Sports

Brook, Livingstone, seamers square series in style with 186-run rout

Published

2 years ago

2024/09/28

Priyan

Harry Brook reached a 37-ball fifty to lead England's innings [Cricinfo]

England produced an electric all-round display to set up a series decider at Bristol on Sunday, as they thrashed Australia by 186 runs at Lord’s.Harry Brook’s sublime 87 formed the backbone of the innings which was capped off by the thunderous hitting of Liam Livingstone in a ground-record 25-ball half-century. Joffra Archer then briefly rekindled memories of 2019 with the best spell of his latest comeback, while Mathew Potts bagged a career-best 4 for 38 in an overwhelming performance.

Harking back to last year’s dramatic Ashes Test, there was also, briefly, a moment with an Australian wicketkeeper in the spotlight. On 17, Brook glanced Mitchell Starc down the leg side and was given out but queried whether the catch had carried to Josh Inglis, who had been recalled to the side after injury. The replays showed the ball pitching just before his gloves. The crowd booed as the pictures came on the big screen, accompanied by a few chants of ‘same old Aussies, always cheating’, but it was a tame interlude compared to 2023.

Following his maiden ODI hundred in Durham, Brook cruised to a 37-ball fifty, adding 79 in 53 balls for the third wicket with Ben Duckett and 75 in 47 with Jamie Smith for the fourth, as England went through the gears in a game cut to 39 overs by heavy morning rain. Livingstone produced a grandstand finish to the innings with a mighty display of striking, including four sixes off the last over bowled by Starc, whose 28 runs conceded amounted to the most expensive over by an Australian bowler in men’s ODIs. England amassed 156 off their last 15 overs.

Travis Head and Mitchell Marsh gave the daunting chase a promising start – Head launching a gigantic pull out of the ground over the Tavern Stand – and after the eight-over powerplay Australia were 66 without loss compared to England’s 34 without loss. Overall, the 16 sixes hit in the match was a record for a Lord’s ODI. However, sustaining the tempo was a tall order. Head swung across the line at Brydon Carse and Steven Smith edged an ugly charge at Potts.

Then Archer produced something special. An off-cutter at 88.2mph initially shaped in at Marsh before straightening to beat the edge and clatter off stump. It was a gem of a delivery to give Archer his first Lord’s wicket since 2019 and he rightly wheeled away in celebration. When his next ball clattered into the forearm of Marnus Labuschagne, the 2019 flashbacks were in full flow, albeit in coloured clothes, and Archer also added Glenn Maxwell during Australia’s collapse

Before long, however, his ball to Marsh had a contender for delivery of the game (or series) when Carse found an unplayable offering to flatten Labuschagne’s off stump. It was a collective effort from England’s quicks who shared nine wickets – Potts taking three wickets in four balls to rush through the lower order – before Adil Rashid finished things off.

Under heavy cloud, the ball nipped around early after England had been put into bat. Phil Salt fell shortly after the powerplay, skewing the excellent Josh Hazlewood to backward point, and Will Jacks picked out the same fielder to give Marsh a wicket in his second over – the first he had bowled since April 3. On a day when Cameron Green was revealed to have a back injury, it was not insignificant that Marsh was back with the ball.

Brook initially appeared to be playing a different game to the other batters, as he skipped out of the blocks with three leg-side boundaries prior to his near-dismissal, and England’s momentum built around him. Sean Abbott’s expensive series continued – by the end of the innings his combined figures for three outings were 19.4-0-165-0 – while both Brook and Duckett took on Adam Zampa as well as the other overs of spin from Maxwell and Labuschagne.

Duckett, who had offered a tough return catch to Starc before scoring, sent Zampa over long-on for six before moving to a hard-working 51-ball half-century one ball later, before top-edging the legspinner to deep backward square. Smith continued the aggressive approach against Zampa, sending him over wide long-on, and Brook added a second six in the same over to deep midwicket. The 12 overs of spin went for 106.

A moment of absent-mindedness nearly did for Smith when he only just avoided being run out when he didn’t run his bat in at the non-striker’s end, although the ball ended up costing Australia six runs as the deflection went to the rope. by then, Brook was challenging for England’s fastest ODI hundred at Lord’s – 61 balls by Jos Buttler – but picked out long-on as Zampa ended his stay from his 58th.

Smith fell in the next over, slicing Maxwell to short third, but any concerns the innings may limp to a finish vanished as Livingstone provided stunning late power. A huge blow over midwicket off Hazlewood was followed by the dismantling of Starc’s figures, including two sixes into the pavilion, to the increasingly joyous roars of a large crowd. Unlike last summer, an England-Australia series goes to the final game 2-2, although the weather in Bristol may yet have the final say.

Brief scores:
England 312 for 5 in 39 overs (Phil Salt 22, Harry Brook 87, Ben Duckett 63, Jamie Smith 39, Liam Livingstone 62*; Adam Zampa 2-66) beat Australia 126 in 24.4 overs (Mitchell Marsh 28,Travis Head 34, Mathew Potts 4-38, Brydon Carse 3-36, Jofra Archer 2-33) by 186 runs

[Cricinfo]

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Sports

Athapaththu and Dilhari muscle Sri Lanka past Malaysia in mismatch

Published

11 hours ago

2026/09/19

Thilina Walpola

Kavisha Dilhari scored a quick unbeaten 44 and then picked up two wickets [Asian Cricket Council]

The quarter-finals of the Asian Games women’s competition, putting top-notch teams against teams without much experience of playing at the highest level, were expected to be mismatches. It took till the third game – Bangladesh vs China was washed out and Thailand gave Pakistan a fright for a proper one-side affair, though, as Sri Lanka bashed 160 after opting to bat, and their bowlers then stopped Malaysia 86 runs short.

Fresh off their appearance in the final of the Women’s T20 Asia Cup, Sri Lanka were always expected to dominate, but it didn’t quite start the way they wanted, with Imesha Dulani run out for another low score in the third over – she hasn’t topped 25 in eight innings since her century against Pakistan on July 31.

Chamari Athapaththu, however, stitched together an 80-run stand off just 53 balls with Hasini Perera for the second wicket, scoring 56 runs in 27 balls to Perera’s 23 in 26 in the collaboration. After the two batters fell, Kavisha Dilhari played a similar role to Athapaththu in the stand with Harshitha Samarawickrama, scoring 36 in 19 in a stand worth 62 in 37 balls.

Athapaththu top-scored with 63 in 37 balls, while Dilhari’s unbeaten 44 came off just 27 balls. For Malaysia, offspinner Nurin Imanina impressed with 3 for 29 from her four overs, picking up all the wickets to fall to bowlers.

In reply, Malaysia were three down inside the powerplay, with Dilhari picking up two of the wickets to fall on her way to returns of 2 for 4 from three overs. Athapaththu chipped in with two wickets of her own to finish with 2 for 3 from two overs, while Mithali Ayodhya got 2 for 15 from three.

It’s not like there was no resistance from Malaysia: Winifred Duraisingam scored 28, though it took her 47 balls to do it, while Mahirah Izzati Ismail scored 24, another slow effort, taking her 42 balls.

Scores:

Sri Lanka Women 160 for 4 in 20 overs (Athapaththu 63, HasinMithali Ayodhya 2-15i Perera 23, Kavisha Dilhari 44*, Harshitha Samarawickrema 25; Nurin Imanina 3-29) beat Malaysia Women 74 for 7 in 20 overs (Winifred Duraisingam 28, Mahirah Izzati Ismail 24; Mithali Ayodhya 2-15, Kavisha Dilhari 2-04, Chamari Athapaththu 2-03, ) by 86 runs

[Cricinfo]

Sports

Tharanga targets Olympic record

Published

11 hours ago

2026/09/19

Thilina Walpola

Rumesh Tharanga

Champion javelin thrower Rumesh Tharanga has set his sights on Arshad Nadeem’s Olympic record at the 2028 Los Angeles Games. Speaking at a public event with just days ahead of his departure to the Asian Games where he is set to meet the reigning Olympic champion Nadeem, Tharanga explained his future plans.

‎While revealing his plans to continue competing until the 2036 Olympics in India, Tharanga said that he would aim at Nadeem’s Olympic record at the next edition in Los Angeles in 2028.

‎Nadeem’s Olympic record stands at 92.97 metres. Tharanga is set to meet the Olympic champion once again this season at the Asian Games in Japan where he is Sri Lanka’s brightest medal prospect in individual events.

‎Speaking at a public event, Tharanga said he plans to compete at three Olympic Games — Los Angeles in 2028, Brisbane in 2032 and the 2036 Games in India — before retiring from international athletics.

‎”I will participate in the 2028 Olympic Games and the 2032 Olympic Games in Brisbane. I intend to retire after the 2036 Olympic Games in India,” Tharanga said.

‎His main target, however, is the Olympic record.

‎Tharanga said he intends to surpass the 92.97-metre mark set by Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem when he won the Olympic title at the Paris 2024 Games.

‎”My next focus is on securing an Olympic record at the 2028 Games in Los Angeles,” he said.

‎”I believe I can achieve an average above 90 metres in Los Angeles. My main focus is on setting an Olympic record,” he added.

‎Tharanga’s declaration comes after a remarkable rise in the international arena, with the Sri Lankan establishing himself among the world’s leading throwers.

‎With Los Angeles now firmly in his sights, Tharanga is targeting a performance that would take the Olympic javelin record beyond the 92-metre barrier — before embarking on his final two Olympic campaigns in Brisbane and India. (RF)

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Charani, Shafali power India past Japan and into Asian Games semi-finals

Published

1 day ago

2026/09/18

Priyan

[File pic] Shree Charani finished with figures of 4 for 10 [Cricinfo]

Defending gold-medal winners India overcame hosts Japan by eight wickets in the fourth quarter-final of the women’s cricket competition at the Asian Games in Nisshin on Friday. India chased down 58 in five overs to comfortably secure their place in the semi-finals. They will now face Bangladesh on September 20.

Japan did not exit the competition empty-handed. Their effort to bat as close to the full 20 overs as possible, their running between the wickets and their fielding effort were big positives. But they were bowled out for 57 in 19.5 overs after a solid start, leaving India with little to chase.

India, who opted to field, made the most of a pitch offering turn and bounce, which made stroke-making difficult for Japan. Shree Charani led the attack with another four-wicket haul, continuing an impressive run after taking 4 for 20 in the Women’s T20 Asia Cup final. She struck twice off consecutive balls in the seventh over, removing opener Haruna Iwasaki for 10 before having captain Mai Yanagida caught behind for a duck, but couldn’t convert it into a hat-trick.

Iwasaki and Ayaka Kato Stafford had put on 24 for the opening wicket, but Japan struggled to build partnerships once the stand was broken. Kato-Stafford top-scored with 25 off 47 balls, while Iwasaki made 10 off 22. Japan lost their last eight wickets for just 33 runs.

Charani finished with 4 for 10 from her four overs, while Shafali Verma took 2 for 13 and Deepti Sharma claimed 1 for 14.

Shrevanka Patil, returning to international cricket for the first time in three months after recovering from an ankle ligament injury suffered during the T20 World Cup in June, took 1 for 8 from 3.5 overs. Japan’s innings ended when Patil bowled Nonoha Yasumoto for a duck.

Chasing 58, Shafali opened the innings aggressively, smashing four boundaries in the first over to immediately put Japan under pressure. G Kamalini, who opened in place of Smriti Mandhana, and No. 3 Bharti Fulmali then threw their wickets away to fielders at long-on and point respectively. Left-arm seamer Yasumoto, who dismissed Kamalini, also delivered a wicket-maiden with the new ball.

Shafali finished the game with a six over long-on, staying unbeaten on 40 off just 15 balls. She struck six fours and two sixes at a strike rate of 266.66, as India won with 15 overs to spare.

Scores:
India Women 59 for 2 in 5 overs (Shafali Verma 40*, Richa Ghosh 12*; Nonoha Yasumoto 1-08, Ayaka Kato-Stafford 1-14) beat Japan Women 57 in 19.5 overs (Haruna Iwasaki 10, Ayaka Kato-Stafford 25; Shree Charani 4-10, Shreyanka Patil 1-08, Deepti Sharma 1-14, Shafali Verma 2-13) by eight wickets

[Cricinfo]