricket

Matt Renshaw’s all-round show with an unbeaten 89 and a wicket helped Australia with a seven-run win over Bangladesh in the second T20 in Chattogram on Friday to seal the three-match series.

Renshaw’s career-best score after Australia won the toss and decided to bat first helped the visitors reach 196-5, which they defended in a last-over thriller, with Bangladesh only managing 189-6.

Chasing 197, Bangladesh made a blistering start through openers Tanzid Hasan and Saif Hassan, who put on 48 in just 3.4 overs to raise hopes of a series-levelling win.

Tanzid smashed 30 off 15 balls with four fours and a six before Renshaw made the breakthrough, taking a sharp return catch off his own bowling.

Soumya Sarkar kept up the momentum as Bangladesh raced to 72-1 at the end of the powerplay, but Adam Zampa removed him for 15 to slow the charge.

Parvez Hossain Emon then counter-attacked, hammering 36 off 22 balls and combining with Saif in a 53-run stand to keep Bangladesh on course.

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But Australia came back in the game when Aaron Hardie dismissed Emon, with captain Mitchell Marsh taking a running catch at cover, before Joel Davies removed the set Saif for 42.

Bangladesh needed 63 runs off the last 40 balls, with captain Towhid Hridoy holding the line.

Hridoy fought till the end with a brisk 35 off 22 balls, sharing a 36-run stand with Abdul Gaffar Saqlain, but was caught on the boundary with Bangladesh needing eight off the last ball of the chase.

“We were moving according to plan,” Emon said after the game.

“I felt the biggest damage was my wicket and Saif’s wicket falling back-to-back,” he added. “We fell a bit behind there, otherwise it was looking very good.”

Australia’s Hardie took two wickets, while Nathan Ellis, Renshaw, Zampa and Davies claimed one each.

Earlier, Renshaw’s innings lifted the visitors after they stumbled to 44-3 inside the powerplay.

Josh Inglis and Marsh gave the tourists a brisk start before Nasum Ahmed dismissed Inglis for 11 and Nahid Rana removed the in-form Cooper Connolly for one.

Mustafizur Rahman then sent back Marsh for 20 on the final ball of the powerplay.

Renshaw rebuilt with Tim David, whose 45 off 26 balls came in a match-defining 97-run stand.

“It’s nice to get a couple of wins and wrap up the series after two games,” Renshaw said after the game.

The T20 series win comes after Australia’s shock 2-1 loss in the preceding one-day international series earlier this month.

“Yeah, a little bit,” Renshaw said when asked if the result felt like settling scores.

“The one-day series, it was a few really good games,” he added. “It felt like every game we were just a little bit shy.”

READ: Arsenal to kick off Premier League title defence against Coventry

England captain Ben Stokes could return to Test duty as soon as next week’s series finale against New Zealand, several British media outlets reported Thursday.

Stokes and England team-mate Gus Atkinson were both stood down from the ongoing second Test at the Oval after breaking a team curfew following the hosts’ win in the series opener at Lord’s.

That decision led to a flurry of speculation over his international future amid concerns the 35-year-old all-rounder might be stripped of the England captaincy, stand down by himself or even walk away from representing his country permanently.

But both the BBC and Britain’s Press Association news agency reported Thursday that Stokes could rejoin the England squad for the third and final Test against New Zealand at Nottingham’s Trent Bridge as inquiries by both the England and Wales Cricket Board and the independent Cricket Regulator head towards a conclusion.

Stokes has been England’s captain for the past four years. His close friend and predecessor Joe Root has stepped back into the role at the Oval but made it clear he was doing so merely on a “game-by-game basis”.

Stokes is set to return to senior cricket action on Friday as a member of the Durham side playing Northamptonshire in a Second Division County Championship at Chester-le-Street.

His lone public comment since the ECB acknowledged the curfew breach has been to wish England and their three debutants at the Oval well in a brief Instagram message.

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England coach Brendon McCullum appeared to raise concerns over Stokes’s mental well-being in a pre-Test press conference, where he repeatedly voiced “worry” and “concern” for his absent captain.

England great Ian Botham earlier suggested Stokes might decide to quit cricket completely should he be removed from the role of Test captain.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if Ben did lose the captaincy; he probably might walk away from the game, but I just don’t know,” Botham told the Overlap podcast’s Stick to Cricket show.

England faced allegations of a drinking culture during a woeful 4-1 series loss in Australia during the 2025/26 Ashes.

Before the Ashes, white-ball captain Harry Brook was punched by a nightclub bouncer in Wellington ahead of a one-day international against New Zealand.

As a result, England imposed a midnight curfew on all players and staff, with the 70-year-old Botham, one of the outstanding all-rounders of his generation, saying there was no defence for this latest incident.

“Some people just don’t learn, do they?”, he added. “I really can’t see how you can justify what happened after the game.”

READ: Glenn Phillips’ century puts New Zealand in command against England

Aaliyah Alleyne’s late three-wicket burst helped West Indies survive a huge scare at Headingley on Thursday as they beat Scotland by just seven runs to secure a second win in the Women’s T20 World Cup.

The 31-year-old medium-pacer dismissed Darcey Carter, Ailsa Lister, and Kirstie Gordon in the penultimate over of the Group B encounter after Carter’s half-century had given the Scots real hope of chasing down a target of 154.

Tight bowling from West Indies spinners Hayley Matthews and Afy Fletcher, who between them took 5-35, slowed Scotland’s charge before Alleyne turned the screw.

Carter and Katherine Fraser smashed 51 from the first five overs, with the former making 59 off her own bat.

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But despite her fine innings, Scotland were bowled out for 146.

Earlier, the West Indies were indebted to Stefanie Taylor for the veteran’s unbeaten 19-ball 47, which included three sixes and four fours, as they made 153-6 after slumping to 85-5 in the 15th over.

This was 2016 champions West Indies’ second successive victory of the tournament after they launched their Group B campaign with a seven-wicket defeat of title-holders New Zealand.

READ: Glenn Phillips’ century puts New Zealand in command against England

Matt Henry captured the prize wickets of England stand-in captain Joe Root and Harry Brook at the Oval on Thursday as New Zealand built on Glenn Phillips’s maiden Test century.

England slumped to 222-6 at stumps on the second day of the second Test in reply to New Zealand’s first-innings 391, a deficit of 169 runs.

Henry was troubled by back spasms during England’s 115-run win in the first Test of this three-match series at Lord’s a fortnight ago.

But the fast bowler had both Root (46) and Brook (24) lbw just when it seemed the pair were about to cut loose, with Henry having taken 2-57 in 16 overs at the close in south London.

Root was leading England for a record-extending 65th Test after Ben Stokes, his successor as captain, was dropped from the side for breaking curfew following victory at Lord’s.

White-ball skipper Brook has long been England’s designated Test vice-captain.

But he was not put in charge at the Oval after his late-night drinking exploits in Wellington in November, ahead of a woeful 4-1 Ashes series loss, prompted team chiefs to impose the curfew in the first place.

After Phillips was out for exactly 100 to end New Zealand’s innings, England’s Ben Duckett made a fluent 36 off just 25 balls, only to be run out by Nathan Smith’s direct hit from mid-off after opening partner Emilio Gay set off for a needless single.

Smith then had Jacob Bethell caught for nine by wicket-keeper Tom Blundell off a ball that nipped away.

Gay put the run-out mix-up behind him to compile a second fifty in as many Tests following a debut half-century at Lord’s.

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But Gay faced just two more balls, edging to Blundell while trying to evade a rising delivery from Will O’Rourke.

Brook stepped outside leg stump to carve O’Rourke over point for an outrageous six, with Root stroking boundaries in more orthodox fashion.

But Henry, with Blundell standing up to the stumps to keep the batsmen in their crease, had the home captain plumb lbw.

And 170-4 soon became 177-5 when Henry got another ball to nip back off the seam to remove Brook.

Wicket-keeper James Rew, one of three England debutants, gloved an intended pull off O’Rourke to slip.

Earlier, Phillips received fine support from Kyle Jamieson (41) in an eighth-wicket partnership of 87 as the pair capitalised on wayward England bowling and sloppy fielding.

Phillips, dubbed the “energiser bunny” by team-mate Daryl Mitchell, top-edged a pull to reach a 76-ball fifty.

Jamieson should have been out for 15 when his swipe off debutant fast bowler Sonny Baker sailed gently to deep midwicket, only for Duckett to drop a simple chance.

England, however, over-did the short-ball ploy, Root failing to call a halt to their naive tactics as New Zealand blasted 74 runs in 12 overs.

Phillips’s single off Jofra Archer saw the all-rounder to a century, his first in his 19-Test career, before he holed out off Matthew Fisher.

READ: Nida Dar available for Pakistan selection after mental health break

Pakistan off-spinner Nida Dar has confirmed her availability for the national side after taking an indefinite break from cricket for mental health reasons.

The former captain announced her return through a social media post, noting that she had regained her strength and was available for selection.

“After taking time to focus on myself and regain my strength, I am happy to share that I am back and available for the Pakistan Cricket Team once again,” Nida Dar wrote on X.

“Ready to give my best, work hard, and contribute whenever the team needs me. Thank you to everyone who supported me during this journey.”

The 39-year-old was left out of the national side’s squad for the 2025 ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifiers held in Pakistan. Following her omission, Dar announced that she was taking a break from cricket to focus on her mental health.

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“I would like to inform that a lot of things have happened in the past with me personally and professionally and this has affected my mental health,” Dar had said. “For this reason I am taking a break from cricket for a while to focus on myself.”

Overall, Dar has played 112 ODIs and 160 T20Is for Pakistan since her maiden appearance in 2010. She last played for the Green Shirts at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2025 against New Zealand.

For those unaware, Pakistan is currently taking part in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, underway in England and Wales.

The Green Shirts had a dismal start to their campaign, losing both of their opening matches to South Africa and India.

Pakistan will play against Bangladesh on 20 June at Southampton.

READ: Veteran journalist and former cricketer Qamar Ahmed passes away

KARACHI: Former first-class cricketer and legendary broadcaster Qamar Ahmed passed away in Karachi at the age of 88.

Born in Mughal Serai, Ahmed was regarded as one of Pakistan’s renowned cricket journalists and broadcasters. He began his journalism career in London after ending a promising first-class cricket career in Pakistan in the 1950s.

A left-arm spinner, he claimed 36 wickets in 17 first-class matches while pushing for a Pakistan call-up, notably for the 1957-58 tour of the Caribbean. However, being based in Hyderabad meant he remained outside the radar of selectors, who at the time focused largely on the urban centers of Lahore and Karachi.

Despite this, he holds the rare record of having dismissed all the Mohammad brothers, including Hanif, Sadiq, and Mushtaq.

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During a journalism and broadcasting career spanning seven decades, he traveled around the globe to cover international matches and worked for renowned news outlets.

He also worked as a broadcaster for various TV channels and radio stations, including TVNZ during the 1992 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, which Pakistan won. Notably, he covered every World Cup until the 2007 edition in West Indies.

After that, he stopped covering ODIs and focused on Test cricket. He reached the landmark of covering his 400th match as a journalist during the Pakistan-Sri Lanka Test in Sharjah in 2014.

Qamar Ahmed had the unique distinction of witnessing landmark moments in cricket history, including Sunil Gavaskar’s 10,000th run, Richard Hadlee’s 400th wicket, Anil Kumble’s 10-wicket haul in an innings, and the 1000th and 2000th Test matches in 2011.

READ: The Hundred: Fatima Sana picked in landmark signing

Fatima Sana on Thursday became the first woman cricketer from Pakistan to be selected in The Hundred after being signed in the wildcard draft. 

Pakistan captain and all-rounder Sana will replace Australia’s Lucy Hamilton, who withdrew from the tournament to manage her workload.

Sana will receive the Hundred’s minimum salary of  £15,000 (5.6 million PKR approx.), though her participation might be affected by Pakistan’s upcoming tour to Sri Lanka from 23 July to 4 August.

Following her signing, Birmingham Phoenix performance director James Thomas hailed Sana and said that Lucy Hamilton was unavailable due to her commitments with Australia.

“Signing Fatima Sana is a real statement of intent,” he said.

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“She is Pakistan’s captain, an international-class pace bowler and a brilliant replacement for Lucy Hamilton, who is unavailable due to her Australia commitments,” he added.

A day earlier, Fatima Sana delivered an impressive all-round performance against South Africa in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026. Despite her heroics, Pakistan fell short in defense of 128 in 20 overs. She first rescued her side from a precarious 50-8  with an unbeaten  55* off 38 balls. and followed it up with a three-wicket haul.

It is worth noting that Sana is the third Pakistani player to play in the Hundred this year. She will join Usman Tariq at the Phoenix, whereas mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed will represent Sunrisers Leeds.

Men’s Hundred wildcards (£31,000)

Welsh Fire: Jordan Clark, Dillon Pennington
Southern Brave: Manny Lumsden, Saif Zaib
The Manchester Super Giants: James Sales, Adam Finch
London Spirit: Henry Crocombe, Kiran Carlson
Birmingham Phoenix: Tom Helm, Sean Dickson
MI London: Eddie Jack, Sebastian Morgan
Sunrisers Leeds: Matty Revis, Charlie Allison
Trent Rockets: Ben Raine, Ben Sanderson.

Women’s Hundred wildcards (£15,000)

Birmingham Phoenix: Mary Taylor, Fatima Sana
Welsh Fire: Niamh Fiona Holland, Georgia Davis
London Spirit: Trudy Johnson, Liv Barnes
Trent Rockets: Amu Surenkumar, Eve Jones
The Manchester Super Giants: Mia Rogers, Beth Langston
MI London: Kate Coppack, Francesca Sweet
Southern Brave: Naomi Dattani, Katherine Fraser
Sunrisers Leeds: Darcey Carter, Sophia Turner.

READ: Why BCCI wants to start IPL 2027 earlier than usual?

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is planning to shift the Indian Premier League (IPL) window earlier from the 2027 season, in a move aimed at reducing the impact of extreme summer heat on players and spectators.

Under the proposed plan, the tournament could begin around March 10 and conclude by May 15, nearly two weeks earlier than the traditional schedule, which typically runs from late March to the end of May or early June.

For comparison, IPL 2026 was played from March 28 to May 31, continuing the established window that has been in place for several seasons.

However, BCCI officials are now actively exploring an earlier start, citing concerns over increasingly harsh weather conditions during the final stages of the tournament.

BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said the adjustment is intended to improve both playing and viewing conditions, particularly in the latter half of the competition.

He noted that the end of the IPL season often overlaps with rising temperatures as well as the onset of pre-monsoon conditions, making it difficult for matches to be played in comfortable conditions.

“This year, IPL started around March 28 and ended on May 31. During the fag end of the tournament, after May 15, there is apprehension of rainfall or the pre-monsoon season starting,” Saikia said.

“On the other hand, there is hot weather, which is not conducive either for the players or the crowds.”

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He added that the board has instructed its General Manager (Game Development), Abbey Kuruvilla, to evaluate scheduling options for the revised window, which the BCCI hopes to implement from the 20th edition in 2027.

Saikia also acknowledged concerns raised by both players and fans regarding extreme weather conditions, particularly in the northern and western parts of India during late-season fixtures.

Since expanding to a 10-team format in 2022, the IPL has featured 74 matches per season, with each franchise playing a mix of single and double round-robin fixtures.

While there has been discussion about further expansion to a 94-match format, Saikia said the packed international calendar makes such a move impractical at present.

He emphasised that balancing international commitments with franchise cricket continues to limit the available window for the tournament.

“That is not feasible right at this moment because we have to consider players coming from various nations. With great difficulty, we are getting this two-month window,” he said.

To support the revised schedule, the BCCI is also expected to adjust the domestic cricket calendar so that the season concludes by March 10, allowing the IPL to begin immediately after.

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BIRMINGHAM: Fatima Sana’s valiant all-round performance went in vain as South Africa edged Pakistan by two wickets in a thrilling Women’s World Cup 2026 clash at Edgbaston on Wednesday.

Chasing 127, South Africa reached the target in 16.5 overs, surviving a late scare after appearing to be in complete control for much of the innings

The Proteas were comfortably placed at 76-2 at the halfway mark before Pakistan fought back strongly. The moment shifted dramatically as South Africa lost three wickets for just 17 runs.

South Africa slipped further to 107-8, but Nadine de Klerk held her nerve with a clinical unbeaten 37 from 28 balls, including six fours, to guide her side over the line.

For Pakistan, Fatima Sana bowled her heart out, picking up a three-wicket haul in 2.5 overs while giving away 16.

South Africa restricted Pakistan to 126-9 in 20 overs. Skipper Fatima Sana hit an unbeaten 55 off 38 balls, striking half a dozen fours and two sixes to take her side to a respectable total.

At one stage, Green Shirts were reeling at 50-8 in 11 overs, but Fatima Sana and Tuba Hassan shared a record 71-run stand for the ninth wicket for Pakistan to revive the innings. Tuba contributed 23 from 27 balls.

For South Africa, Marizanne Kapp played a crucial role with the ball and picked up three wickets.

Earlier, Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma ran riot as India thrashed the Netherlands by 95 runs.

Mandhana and Verma put on 115 for the first wicket, setting the foundation for India’s imposing total of 209-5 in Leeds.

Smashing 11 fours and one six, Mandhana top scored with 74 from 47 balls, while her fellow opener Verma hit 10 fours in her innings of 55.

India’s run spree left the Netherlands with little hope of a successful run chase.

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Dutch captain Babette de Leede was their leading scorer with 28, but Verma followed her dynamic display with the bat by taking three wickets.

Sree Charani finished off India’s one-sided victory with four wickets from her four overs.

India have won their first two games of the tournament in England after beating arch-rivals Pakistan in their opener.

Georgia Voll starred for Australia in a nine-wicket win over Bangladesh at Headingley.

Voll blasted six fours and one six in her unbeaten 45 from 32 balls, guiding Australia to their target of 78 for the loss of one wicket with more than 10 overs to spare.

Bangladesh mustered only 77-8 from their 20 overs, with Sophie Molineux, Kim Garth, and Ellyse Perry taking two wickets each.

Australia made it their successive wins to start the tournament after their 65-run victory over South Africa on Saturday.

Bangladesh had beaten the Netherlands in their opening match.

READ: New Zealand fight back against England on opening day

Tom Blundell hit New Zealand’s first fifty of the series, and Glenn Phillips posted an unbeaten 49 as the tourists fought back against England on an intriguing opening day of the second Test at the Oval on Wednesday.

The Black Caps were 291-7 at stumps as England looked to put the Ben Stokes saga behind them.

Blundell made 51 and shared valuable partnerships of 81 with Daryl Mitchell (44) and 75 with Phillips after New Zealand, sent into bat, had slumped to 107-4.

This was a much-improved New Zealand batting display following their 115-run defeat in the first of a three-match series at Lord’s earlier this month.

But on day where four quicks did the bulk of the bowling, it was all-rounder Jacob Bethell’s left-arm spin that did for Blundell, deceived by a slower, flighted delivery he miscued to stand-in England skipper Joe Root at short midwicket.

Blundell’s exit came two deliveries after he completed an 82-ball fifty on an an Oval pitch with far more pace and bounce than the one at Lord’s, where New Zealand were dismissed for just 113 and 138 in difficult batting conditions.

Bethell also had Nathan Smith top-edging a sweep before the close in a return of 2-8 in five overs.

Fast bowler Sonny Baker — one of three debutants in the England side — marked his introduction to Test cricket with an encouraging 2-63 in 15 after the 23-year-old Hampshire quick managed an impressive speed of 88 mph (142 kph) in his first over.

England dropped captain Stokes and Gus Atkinson after the pair broke a team curfew after a morale-boosting win at Lord’s that followed their humiliating 4-1 Ashes series loss in Australia.

The duo stayed out in a late-night drinking session, which reportedly ended in a physical confrontation involving a Saracens rugby player.

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England made five changes, with Baker, batter Jordan Cox, and wicket-keeper James Rew — a late call-up after Jamie Smith withdrew on Tuesday following the birth of his second child — all making their debuts.

Ollie Robinson, who took seven wickets at Lord’s, was ruled out through injury, while Jofra Archer returned following his IPL commitments to spearhead England’s pace attack.

Playing in only his second Test, four years after his debut, Matthew Fisher had Devon Conway caught behind by Rew, rewarding the selectors’ decision to pick him instead of dropped spinner Shoaib Bashir.

Henry Nicholls has been given the unenviable task of replacing Kane Williamson at number three.

Williamson announced his retirement from international cricket with immediate effect following the series opener.

Archer had New Zealand captain Tom Latham brilliantly caught by Bethell, diving high to his right at gully, for 27, with Nicholls out for 24 when he played on to fast bowler Josh Tongue.

Rachin Ravindra made an attractive 33, with 24 runs in boundaries, before he was well caught by Bethell off Baker as the sun broke through initially grey skies in south London.

The Black Caps were 188-5 soon after tea when Mitchell, to his evident frustration, holed out off Baker to end a 74-ball innings featuring six fours.

New batter Phillips, hit Baker for two boundaries off successive deliveries — a short ball slapped over cover followed by a glorious drive through extra cover.

READ: Women’s World Cup: India rout Netherlands, Australia brush aside Bangladesh