Tag: Trent Boult

DALLAS: Trent Boult delivered a clutch all-round performance to guide MI New York to a thrilling two-wicket win over San Francisco Unicorns in the Eliminator of the Major League Cricket (MLC) 2025 at Grand Prairie Stadium on Wednesday.

The result knocked out the Unicorns, who had started the tournament with six straight wins but stumbled when it mattered most, bowing out with a disappointing finish.

Skipper Nicholas Pooran won the toss and opted to field first, a decision that paid off instantly as MI New York’s bowlers ripped through the Unicorns’ top order, leaving them reeling at 16-5 in 4.2 overs.

Trent Boult and Nosthush Kenjige shared two wickets apiece in the powerplay, while Hassan Khan was run out for a golden duck.

Cooper Connolly tried to halt the collapse with a 19-ball 23 but fell to Tristan Luus just as he began settling in.

The Unicorns found some breathing space through Xavier Bartlett, who counterattacked with a brisk 44 off 24 balls, smashing four sixes and two boundaries to lift the total.

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His resistance ended in the 18th over when Kieron Pollard struck at a crucial moment. Liam Plunkett (7) fell to Rushil Ugarkar soon after, as the Unicorns were bowled out for 131 in 19.1 overs.

Ugarkar was the pick of the bowlers, returning impressive figures of 3 for 19, while Boult and Kenjige finished with two wickets each.

In reply, MI New York got off to a solid start with Monank Patel and Quinton de Kock putting up 43 for the opening stand.

De Kock looked in good touch during his 33 off 24, hitting five boundaries, including a six, before Matthew Short dismissed him. In the same over, Short also removed Pooran for just 1, leaving MI at 45 for 2 at the end of the seventh over.

Despite the twin blows, Michael Bracewell and Monank Patel built a steady third-wicket stand of 36.

But Short returned to break the partnership once again, removing Patel for a composed 33 off 32, which included two sixes.

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That wicket triggered a collapse as MI New York lost five wickets for just 27 runs, slumping from 81-3 to 108-8.

Needing 24 off the last three overs, Boult stepped up with the bat and turned finisher, smashing an unbeaten 22, including two crucial sixes off Hassan Khan, to take MI New York over the line in the final over.

Despite a strong bowling effort that saw him claim four wickets, Hassan Khan’s two sixes to Boult in the death overs proved costly.

Matthew Short was equally effective, finishing with 3 for 22, but couldn’t prevent the Unicorns’ exit.

MI New York will now face Texas Super Kings in Qualifier 2 on July 11. The winner will meet defending champions Washington Freedom in the MLC 2025 final.

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Veteran pacer Trent Boult has confirmed that the T20 World Cup 2024 will be his final appearance for New Zealand in the marquee tournament.

Since his debut in 2011, the left-handed pacer has been a key member of the BlackCaps’ golden generation, participating in multiple finals across all three formats for New Zealand.

One of the best exports of new-ball swing from his country, Trent Boult has picked up 81 wickets in 60 matches in the T20I format at an economy of 7.76. He was NZ’s leading wicket-taker in the 2014 and 2021 editions of T20 World Cups.

“Speaking on behalf of myself, this will be my last T20 World Cup,” stated Boult, following his two for seven in a dead rubber T20 World Cup 2024 fixture against Uganda.

Whether Boult will continue to play for New Zealand in any capacity remains uncertain as he had opted out of a central contract in 2022, choosing to play T20 franchise cricket around the world instead.

Despite the huge win against Uganda and a game left in hand, New Zealand have already been eliminated from the race to Super Eight of T20 World Cup 2024 with Afghanistan and West Indies clinching the two spots from Group C.

The Blackcaps began their campaign with a 84-run loss against Afghanistan. They then lost to co-host the West Indies by 13 runs. This is the first time New Zealand have failed to reach the semi-finals of a white-ball ICC World Cup since 2014.

“I think T20 cricket anything can happen. We’re devastated to not qualify. We’ve been outplayed earlier in the tournament and, we haven’t qualified for good reason so it’s unfortunate but that’s how T20 cricket goes,” Boult said.

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Reminiscing his journey, Trent Boult spoke about his friendship with fast bowling partner Tim Southee and the bond they have forged over the years.

“I look at it with very fond memories. We bowled a lot of overs together. I know the partnership very well, and obviously a very good friend on and off the ground. So yeah, nice to wind back the clock a little bit and see a bit of swing bowling at the top. Hopefully, a couple more still to come.”

For a cricketing nation which has had a lot of success and many proud moments in the last decade, the debate on whether this is the ‘end of an era’ had risen leading into the World Cup, one that has been fuelled since their elimination, “It’s a hard one to forecast,” Trent Boult said.

“I think there’s still some tremendous talent inside that dressing room and coming through the ranks in New Zealand cricket. So, we’re a proud nation and I think it will continue to go that way,” he concluded.

New Zealand will end their T20 World Cup 2024 campaign on June 17 against PNG at the Brian Lara Cricket Stadium in Trinidad.

READ: Former cricketers react after Pakistan’s T20 World Cup exit

New Zealand cricketers Kane Williamson and Trent Boult made news with their funny moment involving Sri Lanka all-rounder Angelo Mathews during the side’s ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 fixture at Bangalore’s M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Angelo Mathews, who became the first batter in the history of cricket to be timed out in Sri Lanka’s previous World Cup clash against Bangladesh, came out to bat in the ninth over against New Zealand.

As he walked towards the pitch, Trent Boult said something which made Angelo Mathews smile.

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Then, Kiwi captain Kane Williamson joined the fun when the former Sri Lanka captain was about to take guard. He asked him if his helmet was alright.

He asked Angelo Mathews, “Got yourself a sturdy lid, mate? Strap intact?”

Angelo Mathews is the fastest man on the planet 👀 #NZLvsSL pic.twitter.com/klFn6q6YUD

— Sportsbet (@sportsbetcomau) November 9, 2023

Angelo Mathews took New Zealand captain’s remarks in good spirit and the two laughed about it.

It is pertinent to mention that Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan stirred controversy by getting Angelo Mathews dismissed “timed-out” in Monday’s ICC World Cup 2023 clash.

During the 25th over of the Sri Lanka innings, Angelo Mathews came into bat after Sadeera Samarawickrama’s dismissal. He could not secure his helmet strap tightly enough.

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His equipment malfunction led to a delay in the resumption of play. Shakib Al Hasan, as a result, appealed for the “timed-out dismissal as Angelo Mathews had not taken guard within the two-minute limit.

Officials Marais Erasmus and Richard Illingworth raised the matter with both teams amid the pandemonium. The Sri Lanka captain tried to convince the Bangladesh all-rounder but the latter did not withdraw his appeal.

As far as the action was concerned, Sri Lanka have set a target a 172-run target for the 2019 finalists in their ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 encounter. The side were dismissed for 171 in 46.4 overs.

Opener Kusal Perera was the standout batter as he scored a half-century. He struck nine boundaries and two maximums on his way to 28-ball 51.

Maheesh Theekshana went unbeaten at 38 off 91 deliveries. He put on a 43-run partnership with Dilshan Madushanka (19 from 48).

Trent Boult was the pick of New Zealand bowlers with his superb figures of 3-37 in 10 overs. His fellow pacer Lockie Ferguson along with spin duo Mitchell Santner and Rachin Ravindra took three wickets each.

READ: England crush Netherlands to boost Champions Trophy 2025 hopes

CHRISTCHURCH: New Zealand Cricket (NZC) on Wednesday agreed to release Trent Boult from the central contract upon his request as the left-arm pacer wants to spend more time with his family and make himself available for franchise cricket. 

Boult’s international career is likely to take a toll by the decision as NZC prefers the centrally contracted players for the selection in the national team, however, the board will not overlook the pacer for the upcoming T20 world cup in Australia.

“We’ve had several conversations and I know Trent understands that, in terms of selection, NZC will continue to make a priority of those players with either central or domestic contracts,” said NZC chief executive David White according to a statement released by NZC.

NZC chief said the left-arm pacer had made it clear during conversations with the board that his desire for travelling had diminished and that he wanted more time for his family.

The 33-year-old, who has been a vital part of Blackcaps over the last decade and is currently the top-ranked ODI bowler, said the decision had been tough for him.

“Playing cricket for my country was a childhood dream and I’m so proud of everything I’ve been able to achieve with the BLACKCAPS over the past 12 years,” he said

“Ultimately this decision is about my wife Gert and our three young boys. Family has always been the biggest motivator for me and I feel comfortable with putting it first and preparing ourselves for life after cricket.”

While Boult was aware that his decision would have an impact on his international career, he believed the time had come to move on to the next phase.

“I still have a big desire to represent my country and feel I have the skills to deliver at the international level,” he said. “However, I respect the fact that not having a national contract will affect my chances of selection.”

Having said that, as a fast bowler I know I have a limited career span, and I feel the time is right to move into this next phase.” he concluded.

Reportedly, Boult’s participation in one of the new T20 leagues, either the UAE or South Africa, will be announced soon.

It is pertinent to mention here that the speedster has represented Black Caps in the 78 Tests, 93 ODIs and 44 Tests while taking an overall 548 international wickets so far including 317 scalps in the red-ball cricket

READ: Yadav fails to dethrone Babar from top slot in T20I rankings

DUBAI: Left-arm New Zealand pacer Trent Boult has reclaimed the top spot in the latest ICC Men’s ODI bowling rankings by dethroning Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah.

Bumrah, who rose to the top berth in the bowling rankings last week, could only lead the chart for a mere seven days as his decision to sit out in the final ODI against England, resulted in him losing crucial rating points.

As a result of him resting in the final ODI, Kiwi pacer Boult edged past Bumrah to claim the top spot by a thin margin of a mere one rating point.

The left-arm New Zealand pacer leads the bowling chart with 704 rating points, followed by Bumrah, who is sitting in the second position with 703.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi has managed to maintain his third spot in the updated ODI bowling rankings.

Pakistan captain Babar Azam and left-handed batter Imam-ul-Haq, on the other hand, continued their domination in the batting rankings as the duo hold the top two spots respectively.

All-rounder Imad Wasim, however, still managed to hold his 10th spot firm in the ODI all-rounders’ rankings despite massive changes and playing his last match in November 2020.

READ: Records tumble as Pakistan seal historic victory over Sri Lanka in first Test 

NOTTINGHAM: New Zealand’s left-arm pacer Trent Boult broke one of the unique batting records in Test cricket as he has scored the most runs by a player batting at number 11. 

Boult achieved the feat on the final of the second Test match against England when he scored 17 runs to take his tally to 640 runs while batting as the Jack. He surpassed the previous record of 623 runs by Sri Lakan legendary spinner Muttiah Muralitharan.

“I’ve had my eye on this record for 10-and-a-half years now.” sneered Boult after breaking the record of most runs by batting at Number 11.

Boult was dismissed by England’s pacer James Anderson, wrapping up New Zealand’s second inning on 284. England need 299 runs on the final day to take a 2-0 lead in the series.

The left-arm pacer has made appearances in 76 Test matches and accounted for 305 wickets during his Test career.

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