Sports

Raza shines as Zimbabwe edge Ireland out in dramatic finish

Published

3 years ago

2023/12/8

Priyan

[File photo]: Sikandar Raza scored 65 but Zimbabwe stuttered after his dismissal (Cricinfo)

Brilliant catches, dramatic shifts in momentum and a lucky inside edge – Zimbabwe’s last-ball win against Ireland had it all in a game that had you on the edge of the seat for the last few overs.

Sikander Raza put on a clinic with both bat and ball to lead Zimbabwe to victory in the first ever international match under lights at the Harare Sports Club and a 1-0 series lead against Ireland.

But the pace trio of Richard Ngaray, Blessing Muzarabani and debutant Trevor Gwandu would be hailed as equally import heroes in their dressing room, but not for what they did with the ball.

Raza picked three wickets to restrict Ireland to 147 before navigating the chase with a composed 42-ball 65 with wickets falling at the other end and some heated exchanges from Ireland fielders. But Zimbabwe’s work was far from done when Raza fell – thanks to a diving catch by Paul Stirling at cover – with the hosts still needing 11 off nine, and all the established batters back in the dugout.

The equation went down to nine off the final over, and when Ngarava and Gwandu managed only three runs off the first three balls, Ireland seemed to have edged ahead. But Ngarava found a boundary with a leg-side swipe to make it two needed off two.

Sounds simple? Well, not simple enough.

The momentum shifted again when Mark Adai ran back from short third to hold on to a blinder, landing on his neck after a full sumersault in the process and walked off. That left Muzarabani on strike, with two runs needed off the last ball. But to Ireland’s dismay, Muzarabani got an inside edge that beat Lorcan Tucker to give Zimbabwe the two runs they needed to seal a dramatic win.

Ireland dominated the powerplay with both bat and ball, but Raza was key in bringing Zimbabwe back in the game in both innings. Defending 147, Ireland started tightly with the ball and Tadiwanashe Marumani was out early, chipping Barry McCarthy to mid-on. Josh Little then had Sean Williams chopping on in next over to put Zimbabwe further under the pump.

Raza helped inject some momentum into Zimbabwe’s innings with back-to-back boundaries to end the powerplay. When spin came on, Wessly Madhevere reverse-swept George Dockrell for four but was out after one ball, exposing his stumps and missing his scoop.

Raza and Ryan Burl kept Zimbabwe ticking, and the momentum seemed to shift in the 12th over when Raza deposited Gareth Delany over midwicket and Burl powered a drive past long-on in a 13-run over.

But Craig Young threw a spanner in the works with two wickets in two overs. He bounced Burl out, with the batter top-edging the pull behind for Tucker to grab. Young struck again when debutant Bennett ended up hitting aerially to mid-off’s left and Harry Tector completed a stunning take running to his left and leaping to pluck the ball out one-handed.

However, Raza soon got to his 12th T20I fifty before stepping it up. After top-edging Adair for four, he hit a six over fine leg off McCarthy to start off a productive over. Madande pulled McCarthy for a six and four to make it a 19-run over to put bring the asking rate down to run-a-ball.

At that point, Zimbabwe looked set to see off victory without much trouble, but Little castled Madande before Adair dismissed Luke Jongwe and Raza in an excellent penultimate over.

But between Ngarava, Gwandu and Muzarabani, Zimbabwe managed to squeeze out the victory despite the last-over drama.

Andy Balbirnie got Ireland off to a rollicking start, hitting Ngarava for three fours – including two gorgeous cover drives – in the first over. He then took Muzarabani on, slapping him over point for a four and a six. Paul Stirling then welcomed Gwandu to international cricket by hitting him for three back-to-back fours as Ireland raced to 38 for no loss in three overs.

Muzarabani then slowed Ireland’s innings down with some off-pace deliveries. Ngarava reaped the benefit of the pressure created by the quiet over as he returned to trap Stirling in front with a low full toss.

Raza brought himself on immediately after the powerplay and made instant impact by knocking Balbirnie over with a ball that spun in to beat the experienced batter’s attempted sweep and take his leg stump.

Ireland struggled to keep the tempo up against spin as Williams got in the act. He beat the batters with two beauties in his first over – the tenth of the innings – and got in the wickets column in his next as he had Lorcan Tucker caught at backward point. Raza then picked up his second wicket of the night by bowling Curtis Campher.

Only 53 runs came off the eight consecutive overs of spin after the powerplay, and the pressure told as Muzarabani castled Dockrell with a clever offcutter to leave Ireland on 108 for 5 with five overs to go.

Raza had his third when he trapped Tector in front with a sidearm delivery that pitched on leg stump, and looked to be sliding down, before straightening to pin him on the front pad. Adair was the next to go, trying to go for a big shot downtown off Ngarava only to pick out long-on.

Muzarabani’s slower variations brought him another wicket off the next over with McCarthy offering a simple catch to point. Delany helped Ireland go past 140 with a 20-run final-over, which saw him hit two sixes down the ground – including one that hit the roof.

Brief scores:
Zimbabwe 148 for 9 in 20 overs (Sikandar Raza 65, Wessley Madhevere 25, Clive Madande 20; Joshua Little 2-17, Mark Adair 2-38, Barry McCarthy 2-37, Craig Young 2-20) beat Ireland 147 for 8 in 20 overs (Andrew Balbirnie 32, Gareth Delany 26*, Lorcan Tucker 21, Harry Tector 24; Sikandar Raza 3-28, Richard Ngarava 2-23, Blessing Muzarabani 2-24) by 1 wicket

(Cricinfo)

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Sports

India to host inaugural Women’s Champions Trophy in February

Published

5 hours ago

2026/09/3

Priyan

The Brabourne Stadium hasn't hosted an international game since December 2022 [BCCI]

The inaugural six-team Women’s Champions Trophy has been moved from Sri Lanka to India, and will be played in Mumbai and Vadodara from February 14 to 28 next year.

The Brabourne Stadium and the Vadodara International Cricket Stadium will host the T20 tournament. Despite losing the hosting rights because of government interference in their cricket board, Sri Lanka will still be part of the tournament, having qualified after being in the top six of the T20I rankings on the July 6 qualification cut-off date. Australia, England, India, New Zealand and South Africa are the other teams.

According to a media release, the ICC assessed three candidates – Bangladesh, India and South Africa – against its established host evaluation criteria before recommending India as the replacement host on Wednesday.

The Brabourne Stadium hasn’t hosted an international game since December 2022, when India women hosted Australia for a T20I series. It hosted the first-ever season of the WPL in 2023 and also a few matches in 2025. Vadodara, meanwhile, has hosted WPL matches in 2025 and 2026.

The Champions Trophy was due to be Sri Lanka’s second ICC event in two years after they also co-hosted the 2026 men’s T20 World Cup with India. The six participating teams will compete in a round-robin league, with the top two sides advancing to the final on February 28.

The SLC is under interim administration, called the Transformation Committee, which was put in place by the Sri Lankan government and will oversee major board changes including those to its constitution. The ICC does not recognise politically appointed administrations and SLC representatives have not been at ICC board meetings since the Transformation Committee was put in place.

[Cricinfo]

Sports

Mendis, Nissanka return for England white ball series

Published

15 hours ago

2026/09/3

Sahan Weerasooriya

Kusal Mendis and Pathum Nissanka return to the side after missing India Tests due to injuries.

by Rex Clementine

Prolific batsman Pathum Nissanka and white-ball captain Kusal Mendis are back in the fold after being named in Sri Lanka’s ODI and T20 squads for the six-match tour of England later this month.

Both Mendis and Nissanka missed the recent Test series against India through injury. Nissanka was recovering from wrist surgery, while Mendis suffered a hamstring injury during the LPL. It was the first major injury setback for the wicketkeeper batter, who has been a fixture in the Sri Lankan side for more than a decade.

Interestingly, Charith Asalanka has returned to the leadership group as vice-captain. Asalanka was stripped of the captaincy in both white ball formats earlier this year and subsequently fell out of favour with the selectors. His elevation suggests that the experiment of grooming Kamindu Mendis as the all-format vice-captain has, for the moment at least, been shelved.

There are, however, a few concerns heading into the tour. Kusal Mendis and Dushmantha Chameera have not featured in the ongoing domestic tournament, leaving them short of competitive cricket. Chameera’s lack of preparation will be particularly concerning given the fast bowler’s lengthy history of injuries. Pathum Nissanka did turn up for NCC though during this week’s T-20 competition but didn’t make an impact.

The inclusion of 28-year-old leg-spinner Sachindu Colombage in the ODI squad has also raised a few eyebrows.

While Sri Lanka’s T20 game remains a work in progress, their ODI fortunes have taken a significant turn for the better. The side has found consistency and made rapid strides, underlined by automatic qualification for next year’s World Cup in South Africa. It is a marked contrast to the build-up to the 2023 edition, when Sri Lanka were forced to travel to Zimbabwe and negotiate the qualifying tournament to earn their place at the World Cup.

Sri Lanka will begin the tour with the T20 series, with Southampton hosting the opener on September 15. The teams then travel to Cardiff and Manchester before the ODI leg gets underway at Chester-le-Street. Headingley will stage the second ODI, with the tour concluding at The Oval.

The Sri Lankan squad will leave for London on Saturday, September 5, giving them ten days to prepare for the six-match white-ball assignment.

ODI squad: Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Kamindu Mendis, Charith Asalanka (vice-captain), Kusal Mendis (captain), Janith Liyanage, Pavan Rathnayake, Dasun Shanaka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Sachindu Colombage, Dushmantha Chameera, Eshan Malinga, Asitha Fernando and Dilshan Madushanka.

T20 squad: Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Lahiru Udara, Kusal Mendis (captain), Kamindu Mendis, Charith Asalanka (vice-captain), Janith Liyanage, Dasun Shanaka, Dunith Wellalage, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Tharindu Rathnayake, Dushmantha Chameera, Eshan Malinga, Nuwan Thushara and Binura Fernando.

Sports

Sampath, bowlers steer Golden Green Plantations to title

Published

15 hours ago

2026/09/3

Sahan Weerasooriya

MCA Premier League Champions 2026 Golden Green Plantations

MCA – ABANS PREMIER LEAGUE 2026

A skipper’s innings of 70 runs off 89 balls by T M Sampath and a four fer by Hesham Madushanaka and two wickets by Upul Hettiarachchi helped new comers to the MCA cricket arena Golden Green Plantations defeat David Pieris Group of Companies by four wickets in the final of the MCA-Abans Premier League 2026 and become the first winners of the ‘Abans Challenge Trophy’.

Electing to bat first David Pieris Group of Companies were restricted to 147 runs in 39.3 overs. Santhush Gunathilake who opened innings topped the score card with a fluent 53 off 50 balls with seven fours and a six. Asitha Wanninayake chipped in with 31 off 59 balls. Heshan Madushanka captured four wickets for 11 runs.

Chasing 148 to win, skipper T M Sampath scored 70 runs off 89 balls with seven boundaries and two sixes before being stumped off the bowling of Dilanka Auwardt, with score on 122/5. Shammu Ashan and Mohamed Shamaz shared a 25 run partnership to equal the scores at 147/6 and Shammu Ashan scored the winning runs with a four.

The Golden Green Plantation Team led by T M Samapth comprised, Heshn Madushanka, Malith Mihiranga, Mohamed Shamaz, Randika Mihiranga, Upul Httiarachchi, Dhanuja Induwara, Gimadu Malkam, Sammu Ashan , Vikum Sanjaya and Johan Pathirana

With only four teams entering the prestigious MCA Premier Leaguethis year, DFCC Bank secured third spot having a slightly better run rate over Nawaloka Hospitals and were unlucky that the opportunity for securing a spot in the final was washed away as qualifier 2 was abandoned on two consuecutive days due to rain.

Player of the Final T M Sampath of Golden Green Plantations receives his trophy from Sajith Athapaththu Chairman of the MCA Social, Bar and Restaurant Committee

Special Awards:

Best fielder of the Final :

Dhanuja Induwara of Golden Green Plantations [3 catches and 1 runout]

Best bowler of the Final:

Heshan Madushanka of Golden Green Plantations [4 wickets for 11 runs]

Best batsman of the Final:

Santhush Gunathilake of David Pieris Group of Companies [53 runs off 50 balls]

Player of the Final ;

T M Sampath of Golden Green Plantations [70 runs and 1 wicket]

Best bowler of the Tournament:

Tharinda Nirmal of David Pieris Group of Companies [13 wickets in 4 innings]

Best batsman of the Tournament: