Sports
Saumy Pandey leads India to victory; England ease past Scotland
Bangladesh Under-19s, who had beaten India Under-19s in the Asia Cup in December last year, threatened to cause another stir when left-arm seamer Maruf Mridha took five wickets in the Under-19 World Cup in Bloemfontein. Maruf’s strikes kept India to 251 for 7, but Saumy Pandey trumped Maruf with 4 for 24 and bowled his team to victory.
Musheer Khan the younger brother of Sarfaraz Khan, pitched in with two wickets, including that of Mohammed Shihab James who top-scored for Bangladesh with 54 off 77 balls. The rest of the batters collapsed around James as Bangladesh were bowled out for 167 in 45.5 overs. Musheer also effected a direct-hit to sink Bangladesh. Pandey was the most economical bowler on the day, conceding just 2.44 an over.
Earlier in the day, India’s innings was built around half-centuries from opener Adarsh Singh (76 off 96) and captain Uday Saharan (64 off 94). Aravelly Avinash (23 off 17), who was picked by Chennai Super Kings in the IPL 2024 auction, and Sachin Dhas (26 off 20) then gave the innings some late impetus.
Brief scores:
India Under-19s 251 for 7 in 50 overs (Adarsh Singh 76, Uday Saharan 64, Aravelly Avinash 23, Priyanshu Moliya 23, Sachin Dhas 26*; Maruf Mridha 5-43) beat Bangladesh Under-19s 167 in 45.5 overs (Mohammad Shihab James 54, Ariful Islam 41; Saumy Pandey 4-24, Musheer Khan 2-35) by 84 runs
Ubaid Shah the younger brother of Naseem Shah, and Mohammad Zeeshan who has been part of Peshawar Zalmi in the PSL, took seven wickets between them to skittle Afghanistan Under-19s for 103 in their chase of 285 in East London.
Opener batting Shahzaib Khan had laid the platform for Pakistan Under-19s’ 181-run victory with 106 off 126 balls. His knock contained ten fours and three sixes. He added 92 for the third wicket with Saad Baig, who hit 55 off 52 balls, to set Pakistan up for a big total. Khalil Ahmed was the pick of the bowlers for Afghanistan, returning 4 for 51 in his ten overs.
Pakistan’s total looked even bigger when Ubaid and Zeeshan ripped through Afghanistan’s top and middle orders. Wicketkeeper-batter Numan Shah was the only Afghanistan batter to pass 25 in the chase. Amir Hassan and Ahmed Hussain picked up a wicket each as Pakistan bundled Afghanistan out in 26.2 overs.
England Under-19s enjoyed a winning start to the Under-19 World Cup, easing past Scotland Under-19s in Potch
Luc Benkenstein the son of former South Africa international Dale, sealed the victory with an unbeaten cameo after setting it up for England with a three-wicket haul. Farban Ahmed who is the brother of England international Rehan, also bagged a three-wicket haul to help England dismiss Scotland for 174.
Captain Ben McKinney then hit 88 off 68 balls to rush his side to victory, with seven wickets and 142 balls to spare. He forged a 106-run partnership for the first wicket with Jaydn Denly, who made 40 off 50 balls.
After Scotland were asked to bat first, they never got going and lost wickets in clusters. They didn’t even have a single half-century stand in their entire innings. Owen Gould top-scored for them with 48 off 61 balls, including five fours and a six. The other nine batters scored a combined five boundaries. Harry Armstrong was absent hurt for Scotland.
Brief scores:
England Under-19s 178 for 3 in 26.2 overs (Ben McKinney 88, Jaydn Denly 40; Ibrahim Faisal 2-30) beat Scotland Under-19s 174 in 49.2 overs (Owen Gould 48,Jamie Dunk 40; Farhan Ahmed 3-22, Luc Benkenstein 3-41) by seven wickets
(Cricinfo)
The Rose Bowl, which has been awarded to the winner of ODI series between the women’s teams of Australia and New Zealand since 1985, has now been expanded to include T20Is as well.
New Zealand’s three match T20I tour of Australia, which begins on Sunday at the North Sydney Oval, will be the first T20I edition of the Rose Bowl. The teams will get to face off again for the trophy in March 2027 when they meet again for three ODIs, also in Australia.
For Rose Bowl series that include matches in both white-ball formats, the trophy will go to the team with the most wins overall. In case of a drawn series, the current holder will retain the trophy.
“The Rose Bowl is a prestigious trophy that holds a lot of meaning to current and past players, and it’s a series we’ve always taken a lot of pride in competing in,”Catherine Campbell, NZC’s chief cricket operations officer and a former New Zealand player, said. “With so much T20I cricket now being played, this is a brilliant opportunity to keep the Rose Bowl relevant and to build on the history between us and our Australian rivals.”
New Zealand captain Melie Kerr was excited by the broadening of opportunities to compete for the Rose Bowl.
“We’re all aware of what the Rose Bowl represents and the importance it holds in the White Ferns whakapapa [genealogy],” said Kerr. “Great players and teams have fought for it over the years and we’d love the opportunity to claim our own piece of that history.”
Australia have held the Rose Bowl continuously since wresting it back from New Zealand in 2000. Since that 3-0 win, Australia have won 18 times with one series – in 2008-09 – shared 2-2. Overall, Australia have won 26 of the 31 ODI series played for the Rose Bowl, with New Zealand winning three times and three series drawn.
North Sydney will host all three T20Is of the upcoming Rose Bowl series, on October 18, 20 and 22.
[Cricinfo]
The inaugural Sastralian Premier League (SPL), a T10 cricket tournament aimed at strengthening the cricketing fortunes of Ananda Shasthralaya National School, Matugama, will get underway next month, bringing together eight teams.
Organised by the Old Sastralians Cricket Association in collaboration with the school, the tournament is designed to provide a platform for emerging talent while generating much needed financial support for the school’s cricket development programme.
Each franchise will be required to assemble a squad of 16 players, excluding the captain, with the competition featuring a unique set of regulations aimed at encouraging participation across different age groups.
Cricketers from other schools in the Matugama area will also have an opportunity to showcase their skills under the ‘Guest Players’ category. Each team can recruit up to six guest players, with four required to feature in the playing XI.
In a move designed to nurture the next generation, every team must include two current school cricketers in its squad, with at least one guaranteed a place in the playing XI.
The tournament will also accommodate experienced campaigners, with teams permitted to select five players over the age of 20 and three over 40. The provision to use an ‘Impact Player’ is another feature of the competition.
The eight teams have been divided into two groups. Group A comprises JSD Challengers, Jagath Express, Liveka Power Lions and Rexhill Warriors, while JPI Royals, Five Star Heroes, Marine Titans and Finnk Falcons make up Group B.
A total of 16 matches will be played across November 7, 8 and 15, with November 16 set aside as a reserve day.
Beyond the action on the field, organisers hope the tournament will provide a financial boost to school cricket while forging stronger ties between past and present cricketers.
Squad for the first three ODIs: Shubman Gill [C], Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer [VC], KL Rahul [WK], Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Naman Dhir, Anshul Kamboj, Gurnoor Brar, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Arshdeep Singh, Ishan Kishan [WK], Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna*, Kuldeep Yadav
Squad for fourth and fifth ODIs: Shreyas Iyer [C], Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan [WK, VC], Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Naman Dhir, Auqib Nabi, Gurnoor Brar, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Arshdeep Singh, Kumar Kushagra [WK], Mohammed Siraj, Yash Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav
[Cricbuzz]
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