The game witnessed two majestic hundreds, from Harleen Deol and Hayley Matthews. Where Deol had support of three other half-centurions in the Indian innings, Matthews had none. And that in a monumental chase of 359 was simply not good enough.
The end result was another one-sided fare that gave India the ODI series with one match remaining, but it was also one where West Indies showed a lot more fight than they did two nights ago. They nearly batted out the 50 overs to take away something from a contest they never looked like bossing at any point.
West Indies’ response to India’s 358 for 5 – their joint highest ODI total – was circumspect. They batted out three maidens in the first seven overs, two of those to Renuka Singh, who had wrecked their top order with in-swing to finish with a five-for in the first ODI. It underlined West Indies’ approach for large parts of their innings – survival over flamboyance that they’re known for.
As the innings progressed, it became evident how big the gulf was between Matthews and the rest of their batters, who hardly seemed to trust their defense and bat long enough against an Indian attack that boasted of some variety that will give them a welcome headache as they go forward in a World Cup year. Only Deandra Dottin can claim to have received a pearler that she had no answers to as Renuka ripped past her inside edge to flatten the stumps with a superb in-ducker.
Mathews aside, the only other semblance of a fight from the West Indies came from wicketkeeper Shemaine Campbelle, who made 38 in a fifth-wicket stand that was worth 112. Matthews was brutal in her onslaught against India’s spinners, especially legspinner Priya Mishra whom she read from the hand and off the pitch. Against pace, she was quick to pounce on anything short or wide. Yet, it wasn’t until she had crossed 70 that she began to show off her full range of strokes, eventually getting to her seventh ODI hundred off 99 balls. But Matthews’ century only served to merely reduce the margin of defeat.
The story of the day, though, was Deol. Having been on crutches, recovering from a knee injury until five months ago, she repaid the faith the team management had in her by hitting a maiden international hundred from No.3. Dropped on 20 by Dottin at square leg, Deol made them pay. She built slowly to a half-century, reaching there in 62 balls, but shifted gears seamlessly in the end overs to raise her century off 98 balls.
In Jemimah Rodrigues, she found an able ally as the pair put on a quick-fire 116-run stand off just 71 deliveries for the fourth wicket in a partnership where they attempted a shot every ball. Rodrigues was outstanding against spin, lofting inside-out over cover, paddling fired-in deliveries past short fine leg, or rocking back to pull. Along the way, she showed her versatility to accelerate as comfortably as she had built the innings. The reward was a half-century off 34 deliveries, before she was out attempting to hit out a waist-high full toss.
Deol fed off that energy, in addition to the confidence from spending time at the crease. In all, India scored 184 in the last 20 overs, compared to the 160 they hit two nights ago. That they achieved this with Richa Ghosh contributing just an unbeaten 13 should give them much encouragement.
Deol’s knock was preceded by a second straight century opening stand from Smriti Mandhana and rookie Pratika Rawal, who looked anything like the nervous version from her debut on Sunday. She came out looking to score quickly. There wasn’t much swing on offer, and Rawal impressed with her intent and strokeplay to set the base of India’s innings after they elected to bat.
At the other end, Mandhana, who became the highest run-getter in women’s ODI this year, simply carried on from where she left off in the series opener. She displayed more than just traces of brute force in muscling spinners. Rawal was comfortably outscoring Mandhana until the eighth over, but it didn’t take long for the India vice-captain to catch up, before overtaking her to raise a 29th half-century and her second straight of the series off just 44 balls. One ball later, the opening pair raised their century stand.
Rawal soon caught up to get to her maiden half-century but missed out on a great chance of converting it to a maiden international hundred, when she was out to a soft dismissal on 76. But in taking two wickets and sending down a few tight overs, and taking an excellent catch inside the ring, Rawal had a day neither she nor the team management will forget in a hurry, not even after having had a role in running out Mandhana, who instead of fuming gave her a pat of encouragement as she walked back.
Brief scores: India Women 358 for 5 in 50 overs (Harlene Deol 115, Pratika Rawal 76, Smriti Mandhana 53, Jemimmah Rodrigues 52; Oiana Joseph 1-27) beatWest Indies Women 243 in 46.2 overs (Hayley Matthews 106, Shemaine Campbelle 38; Priya Mishra 3-49, Rawal 2-37, Deepti Sharma 2-40, Titas Sadhu 2-42) by 115 runs
Four people shot dead by Cuban border guards in a US-registered speedboat were Cuban nationals living in the United States, Cuba’s government said.
In a statement posted online, Cuba’s interior ministry said that the speedboat’s passengers – the four who were killed and six others who were wounded, also Cuban citizens – opened fire on a coast guard vessel that approached them near an island off the country’s northern coast on Wednesday.
The 10 individuals, some with previous criminal records, were armed and intended to “carry out an infiltration for terrorist purposes” the statement said.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US was also investigating the “highly unusual” incident
Cuba’s interior ministry identified the six surviving passengers, who have since been detained, and one passenger who was killed.
They added that most of them “have prior records involving criminal and violent activity”.
Handguns, assault rifles and improvised explosive devices were recovered on the speedboat, according to the statement, along with other tactical gear.
The interior ministry also identified an eleventh person they said had been arrested and had confessed to being part of the alleged plot.
In an earlier statement posted on X, the ministry said the Florida-registered vessel – with the registration number FL7726SH – was detected near Cayo Falcones, in the country’s central Villa Clara province on Wednesday morning.
When a Cuban boat carrying five members of the ministry’s border guard approached the vessel for identification, “the crew of the violating speedboat opened fire” and wounded the Cuban commander, the statement said.
“As a consequence of the confrontation, as of the time of this report, four aggressors on the foreign vessel were killed and six injured.”
Those injured were evacuated and given medical assistance, the statement added.
Before the Cuban government released some of the passengers’ identities, Rubio confirmed the boat was not carrying US government personnel and that an investigation was ongoing to “clarify” the event and what the passengers were doing in the area.
Rubio, spoke from Saint Kitts and Nevis, where he had travelled to meet with Caribbean leaders amid the Trump administration’s push to ramp up pressure on Cuba’s government, as well as other regional issues.
“We’re going to find out exactly what happened, who was involved, and we’ll make a determination on the basis of what we find out,” he told reporters.
He vowed that US investigators would move “quickly” to gather the key facts, and that the US Coast Guard has travelled to the “vicinity” of the attack.
But he added that the US would not rely on information provided by the Cuban government, and that Washington would independently verify the facts of the case.
“It is highly unusual to see shootouts on the open sea like that. It’s not something that happens everyday,” Rubio said.
The incident comes amid increased tensions between the US and Cuba, which is facing a deepening fuel crisis that has been worsened by the US blocking oil shipments from Venezuela, a long-standing ally in the region, to the island.
The first Cuban interior ministry statement alluded to these tensions, saying that “in the face of current challenges, Cuba reaffirms its determination to protect it territorial waters” and safeguard its sovereignty.
On Wednesday, the US Treasury said it would ease some small private sector transactions, including oil sales, to “support the Cuban people, for commercial and humanitarian use”.
The incident also happened one day after Cuban-American groups in Miami commemorated the 30th anniversary of the Brothers to the Rescue shootdown, which killed four people.
Wednesday’s incident sparked Florida lawmakers and state to call for an investigation and to criticise the Cuban government.
Florida Congressman Carlos Gimenez, a Cuban-American former mayor of Miami, said he would demand an investigation into what he called a “massacre”.
James Uthmeier, Florida’s attorney general, said he would direct local law enforcement to investigate the incident.
“The Cuban government cannot be trusted, and we will do everything in our power to hold these communists accountable,” he said.
In the US Senate, Florida Republican Rick Scott, demanded “a full investigation into this deeply concerning situation and to determine what happened.”
“The Communist Cuban regime must be held accountable!” he added.
’Reimagining International Relations from a Global South Perspective’ offers a timely and rigorous contribution, providing key insights into policy, diplomacy, and global governance – PM
Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya made while participating in the latest publication of the Bandaranaike Center for International Studies (BCIS) titled ‘Reimagining International Relations from a Global South’ held on the 24 February 2026 at the BCIS Auditorium said that the volume offers a timely and rigorous contribution, providing key insights into policy, diplomcy and global governance.
Authored by Emeritus Professor Gamini Keerawella, former Senior Professor of History at the University of Peradeniya and a member of the BCIS Council of Management and Academic Affairs Board, the book ’Reimagining International Relations from a Global South Perspective’ offers a compelling re-examination of International Relations through a distinctly Global South perspective.
Congratulating on the publication, the Prime Minister stated that the publication represents a timely and important intervention in understanding how the Global South’s international relations and international policy has evolved and traces the many different pathways. She further noted that this volume invites for re-imagine international relations as a genuinely plural and it doesn’t necessarily only go for the discipline of international relations, that is something that applies to all disciplines.
The occasion was attended by the former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, Chairperson of BCIS, Deputy Minister of Mass Media Dr. Kaushalya Ariyarathne, members of the diplomatic community, representatives of the Bandaranaike National Memorial Foundation Board of Management, members of the BCIS governing bodies, and invited scholars and practitioners.
As India seek to return to winning ways, they will hope to boost their net run-rate as well [Cricbuzz]
Blue jerseys on the backs of a teeming crowd along the Walajah Road on Thursday evening will finally not be out of context. Fans in Chennai have embraced every team that has set foot in the city and played at the iconic venue, turning up in tens of thousands even for sweltering afternoon matches here. But India are finally in town, with everything riding on their fixture.
For the second World Cup in a row, the locals were meant to be treated to an India-Australia spectacle. That’s what the pre-tournament seeding had it chalked down as. But Zimbabwe emphatically struck that out, proving once again that there are no certainties in this format.Speaking of no certainties, India have reached Chennai with their tag of favourites fast fading, and their batting – unrivaled until the tournament began – is now being seriously questioned. Not all is lost yet of course, but the Net Run Rate column has them in a tangle. The defeat to South Africa means India can only reach four points at best. There’s a possibility where they could be dragged into a three-way tangle for two semifinal spots with NRR being the deciding factor. The decimation in Ahmedabad left them with -3.800, which they need to resuscitate over the next four days. Wins alone won’t cut it.Zimbabwe are now in the same boat, needing two wins and a surge in NRR. Their unbeaten journey through the group stage in Sri Lanka was cut short violently by West Indies in Mumbai, where a six-hitting batting line-up and the short square boundaries caught them unawares. Chennai offers better dimensions in that regard, but there will be the challenge of dew to deal with.The competitiveness of the Super Eights group has raised the stakes for the 3 PM fixture on Thursday too. West Indies and South Africa will jostle for two crucial points in Ahmedabad, and nearly 2,000 kilometers away in Chennai, India and Zimbabwe will watch on keenly for as long as they can.Yet, their futures in the tournament will still be determined by what they can control later that evening, as Chepauk gears up to bounce with bated anticipation for one last time at the World Cup.Equal-sized square boundaries, with the game to be played on the central pitch (No.5). It’s confirmed to be a black soil surface, but in what will come as music to India’s ears, Chepauk has the worst bowling strike-rate and second-worst bowling average for spinners among the eight venues in this World Cup.Furthermore, they might just stumble upon the true surface they have sought all along. In the two 7 PM matches at the venue, first innings scores have been 200/4 (by Afghanistan) and 196/6 (by USA).
Batting coach Sitanshu Kotak revealed that there have been conversations about changes to mix up the left-handed top-three. Sanju Samson, who batted long and did keeping drills two days out from the fixture, could be an option.
Kotak also confirmed that Rinku Singh had left to attend to his ailing father but was due to return on Wednesday evening. There’s still a chance India don’t feature him and maintain their batting depth by adding to the heft at the top. With only two left-handers in Zimbabwe’s top-order, expect Axar Patel to reclaim his spot too.
“Sikandar Raza is 100% playing. Good luck telling him that he’s not going to play against India,” Ryan Burl said with a chuckle. The Zimbabwe skipper took a hit to his left palm in the game against West Indies in Mumbai, but is ready to go again.
Zimbabwe could resist the urge to make changes after the big loss in Mumbai, and instead choose to alter their bowling plans. Against West Indies, they used four quicks and just two spinners in Raza and Graeme Cremer. If the opportunity comes up, Raza could throw on leg-spinner Burl against the likes of Suryakumar and Tilak in the middle-overs.
