Sports
Three quick fifties and Asitha’s electric new-ball spell give Sri Lanka consolation win
Rapid half-centuries from Kusal Mendis, Pathum Nissanka and Janith Liyanage put Sri Lanka on course to a substantial total, before an electric new-ball spell from Asitha Fernando wrecked New Zealand’s chase.
Asitha swung the ball prodigiously in his five-over opening spell, taking 3 for 17 in that period. By the end of over seven, and chasing 291 for victory, New Zealand were 22 for 5, their chances all but dashed Mark Chapman battled bravely for a run-a-ball 81, but had no team-mates to go with him.
New Zealand soon slipped to 48 for 6, then 77 for 7, and though the last rites took some time, Sri Lanka dismissed the opposition for 150, inside 30 overs. This was the third one-sided game in the series. New Zealand had won the other two.
Asitha’s 3 for 26 wasn’t quite a swing-bowling masterclass, as he occasionally struggled with his lines. But it did feature some spectacular deliveries, as he gleaned substantially more swing than any other bowler in the game. The ball to take out Rachin Ravindra’s leg stump was magnificent; Asitha angled it across the left-hander, and got it to tail in very late to slip between bat and pad. All through that new-ball spell, he had that shape to his deliveries. He struck twice in the seventh over, removing Tom Latham and Glenn Phillips, both for ducks.
At the other end, Maheesh Theekshana and Eshan Malinga also contributed wickets, dismissing Will Young and Daryl Mitchell respectively. All three of these bowlers ended up taking three wickets apiece. Asitha’s was the best among their final figures.
Malinga also swung the ball, though not as much as Asitha, and bowled probing lines. Theekshana got turn out of a pitch that the New Zealand spinners had also enjoyed earlier in the match, particularly when they picked their way through Sri Lanka’s middle order. Though it was still Matt Henry who was most penetrative, taking 4 for 55 from his ten overs. Three of those wickets came at the death, but Henry had been instrumental in building pressure through the middle overs too.
The first ingredients of Sri Lanka’s 140-run victory, however, were the fifties to Nissanka and Kusal. Nissanka’s 66 off 42 was unusual. He got to 50 off the 31st delivery he played, but as he was completing that run, appeared to pull a hamstring, and left the field at the end of the tenth over. Kusal then replaced him at the crease and reeled off 54 off 48 to salvage what has otherwise been a modest tour for him.
The New Zealand players pose with the trophy
Nissanka, especially, reveled in taking on the short ball. He crashed five sixes and six fours in his innings, coming back to the middle in the 34th over to swing at a few though he was unable to run or reach particularly far outside off. Kusal hit two sixes and five fours, having made all his runs after the initial fielding restrictions had ended.
Both batters were dismissed by wide, turning Mitchell Santner deliveries that they were trying to drag over the deep-midwicket boundary.
Santner had been among the primary architects of Sri Lanka’s middle-overs slowdown. They had been 155 for 1 (Nissanka was retired hurt also) after 27 overs, but in the following seven overs lost three wickets and made only 28. They recovered through a half-century to Liyanage, who constructed a clever innings that shepherded the lower-middle order and the tail. Liyanage made 53 off 52 balls before falling in the final over. He had hit five boundaries – two of them sixes – but largely sought to push the game deep and ensure Sri Lanka batted out their 50 overs.
But New Zealand had no answers to Asitha bowling one of the white-ball spells of his career. Chapman saw out that new-ball spell, and then gained confidence once the powerplay was over, finding the boundary with the kind of ease that Nissanka and Kusal earlier had. He was especially strong through the off side, hitting all but two of his ten fours on that side of the ground.
But thanks to that early collapse, they never looked like threatening the target.
Brief Scores:
Sri Lanka 290/8 in 50 overs (Pathum Nissanka 68, Kusal Mendis 54, Janith Liyanage 53, Kamindu Mendis 46; Matt Henry 4-55, Mitchell Santner 2-55) beat New Zealand 150 all out in 29.4 meters (Mark Chapman 81; Asitha Fernando 3-26, Maheesh Theekshan 3-35, Eshan Malinga 3-35) by 140 runs
[Cricinfo]
Cricket Canada CEO Salman Khan, who was appointed in the job in January this year, has dismissed reports on his alleged arrest and release on bail on charges of theft and fraud as “completely false”. He, along with one other individual, had been charged earlier this month with theft and fraud by the Calgary Police in relation to his earlier role as president of the Calgary and District Cricket League between 2014 and 2016.
It is understood that initially the case was a civil suit, but now criminal charges have been laid.
Khan, posting on the Facebook page of Alberta Cricket Association, said: “I see many fake and self-created posts circulating around, and I want to set the record straight. First of all, these are all fake. I have never been arrested, detained, or on any bail. These claims are completely false, and those spreading these rumors will have to answer for it.
“Here’s the truth: A police complaint was filed against me more than 7 years ago. A police investigator approached me and said he wanted to hear my side of the story and see the evidence I have to defend myself. He told me that if I didn’t provide my side, he would proceed with charges. I told him I would visit after Ramadan, but he didn’t want to wait and decided to post charges without even hearing my side or my evidence.”
Khan said nothing had been proven against him in seven years, and he would keep fighting the case. “Let me make this clear: They have nothing to prove against me – in 7 years they were not able to prove anything in the civil case, and certainly not in any criminal case. I have over 21 transcripts, with the complainant even admitting that everything was false.
“I am not worried at all. I’m ready to fight just like I’ve been doing for the past 8 years.”
[Cricinfo]
Mahmudullah has called time on his international career after announcing his retirement from ODIs through a social media post on Wednesday [12th March 2025]. Mahmudullah, who turned 39 last month, had already retired from Tests in 2021 and T20Is in 2024.
“All praises only for the Almighty Allah. I have decided to retire from international cricket,” Mahmudullah wrote on his official Facebook page. “I would like to thank all of my team-mates, coaches and especially my fans who have always supported me. A big thank you to my parents, my in-laws, especially my father in law & most importantly my brother Emdad Ullah, who has been there for me constantly since my childhood as my coach & mentor.”
“And finally, thanks to my wife & kids, who have been my support system through thick & thin. I know Raeid will miss me in red and green jersey. Not everything comes to an end in a perfect way, but you say yes and move forward. Peace, Alhamdulillah. Best wishes to my team & Bangladesh cricket.”
Mahmudullah finishes as Bangladesh’s fourth-highest run-getter, behind Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan and Tamim Iqbal, with 5689 runs at an average of 36.46, including four hundreds and 32 fifties. His retirement comes a week after Mushfiqur, his long-time team-mate and brother in law, had also retired from ODIs.
On Monday, when the BCB informed in its press release that Mahmudullah had requested that the board not consider him in the central contracts list after February 2025, it was seen as a sign of impending retirement.
All of Mahmudullah’s centuries came in ICC tournaments. After scoring two hundreds in the 2015 ODI World Cup, he made an unbeaten 102 against New Zealand in the 2017 Champions Trophy in Cardiff. More recently, in the 2023 ODI World Cup in India, he scored 111 against South Africa in Mumbai.
The ODI retirements of Mahmudullah and Mushfiqur come after Bangladesh suffered an early exit in the 2025 Champions Trophy. Mahmudullah played just one innings, managing 4 off 14 balls against New Zealand in Rawalpindi. Mahmudullah’s form in the lead-up to the tournament, though, was excellent: he had scored four ODI fifties in a row, against Afghanistan and West Indies, away from home late last year.
Mahmudullah made his ODI debut in 2007 as a utility player, batting mostly at No. 7 and bowling offspin. His first turning point came in the 2011 World Cup agsinst England, when he added an unbroken 58 for the ninth wicket with Shafiul Islam to guide Bangladesh to a two-wicket win. In the following year, his unbeaten fifties helped Bangladesh to a 3-2 ODI series win against West Indies.
He enjoyed more success in the 2015 World Cup, when he struck centuries against England and New Zealand in successive matches while batting at No. 3. His hundred against New Zealand in the 2017 Champions Trophy, in a 223-run stand with Shakib, is an iconic innings in Bangladesh cricket history.
Mahmudullah made a comeback ahead of the 2023 World Cup after he had been dropped from the side. He also proved his value with the ball, taking 82 wickets at an economy rate of 5.21. Mahmudullah never led Bangladesh in ODIs, though he had captained them in T20Is and Test cricket.
Mahmudullah’s retirement brings the curtain down on Bangladesh’s most successful quintet of cricketers who played between 2006 and 2025 in white-ball cricket.
Apart from Mahmudullah, Tamim reconfirmed his retirement from international cricket earlier this year. Shakib had announced his Test and T20I retirement in India last year, while also informing at the time that the Champions Trophy would be his last ODI assignment. Having missed the tournament due to various reasons, his ODI career now seems finished, too.
Mashrafe Mortaza last played ODIs in 2020, when he also signed off from captaincy. Mushfiqur has retired from ODIs and T20Is, but is in line to become the first Bangladesh cricketer to reach the 100-Test landmark.
[Cricinfo]
Even though both Gujarat Giants and Mumbai Indians come into the eliminator after losing their last league games, Mumbai look a little more wounded. They lost their first home game at Brabourne Stadium in the WPL on Tuesday, they dropped four catches in the game, leaked a lot of runs in the field, and they are playing non-stop cricket at the end of the tournament. The eliminator on Thursday will be their third game in four days after back-to-back matches to start the week and should they make the final, it will be four games in the span of six days for Mumbai.
Giants have no such issues. The margin of their loss to Mumbai on Monday was just nine runs after Bharti Fulmali’s blazing finish, their Indian players are stepping up at the right time to take some of the load off the overseas stars, and their run of three straight wins before heading to Mumbai would have given them bundles of confidence.
Except they have never beaten Mumbai. In these three seasons of WPL, Mumbai boast of a 6-0 record against Giants but going by their last clash, the next contest may not be as lopsided as this stats suggests. One of the factors behind Giants’ rise in the points table was their middle-order batting led by captain Ashleigh Gardner and Deandra Dottin, even if they struggled to find the perfect opening partner for Beth Mooney. Giants have been the slowest starters in the powerplay this WPL (run rate 5.97), but then they pick up fabulously in the middle overs with a scoring rate of 8.81 (better than anyone else), and have been the second-best finishers at the death (10 per over) behind only Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
Going by this WPL’s trends, what could possibly decide the match will be Giants’ middle overs, when they will be looking to press the pedal but will be up against the mighty bowling of Mumbai – the best bowling side in that phase. Amelia Kerr, their star bowler in the middle overs, might have leaked plenty of runs on Tuesday, but had all the catches been taken off her bowling her figures might have been different. Her ability to excel under pressure – as was seen in the T20 World Cup last year – could be on display again on Thursday.
Going into the toss, both captains would be relieved to know which way the coin falls might not matter too much: while teams have still been opting to chase, the tide has turned at the end of the league stage with teams batting first winning the last three games. Before that, only two games had been won batting first out of 17.
While Mumbai will be eyeing their second final in three years after losing to RCB in the eliminator last year, the onus is on Giants to not make this year’s final match-up a repeat of what we saw in 2023.
Both teams went unchanged into their last league games but will be concerned about their opening combinations. If Giants haven’t found anyone to partner Mooney, Mumbai’s strategy to promote Kerr to the top hasn’t worked in three attempts.
Gujarat Giants (probable): Beth Mooney (wk), Kashvee Gautam, Harleen Deol, Ashleigh Gardner (capt), Phoebe Lichfield, Deandra Dottin, Bharti Fulmali, Simran Shaikh, Tanuja Kanwar, Meghna Singh, Priya Mishra
Mumbai Indians (probable): Hayley Matthews, Amelia Kerr, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Harmanpreet Kaur (capt), Amanjot Kaur, Yastika Bhatia (wk), G Kamalini, S Sajana, Sanskriti Gupta, Shabnim Ismail, Parunika Sisodia
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