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Carey century keeps Australia afloat as Ashes refuses to find slower gear
Astonishingly, this Ashes series is just seven days old, but it remains in no mood to slow down and take stock of its surroundings. This opening day at Adelaide Oval was, in its own way, every bit as chaotic as the six that had gone before it. By its close, a cricket-record crowd of 56,298 was none the wiser as to whether England were in the process of clawing themselves back from the brink in this series, or whether Alex Carey’s brilliant maiden Ashes hundred had already pitched them most of the way through the exit.
Arguably, the day’s only moment of stillness came in the minutes before the first ball was bowled, when the teams and crowd united in a pitch-perfect tribute to the victims of the Bondi terror atrocity. Either side of that serene moment, it was turmoil – starting with Steven Smith’s shock withdrawal, 45 minutes before the toss, due to vertigo, a moment which, in turn, granted Usman Khawaja a reprieve, not only for this contest, but arguably his Test career.
The madness continued through an opening gambit in which England’s bowlers threatened to lose the plot on a sweltering morning in the field – only for Australia to hand it straight back to them with a run of five culpable dismissals in a row, and six out of eight all told. The most damning of these were the two wickets in three balls, immediately after the lunch break, with which Joffra Archer ignited England’s revival as part of a very personal response to the criticism he had attracted in the wake of the Brisbane loss.
As if that was not sufficient, there was also space in the narrative for Khawaja’s career prospects to turn on a dime, thanks to a drop at slip from Harry Brook on 5 that persuaded him to shed the reticence and feast on numerous freebies from a toiling but deeply flawed attack. And in the final session, another DRS drama also reared its head, with Carey’s reprieve for a caught-behind on 72 subsequently declared by Simon Taufel, the former ICC umpire, to be another failure of “technology calibration”. Carey himself conceded at the close that he thought he’d heard a nick.
The upshot was another Ashes day conducted at warp speed. That Australia’s run-rate ended up shy of 4 an over was due entirely to the hard-lined discipline, and intermittent raw speed, of Archer, whose 3 for 29 in 16 overs made him as much of a lone wolf in England’s attack as Mitchell Starc had been for Australia in each of his first innings at Perth and Brisbane.
And in the same way that Starc’s superiority had drawn nervy errors from England’s batters in those games, so Australia were the team that frittered away a chance for a choke-hold on this contest, and potentially the series.
Only once this century had the hosts scored less than 439 after winning the toss and batting first at Adelaide – and that innings of 245 had come in England’s epochal victory on their triumphant tour in 2010-11. With that nemesis Starc still in situ at the close on 29 not out, it’s not out of the question that he’ll be able to marshal the tail on the second morning, as he did so effectively at the Gabba. But against a three-over-old ball, and against an England team who are in the process of showing their “dog”, flawed and feral though it may be, it ought to be over to England’s batters soon enough, to show if they’ve heeded any lessons from their frivolity to date.
Despite all the apparent hard talk since Brisbane, the opening exchanges gave the impression that certain members of England’s attack were still living it up in their beach bar in Noosa. Brydon Carse, promoted to the new ball in the absence of Gus Atkinson, started with real purpose … for all of five balls, before sacrificing his threatening seam and swing for a diet of half-trackers that Jake Weatherald in particular was delighted to cash in on.
It took a barely acknowledged moment of brilliance to blast England their opening. Archer – conspicuously missing his trademark gold chain after the ad hominem attacks he had received for wearing it – ground his way through his gears to draw Weatherald onto the front foot before scorching a 147kph bouncer into his splice. Jamie Smith gathered the top edge with barely a flicker – conscious perhaps of his culpable drop of Travis Head at a similar moment in the second Test. At 33 for 1, England were in the mix.
Moments later, they were surging at 33 for 2, courtesy of a stunning one-hander from Zak Crawley, as Head slammed a hard-handed drive low to his left at short cover, to give Carse’s tempestuous day a kick-start.
Out came Khawaja, still blinking at the absurdity of his circumstances. However, as he ground out five runs from his first 27 balls, it initially seemed that obsolescence would have been the kinder fate for a player who is due to turn 39 midway through this contest. But then, he lashed into a drive as Josh Tongue fired in a full length, and Brook at second slip made a meal of a tough but takeable chance, away to his left.
It was the pardon that freed Khawaja of his reticence. His very next ball was pinged off the pads through square leg for four – the first of five boundaries in that region, and eight behind square all told – and as he romped along to an 81-ball fifty, England’s basic lack of discipline was being laid all too bare.
But then, so too was Australia’s. Honours were broadly even when the teams went to lunch on 94 for 2, but what followed would have beggared belief, had it not been for England’s own batting opting for similar self-immolation all series long. Archer’s first ball after the break was little more than a loosener, but Marnus Labuschagne met it with a floppy, half-formed pull that Carse at midwicket could not have dropped if he’d tried – and seeing as he’d missed a similar sitter off Josh Inglis at Brisbane, he did have previous in that regard.
As if that wasn’t enough of a gift, out came Australia’s golden child, Cameron Green, fresh from his whopping Aus$4 million deal with Kolkata Knight Riders. The only mercy for Green was that the IPL auction had taken place the previous evening. His second ball produced a nondescript push off the pads to midwicket, where Carse clung on again, rather more fortuitously this time, as the ball clanged off his right palm and into his left as he dived across to his right.
Carey, at least, remained in the zone that he has graced throughout a superb series. Right from the outset of his innings, it was clear that his timing was exquisite, even on the shots that thumped into England’s ring of cover fielders. As he and Khawaja built into a fifth-wicket stand of 91, normal service for a first innings at Adelaide was being restored – not least when England’s spinner Will Jacks entered the attack for some of the leakiest, most optimistic offspin ever to be described as a frontline option.
Though he found some purchase, which Nathan Lyon will doubtless have observed with interest, Jacks was scarcely able to land two balls in a row on the same length as his initial overs were milked at more than an run a ball. And yet, no sooner had he served up his best ball of the day, a dipping ripper that turned sharply past Khawaja’s edge, than he had delivered the afternoon’s key breakthrough. Khawaja climbed into a slog-sweep to re-establish his dominance, and picked out Tongue at deep midwicket who held on well to a fast, flat chance.
Inglis kept the runs coming, with judicious use of the reverse sweep, as he and Carey built into the evening session. But Tongue burst through his defences for 32 for arguably the day’s first dismissal that was not predominantly batter-error, before Carse claimed his second, courtesy of a lifter into Pat Cummins’ ribs that Ollie Pope collected at short leg.
That decision was upheld by DRS, unlike Carey’s earlier in the afternoon – an under-edged pull off Tongue on 72, that Ahsan Raza decreed had missed the bat, and which Snicko could not confirm despite England’s adamance, and Carey’s own apparent guilt. It was a continuation of one of the subplots of the series, though the life did enable one of the most poignant moments of the day – Carey’s century and subsequent tribute to his father Gordon, who died of leukaemia in September. The tears in his own eyes were nothing compared to those of his wife in the crowd.
Much like his team-mates, however, Carey couldn’t make the good going last for as long as he might have done. After a fine 143-ball innings, he found an unworthy way for it to end – an ugly slog-sweep off Jacks that spiralled high into the leg-side for Smith to complete his second simple take of the day.
Though Starc and Lyon endured to the close, the sense of Australia’s dominance of the contest could not. And yet, forewarned is forearmed where this series, and this England team is concerned. For the third Test running, they’ve closed the first day in a position of apparent competitiveness. It’s only when their fickle batters get going on this far from fickle surface, that we’ll know the true size of the dog in this fight. And the pulse in their campaign.
Brief scores:
Australia 326 for 8 in 83 overs (Alex Carey 106, Usman Khawaja 82, Mitchell Starc 33*; Jofffra Archer 3-29, Brydon Carse 2-70, Will Jacks 2-105) vs England
[Cricinfo]
A rest day on Monday will be followed by a double-header on Tuesday. Defending champions New Zealand will take on Sri Lanka from 1.30pm GMT in Southampton, where New Zealand lost their opening fixture to West Indies. Sri Lanka are also coming off a defeat, having lost to hosts England in their first game. The contest has been largely one-sided, with New Zealand winning 14 of the 16 completed T20Is against Sri Lanka. However, they have lost two of the last four of those meetings, including the bilateral series in New Zealand in March, which ended in 1-1.
In the second game of the day that starts at 5.30pm GMT, England will face Ireland, who lost their opener to Scotland on Saturday. Ireland are without a win in 18 Women’s T20 World Cup matches. The teams have met only four times in T20Is, with England winning three, but Ireland winning the last clash, against a second-string England side in 2024. The hosts will start as overwhelming favourites again though.
Suzie Bates missed the opening game, marking the first time New Zealand played a women’s T20 World Cup match without her. It remains to be seen whether New Zealand stick with the same XI at the same venue or bring Bates back at the top, moving Izzy Gaze to No. 3. They could also consider recalling the experienced Lea Tahuhu into the XI before time runs out for New Zealand.
New Zealand (probable): Georgia Plimmer, Izzy Gaze (wk), Melie Kerr (capt), Sophie Devine, Brooke Halliday, Maddy Green, Izzy Sharp, Jess Kerr, Nensi Patel, Rosemary Mair/Bree Illing/Lea Tahuhu
Sri Lanka announced their XI several hours before the toss against England, with Malki Madara and Mithali Ayodhya making their World Cup debuts. Will the heavy defeat prompt a change in combination, with Hasini Perera returning to the top order?
Sri Lanka (probable): Vishmi Gunaratne, Chamari Athapaththu (capt), Imesha Dulani, Harshitha Samarawickrama, Hansima Karunaratne, Kavisha Dilhari, Nilakshika Silva, Kaushini Nuthyangana (wk), Sugandika Kumari, Malki Madara, Mithali Ayodhya
England, who fielded three frontline spinners against Sri Lanka, are likely to remain unchanged.
England (probable): Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Amy Jones, Nat Sciver-Brunt (capt), Alice Capsey, Heather Knight, Freya Kemp, Dani Gibson, Charlie Dean, Sophie Ecclestone, Linsey Smith, Lauren Bell
Ireland opted for two specialist spinners in Cara Murray and Aimee Maguire against Scotland, leaving out left-arm seamer Louise Little. They could go in unchanged.
Ireland (probable): Amy Hunter (wk), Alana Dalzell, Gaby Lewis (capt), Orla Prendergast, Rebecca Stokell, Leah Paul, Alice Tector, Arlene Kelly, Ava Canning, Cara Murray, Aimee Maguire
Melie Kerr has perhaps never been more important to New Zealand than she is now. Since taking over as captain at the start of the year, she has amassed 477 runs in 11 innings and claimed 11 wickets in 12 matches. After a disappointing outing against West Indies, where she scored 5 and returned figures of 0 for 41, Melie will be eager to lead from the front and help New Zealand secure their first win of the tournament.
Sri Lanka have shown over time that they are not overly reliant on Chamari Athapaththu. Against England, only Harshitha Samamrawickrema and Nilakshika Silva managed meaningful contributions with the bat, and at a brisk pace. The left-hand batter Samarawickrama, who has significantly improved her game in recent months, has scored 147 runs in five innings this year at a strike rate of 148.48 after managing just 97 runs in seven innings at 94.17 in a disappointing 2025. With two scores of 40-plus in her last four innings, Sri Lanka will need her to deliver again in the middle order.
Since the start of 2025, Charlie Dean has bowled more overs than any other England bowler (59.1) and has taken 23 wickets, the most by an England spinner in that period. Even when Sophie Ecclestone and Linsey Smith have struggled for control, Dean’s knack for making timely breakthroughs and shifting momentum has remained crucial.
[Cricinfo]
Latest News
Trump says deal to end war with Iran already signed and details to be released ‘pretty soon’
US President Donald Trump has said a preliminary deal to end the war with Iran has already been signed and suggested that details of the agreement are set to be published “pretty soon”.
“I am very happy to say it’s signed, the deal is all signed,” he said during talks with French President Emmanuel Macron at the G7 summit on Monday.
Senior US officials also began giving some details about the contents of the deal, briefing that the Strait of Hormuz would re-open on Friday – the same day the deal is formally inked in Geneva.
Technical talks on Iran’s nuclear programme are expected to begin this week, they said, while any sanctions relief or release of assets will depend on Iran meeting commitments under the deal.
Vice-President JD Vance told CNN’s Jake Tapper on Monday that the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the US and Iran was “about a page and a half” and was a very general document.
Vance added that a lot of the details would be worked out during future negotiations.
“On a number of issues, we are going to have to figure this stuff out during the technical negotiation phase, but what the MOU does is set up a framework whereby the Iranians get the benefits of the bargain by meeting their obligations under the bargain,” he said.
In “paragraph one” of the document it is outlined that Iran will commit itself to “regional peace and stability”, Vance said, which he added included stopping the funding of “terrorist organisations”.
“Most importantly, they’re going to have a verifiable commitment to not building a nuclear weapon,” Vance said.
The US officials said the agreement had been signed electronically by Trump, Vance and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf.
They also suggested more details of the pact could be released by Wednesday – although Trump said the full text of the agreement would be released “pretty soon” after Friday’s ceremony.
“It’s a very powerful document, and I want it to be released. So probably pretty soon,” the president said.
The deal will extend a ceasefire for another 60 days, during which the sides will negotiate details of a final agreement.
Announcing the breakthrough on Sunday, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, whose nation had been mediating, said it included “the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon”.
The US officials said that while Lebanon was covered by the ceasefire framework, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanese territory was not a condition of the deal. Israel would retain the right to self defence, they added.
Speaking on Monday evening, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israeli forces would remain in security zones in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza “as long as necessary”, and retain the freedom to act against attacks.
He also told a news conference Iran would not be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons, with or without a deal.
Netanyahu was speaking after Lebanese media reported a deadly Israeli strike on a car in the south – the first since the peace deal was announced. Hezbollah said it had fired missiles and drones at Israeli forces in return.
Trump on Sunday said he had ordered the immediate removal of a US naval blockade of Iranian ports and added that the Strait of Hormuz would be opened when the initial agreement was signed.
Taking to social media on Monday, he claimed that “ships are starting to move, many loaded up with Oil, out of the Strait of Hormuz”.
Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi confirmed the end of military operations in a phone call on Iranian state TV, which portrayed the framework deal as a victory for Iran.
Gharibabadi said that Qatari mediators held “nearly 14 to 15 hours of lengthy talks” in Tehran to reach the initial agreement.
Iran’s top military command, Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, said that Iranians, together with the country’s armed forces and Tehran’s proxies and allies in the region, had shown the US and Israel that they had “no option but to accept defeat and surrender”.
But Iran’s foreign ministry said Tehran still held “deep mistrust” of the US and the agreement was “merely a step towards reducing tensions”.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun welcomed the announcement, saying in a statement that he looked forward to the understandings translating into “practical steps that will put a definitive end to the cycle of violence”.
Key past sticking points have included Iran’s nuclear enrichment and Western insistence that the country not possess a nuclear weapon, and Iran’s desire for comprehensive sanctions relief and access to tens of billions of dollars in frozen oil revenues.
In a congratulatory joint statement, the leaders of the UK, France, Germany and Italy said Iran “must never acquire a nuclear weapon” and that they were “prepared to lift relevant sanctions in response to clear, verifiable steps by Iran on its nuclear programme”.
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer called the announcement “a hugely important step forward in ending the war, ensuring regional stability and re-opening the Strait of Hormuz”.
[BBC]
There are heists, and then there are heists, and the one at Sabina Park on Sunday will live long in the memory of those who watched it. For 16 overs of the chase, Sri Lanka had looked in total control of their defence of 169. But in a frenzied finish, West Indies ransacked 60 runs off just 22 deliveries to complete the chase with two balls to spare.
Sherfane Rutherford was dropped twice on the way to an unbeaten 54 off 40, and he was part of the defining stand of the match – 81 off 53 with Rovman Powell. But despite their intervention, West Indies still needed more and it was the returning Jason Holder that delivered, smashing 21 off five balls to seal the win and the series.
The result stretched Sri Lanka’s wait for a T20I series win in the Caribbean, but more immediately, left them scratching their heads. In terms of planning, they could not have done much more, while the pitch was tailored to their strengths – namely the spin trio of Maheesh Theekshana, Wanidu Hasaranga and Dunith Wellalage.
The latter had even picked up skipper Shai Hope off just the second delivery of the innings, while Hasaranga snagged two through the middle. Theekshana, meanwhile overcame a tough 15-run opening over – courtesy Shimron Hetmyer. – to give away just 11 off his next three.
With the bat too, Sri Lanka had done seemingly enough, with Pathum Nissanka’s fast start supplemented by some helpful middle-order cameos and bookended by a coming-of-age 43 off 28 from Wellalage.
But at the key moments, it was West Indies, who held their nerve. Player-of-the-Match Shamar Joseph ended with career-best figures of 5 for 33, and did so bowling in the game’s most difficult periods – the last over of the powerplay and the final over of the innings.
And then when the game seemed over, West Indies’ fabled firepower belatedly came to the fore, as they came in clutch once more.
In the first game, West Indies struck 29 in the death overs. And in the second game, 27. With 60 needed in that same period in the decider, the odds weren’t exactly in their favour.
But across two Dushmantha Chameera overs, where the usually reliable quick struggled – searching fruitlessly for yorkers – West Indies pilfered 47 runs, and staged a comeback for the ages.
How they got there was modern West Indies cricket in a nutshell. Sri Lanka strangled the middle overs, with their trio of spinners all proving tough to get away. The powerplay had fetched a respectable 51 – much of it owing to Hetmyer’s 32 off 19 – but the middle overs turned as sluggish as the surface, with West Indies trudging to 110 for 4.
But having struggled to get Sri Lanka’s death bowling away for much of the series, they capitalised on the off-colour Chameera to secure an all-time smash and grab. The pacer’s third over went for 24, and then his last for 23. They were the 17th and 19th of the innings. From being on the verge of defeat at the end of the 16th, the game was over before the 20th had begun.
Sri Lanka, though, might wonder what might have been had they not grassed two straightforward chances from Rutherford when he was on 24 and 25.
Sri Lanka had started well in the powerplay in the earlier games, and that looked to be the case on Sunday night as well.
While Kusal Mendis was for once dismissed cheaply – a chipped leading edge plucked out of the air by Matthew Forde followed by a spicy send-off and heated words – Pathum Nissanka, who has had a quiet tour by his standards, belatedly took up the attacking mantle.
On a surface that was gripping from the very first delivery, Nissanka started patiently before gradually flexing his striking chops. His 26 off 17 including two fours and two sixes.
But just as he might have been settling in for a game-defining stint, Joseph induced a top-edge and followed it up with one that straightened down the line to completely bamboozle new batter Pavan Ratnayake. Two in two – echoing Holder’s powerplay heroics in the first game – and Sri Lanka were kept to 51 for 3, their lowest powerplay of the series.
Joseph would somehow better this outcome later on with a sublime triple-wicket final over to give the hosts some much-needed momentum into their chase.
Following Joseph’s double-strike, Sri Lanka were rightfully wary of losing any further wickets, which saw Kamindu Mendis join Kamil Mishara – who had got his eye in during the powerplay – out in the middle. The pair strung a stand of 21 off 22 to keep things ticking, and this trend continued with each successive partnership over the period.
Dasun Shanaka’s arrival brought some power to the proceedings, as he wasted little time in tearing into Roston Chase with a six over long-on. His stand with Kamindu was brief but effective as the pair managed 16 off seven, followed by one worth 23 off 21 with Wellalage.
On another day, Shanaka’s dismissal – cleverly bowled by Holder – might have signalled a drop in the scoring rate, but Wellalage – brought into the XI in the previous game to strengthen the lower-order batting – produced a knock that was a statement.
A slog sweep over deep square-leg off Chase signalled his early intent, but it was over the extra cover region that the left-hand batter truly prospered. Time and again, he was able to manufacture drives and scythes into that vacant – but generally tough to access – region in front of square on the off side.
And he was ably supported by Hasaranga, as the pair managed an innings-best stand of 49 off 28. By the time Wellalage fell in the final over – miscuing one off the impressive Joseph – he could walk off safe in the knowledge that he might have struck a potentially series clinching 43 off 28.
Sri Lanka’s target, having come to terms with the pitch midway through their innings, might have been in the region of 160-170. But while they managed 169 in their 20 overs, it’s likely they will feel like they left runs behind – particularly as they had 156 for 6 at the start of the penultimate over.
The West Indies fightback was triggered by a piece of magic from Rutherford at deep point, as he picked up and sent in an arrowed direct hit to find Hasaranga well short in trying to steal a second.
Then returned Joseph at the last, and he responded to a first-ball boundary by removing Wellalage next delivery and Chameera one ball later, capturing his second double of the evening. Joseph capped off proceedings with a searing final-ball yorker to dismiss Theekshana as the last man.
It meant West Indies had restricted Sri Lanka to just 15 off the last 12 deliveries, and kept themselves in the game – something that eventually proved even more crucial in the game’s frenetic closing moments.
Scores:
West Indies 170 for 5 in 19.4 overs (Brandon King 16, Shimron Hetmyer 32, Rovman Powell 33, Sherfane Rutherford 54*, Jason Holder 21*;Dunith Wellalage 1-23, Dushmantha Chameera 1-64, Maheesha Theekshan 1-36, Wanidu Hasaranga 2-17) beat Sri Lanka 169 in 20 overs (Pathum Nissanka 26, Kamil Mishara 28, Kamindu Mendis 20 Dasun Shanaka 16, Dunith Wellalage 43, Wanidu Hasaranga 21; Akeal Hosein 1-31, Matthew Forde 1-39, Jason Holder 1-33, Sharmar Joseph 5-33, Roston Chase 1-32) by five wickets
[Cricinfo]
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