Sports
Henry, Dottin, Joseph set up big win for West Indies
West Indies romped to a six-wicket victory over Scotland to secure their first win of the T20 World Cup in Dubai with 50 balls to spare. The win boosted their net run rate to 1.154 and they’re now on the top of Group B table. The result leaves Scotland with two defeats in as many games, though the margin of defeat could prove even more dire to their qualification chances.
Oiana Joseph’s 31 off 18 spearheaded what was a middling chase, before Deandra Dottin (28 off 15) and Chinell Henry (18 off 10) finished the game off in haste. It was a win set up by the bowlers, as West Indies restricted Scotland to 99 for 8.
Henry was named Player of the Match for her burst at the top of Scotland’s innings which yielded figures of 1 for 10, before her boundary-laden knock ensured a brisk victory.
Scotland were simply second-best in all the areas that mattered with only Kathryn Bryce and Ailsa Lister with any innings of note. With the ball, meanwhile, they picked up wickets and caught much better than their opponents but were unable to stem the flow of runs – the most crucial factor when aiming to defend such a low total.
Scotland were 25 for 2 at the end of the powerplay, but it might have been much worse if not for West Indies’ profligacy in their catching. While the now infamous ‘ring of fire’ floodlights can be partially to blame, three chances of varying difficulty were spilt in the opening six overs.
Thankfully for the West Indies, Henry was putting on a clinic in swing bowling to make sure Scotland weren’t able to capitalise on their multiple lifelines.
In her first over she had Sarah Bryce edging high to first slip, where Hayley Matthews could only palm over and she followed that up with two consecutive maidens – including a wicket maiden, where she had Bryce completely foxed by an outswinger that rattled her off stump.
Kathryn survived a tight lbw decision while Lister was dropped twice. They put these second chances to good use in stitching together a 46-run third-wicket stand. However at no point were either afforded easy runs.
Their stand saw just one boundary scored, with both players forced to find the gaps and run hard between the wickets to keep the scoreboard ticking along.
It looked as if a platform might have been set for a late launch, but then the wickets began to fall. Afy Fletcher dismissed Lister and Priyanaz Chatterji in consecutive deliveries in the 13th over, before removing Kathryn in her next over. Scotland stumbled to 76 for five at the end of 15 overs, and they managed only a further 23 runs in the remaining five overs, as the West Indies refused to give an inch.
If this tournament has shown anything, it’s not to judge a total or a pitch until both sides have batted. The other thing is that finding quick runs at the death is exceedingly difficult. Taking both these factors into account, West Indies opted to promote Qiana Joseph up the order after Stafanie Taylor had fallen early.
Joseph’s intent was clear from the get-go, swinging and missing at a series of deliveries off Bryce. But with such a low target, each blow had an exponential impact. In all, she struck three fours and a six, but her 18-ball stay had seen as much as 31% of the target wiped off.
When Joseph fell, West Indies still needed 41 runs for victory, and the prevailing mood was that one or two more wickets might have made the going a little trickier, particularly as Scotland were catching well.
But Dottin the veteran showed she could carry on her recent franchise form, as she made light work of what might have been a banana skin of a finish. Her 15 deliveries in the middle brought with it two sixes and fours apiece, as West Indies sealed a win.
Brief scores:
West Indies Women 101 for 4 in 11.4 overs (Oiana Joseph 31, Deandra Dottin 28*; Rachel Slater 1-17, Olivia Bell 2-18, Priyanaz Chatterji 1-15) beat Scotland Women 99 for 8 in 20 overs (Ailsa Lister 26, Kathryn Bryce 25; Chinell Henry 1-10, Hayley Mathews 1-21, Karishma Ramharak 1-24, Afy Fletcher 3-22) by six wickets
[Cricinfo]
A member of England’s security staff was involved in an altercation with a Channel Seven camera operator at Brisbane airport.
The incident took place on Saturday morning as the touring squad were departing for Adelaide ahead of the third Ashes Test, which begins on Wednesday.
Footage from the broadcaster shows the security guard pushing away the camera operator as he looks to get up close to the players, who had driven down from Noosa where they had been enjoying a mid-series break The trip itself had been the subject of derision The trip itself had been the subject of derision after England went 2-0 down in the Ashes following their defeat at the Gabba last week.
Cricket Australia’s directive to all media during the series is that both teams should be respected when traveling between Tests, including at airports. All CA media briefing documents for the series contain the following: “The Australian and England teams will not be available for interview while in transit between matches during the NRMA Ashes series. All airport, hotel and transit is vision only, to be captured from a respectful distance.”
While the footage shows Seven had adhered to this protocol, the state of the series has ramped up the media focus on England, who must win the next Test to keep the series alive having been beaten twice inside six days of cricket.
Unofficially, England have urged their security staff to operate with a light touch, particularly given the number of well-meaning requests they have received for selfies when out and about. They were greeted in Adelaide by “eight to ten camera crews” at the baggage carousel.
Ever since arriving in Perth at the start of November, England have been subject to plenty of attention from local and national organisations, and reacted in good grace. Having been warned of the intense scrutiny on Ashes tours, a number of players have not batted an eyelid at various intrusions.
They indulged filming of their rounds of golf ahead of the first Test, joking that the use of drones made them feel like they were receiving coverage akin to professional golfers. In Brisbane, when skipper Ben Stokes and other team-mates were photographed not wearing helmets while using e-Scooters – a fineable offense in the state of Queensland – Stokes brushed it off, even when asked by a journalist if he and his team would apologise for the misdemeanour. When the transgression was put to Ollie Pope ahead of the second Test, he reacted matter-of-factly: “Just put a helmet on next time. Rules are rules.”
The squad were also confronted by media in Noosa over the last three days, both at the beach and bars of the Sunshine Coast resort town. Stokes even indulged a photo opportunity on the beach during a squad-wide game of football keepy-uppy (otherwise known as PIG), with radio station MixFM employees “Archie and Bretz”, who were wielding placards such as “FOR SALE: MORAL VICTORIES” while dressed in full whites.
This incident, however, is a break from that norm, at a time when England have come under fire for their poor performances.
Poor batting displays and a bowling attack losing their way have exacerbated annoyance from England fans at the team’s refusal to accept that their build-up for a series of this magnitude has been less than ideal.
They played a single warm-up match against England Lions at Lilac Hills ahead of vastly different conditions at Perth’s Optus Stadium. After choosing not to send their first-string to practice under lights against the Prime Minster’s XI in Canberra, England opted for five training sessions ahead of the day-night Test at The Gabba. After succumbing to a second eight-wicket defeat, head coach Brendon McCullum stated they had over- prepared.
There is a suggestion that England’s long lead-in to the second Test – which started with a previously unscheduled session at Allan Border Field – was triggered by the criticism of their preparation. This airport incident, however minor, speaks of a crack in their laissez-faire approach at the halfway point of the tour, with a month and three Tests to go, underlining the seriousness of what is at stake in Adelaide and beyond.
(Cricinfo)
A five wicket haul by Sethmika Seneviratne helped Sri Lanka under 19s register an 8 wicket win over Nepal in their Under 19 Asia Cup opener in Dubai today (13).
Brief scores
Sri Lanka Under 19 84/2 in 14.5 overs (Dimantha Mahavithana 39*, Kavija Gamage 24*) beat Nepal Under 19s 82/10 in 28.5 overs (Cibrin Shesthra 18; Sethmika Seneviratne 5-25) by eight wickets
Vaibhav Suryavanshi slammed a blistering 95 ball 171 in the Under 19 Asia Cup opener against UAE on Friday. He fell just six short of Ambati Rayudu’s long-standing India record in youth one-dayers – the 177 against England in Taunton back in 2002.
Suryavanshi, yet to turn 15, hit nine fours and 14 sixes during his innings, before being bowled attempting a paddle in the 33rd over of India’s innings. They eventually finished with 433 for 6 after being put in to bat.
Last month, Suryavanshi had smashed a 42-ball 144 – the joint third fastest century by an Indian in men’s T20s – against UAE at the Rising Stars Asia Cup in Doha. He had got to his century off 32 deliveries that day, in the process recording the joint-sixth-fastest century in all men’s T20s.
Suryavanshi – a certainty to feature in next month’s Under19 World Cup in Namibia and Zimbabwe – also recently slammed an unbeaten 61 ball 108 at the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy to become the youngest century-maker in the tournament’s history.
He had a breakthrough year in 2025, when he became the youngest to slam an IPL century, for Rajasthan Royals [101 off 38 balls] against Gujarat Titans. Having made history just a few months earlier – by becoming the youngest pick in an IPL auction at 13 – Suryavanshi featured in seven games in the 2025 edition, all as an opener. He made 252 runs at a strike rate of 206.55.
After IPL 2025, he was part of the India Under-19 squads that toured England and Australia. He smashed a 78 ball century in the first four-day fixture in Brisbane, and finished as the second-highest run-getter of the multi-day series against Australia Under-19s, scoring 133 runs in three innings as India won 2-0.
Prior to that, he had amassed 335runs at a strike rate of 174.01 in the one-dayers against England Under-19s.
[Cricinfo]
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