Sports
Salt 109 not out, Brook late cameo fire England to dramatic chase of 223
Nicholas Pooran produced a T20I career-best as West Indies showcased their six-hitting chops once again in Grenada’s National Stadium. Phil Salt then did the same on the way to a maiden T20 hundred as England rediscovered their batting mojo. And at the end, an explosive assault from Harry Brook was the clincher, as England burgled 21 runs from final over to bring themselves kicking and screaming back into the series at 2-1 down with two to play.
Brook finished unbeaten on 31 from seven balls, having taken Andre Rusell for 4-6-6-2-6 to seal a record chase on the ground with a ball to spare. Salt was the man watching on from the other end, having himself hit nine sixes in 109 from 56 to set up England’s third-highest successful chase in T20Is. The final sixes count, after Brook’s ice-cool finish: West Indies 16-18 England.
As in the second match, England opted to bowl first and managed to inflict early damage only for West Indies’ power to leave them bruised in the final analysis. Pooran weathered the loss of both openers in the first two overs and batted astutely through the gears to make 82 from 45 balls, with a series of muscular cameos – most notably Rovman Powell’s 39 off 21 – helping to raise a formidable Manhattan through the back end of the West Indies innings.
Having limped home short of a target of 177 two days earlier, England found a spark of their own in a valiant attempt to keep the series alive. Salt and Jos Buttler, who made 51 from 34, put on a century stand as the runs flowed from the outset, only for West Indies – notably through the efforts of left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie, – to keep a lid on the scoring at a crucial juncture. After Motie had finished his allocation, England were left staring down a requirement of 102 from the last seven overs.
But Liam Livingstone helped add 70 from 34 for the third wicket, Salt bringing up his century from 51 balls moments after hitting Jason Holder for back-to-back sixes. Livingstone holed out but Brook signalled his intent by launching his first ball for six to leave England needing 31 from 12. Joseph conceded 10 from the 19th, nudging the odds in Russell’s favour – only for Brook to leave West Indies’ talismanic allrounder flat out on the canvas after a delirious finale.
Asked to score at more than 11 runs an over, England needed a statement at the top of the order. It was provided, predictably enough, by Buttler. Never mind the patchy form of the last few months that had seen him pass 50 twice in 20 white-ball innings for his country – here he rocked back to launch his second ball, from Akeal Hosein, over long-on before leaning into the next and chipping it languidly for six more through long-off.
Salt notched his first boundary in the following over, and the closest the openers came to being parted early on was when Holder struck his pads next ball – Nigel Duguid’s not-out decision supported by DRS returning umpire’s call on leg stump. Amid the confusion, Buttler might have been run out, stranded two-thirds of the way down the pitch with Salt unmoving.
Salt cleared the ropes at the end of Holder’s over and then boxed Motie’s ears with sixes at the beginning and end of his first, as England raced away to 73 without loss at the end of the powerplay. The boundaries began to dry up with the field spread, though Salt mangled Hosein over long-off to bring up England’s 100 in the tenth – a first century stand for Salt and Buttler as an opening pair and England’s first since they had dismantled India at Adelaide in the 2022 T20 World Cup semi-final.
Motie had delivered his full allocation on this ground two nights ago at a cost of nine runs. This time that figure was surpassed in the space of four balls, as his first over went for 18; but when he switched ends shortly before the halfway mark, the left-arm spinner was able to exert a vital measure of control for his captain, Powell. Pushing his pace up above 100kph, he conceded just five runs from his second – the ninth of the innings – and then four more from the 11th.
With the required rating rising, Buttler was then smartly caught at deep backward square off Russell – Hosein taking the catch comfortably inside the rope before tossing it to Alzarri Joseph as he went out of bounds. In the next over, Motie’s last, he conceded just three runs to go with the wicket of Will Jacks, edging behind for a frustrated 1 off six balls. England at that stage needed to score at almost 15 runs an over – the rate would rise as high as 17.75 by the end of the 16th – but there was still a twist to come.
Few batters in the English game possess the same level of native belligerence as Salt, but he has struggled to find the right balance between attacking intent and building an innings. This was only the second time in his T20I career that he had faced more than 35 balls, and yet he managed the closing stages of England’s chase superbly before giving way to Brook for the coup de grace.
With Salt on 81 from 47, and West Indies seemingly on the brink of shutting the game down, he struck three consecutive sixes off Joseph and Holder before a single took him to his second hundred in an England shirt – and his first significant score of a tour on which he will have hoped to reassert his credentials in both white-ball formats. There was one more six to come, lofting Joseph over long-off in the penultimate over to keep England just about in touch. But equally impressive in searing afternoon heat was his fitness, running 24 singles, six twos and a three to help England stay the course.
England made two changes to their XI, bringing in seamers Reece Topley and Gus Atkinson for Rehan Ahmed and Chris Woakes. After Mooen Ali found some grip to bowl Brandon King with his fifth ball, Topley set about demonstrating his value with the new ball. Playing for the first time since a finger injury ended his ODI World Cup back in mid-October, he was immediately back into the groove, finding swing and bounce with his third delivery to square up Kyle Mayers and nick the opener off for nought.
West Indies were 8 for 2 and in danger of making an even worse start than they managed in the second match. They counterpunched through a half-century stand between Pooran and Shai Hope, but Topley was almost blemish-free during his opening three-over spell in the powerplay, conceding a single boundary for figures of 3-0-14-1.
Pooran walked out in the first over and, although he struck a six and two fours inside his first ten balls, was measured in his approach during the first half of the innings as he rebuilt with Hope, initially, and then Powell. He was on 32 from 23 at the halfway stage of the innings and, although he swatted Atkinson for a third six in the next over, it was Powell who provided most of the impetus during their fourth-wicket stand of 58 from 5.2 overs.
Powell looked in the mood to better his 27-ball fifty on the same ground two days before, smashing Livingstone for back-to-back sixes, but was eventually defeated by a Sam Curran bouncer to be caught behind. England clawed back some ground, with Curran producing two tight overs after being dismantled by Powell in the first T20I, but Pooran was content to bide his time as he ticked along to a 37-ball half-century, reached via a delicate dab off a Rashid googly.
The next over saw West Indies flex their six-hitting muscle again, as Tymal Mills was collared for 25 runs: Sherfane Rutherford hit him straight and over square leg for four and six, before Pooran regained the strike and went 4-6-4 – the pick being a flat thrash over cover. Two more sixes came off Rashid, and by the time he picked out long-on off the legspinner, Pooran had plundered 28 runs from his last seven balls.
Rutherford, replacing the out-of-form Shimron Hetmyer, quickly caught the mood with a punchy 29 off 17 – although he became a second wicket for Curran, whose figures were dented during a 19th over that cost 21, and concluded with Russell creaming him for an almighty straight six from his third ball. That was six No. 14 for the innings, and although Topley started his final over well, Holder ensured that the ticker would keep spinning, battering two more hits over the ropes to finish with 18 from five balls and ensure West Indies would comfortably eclipse the previous highest score on this ground.
Brief scores:
England 226 for 3 in 19.5 overs (Phillip Salt 109*, Jos Buttler 51, Liam Livingstone 30, Harry Brook 31*) beat West Indies 222 for 6 in 20 overs (Nicholas Pooran 82, Shai Hope 26, Roveman Powell 39, Sherfane Rutherford 29; Adil Rashid 2-32, Sam Curran 2-34) by seven wickets
(Cricinfo)
Mahinda College fought back strongly to reach 90 for two wickets at stumps in reply to Richmond College’s 315 on day two of the Lovers’ Quarrel Big Match at the Galle International Stadium on Friday.
In a similar pattern to their arch rivals’ start, Mahinda suffered an early setback, losing two quick wickets in the opening phase of their innings. However, the third-wicket pair of Randula Mabarana and Dineth Pehesara restored stability with a composed stand, ensuring the team closed the day without further damage.
Earlier in the day, spinner Manitha Rajapakshe delivered a standout performance, claiming a five-wicket haul to bring an end to Richmond’s marathon first innings, which extended from day one into the post-lunch session on the second day.
Richmond had recovered impressively from early trouble after slipping to 11 for two on the opening morning. A patient and resilient 173-run partnership for the third wicket between Ravinu Randinu and Ameesha Rasanjana laid the foundation for their competitive total. The duo batted through the bulk of day one and looked set for bigger scores before both were dismissed in the 80s by Sadew Nethmina and Kaveesha Githmal.
Further contributions from Nethusha Nimsara, Nethuja Basitha and Punal Hansajith helped Richmond consolidate, particularly as they faced a sustained and threatening spell from Rajapakshe, who bowled tirelessly to keep Mahinda in the contest.With Mahinda still trailing but having wickets in hand, the match remains finely poised heading into the third day.
Sophie Devine made Eden Park her own little playground as she brought up her 22nd T20I half-century and carried New Zealand to a 2-1 series lead over South Africa with two games to go. She had also picked up a couple of wickets earlier in the day and backed up her words when she said South Africa’s 149 for 7 was a little bit under par.
New Zealand have never chased more than 150 at home. The small boundaries in Auckland were a friend in that regard, particularly with Annerie Dercksen and Ayanda Hlubi occasionally straying down leg. South Africa tightened up though and the wickets of Amelia Kerr and Brooke Halliday in the 10th over left the chase in a tense situation. New Zealand needed 82 off 60 with six wickets in hand. Devine was 13 off 10.
A pull shot off Chloe Tryon to start the 11th over signalled the shift in momentum. The square boundaries are bigger than the straight ones at Eden Park and yet Devine kept finding them. She collected 46 runs at a strike rate of 219 on the leg side. At the time the fifth-wicket partnership had hit 50, Maddy Green had made only 12 off 15. It was all Devine from the other end and it was all Devine till the end. Her superpowers now include winning the game without touching the ball. Dercksen missed the cut strip as she tried to hide it away from the batter’s reach.
Those five no-balls bringing an end to proceedings highlighted how wayward South Africa’s attack was compared to New Zealand’s. Jess Kerr’s early swing dominated the powerplay. Devine and Suzie Bates taking pace off kept control through the middle and barring another Kayla Reyneke onslaught, it was one-way traffic.
South Africa had to wait 23 balls for the first boundary off the bat on Friday. Dercksen made it worth the wait with a neat little flick off her legs that travelled all the way for six over deep midwicket. Dercksen arrived with the score on 9 for 2 in the third over and put the pressure back on New Zealand. While she was at the crease, she was responsible for more then half the boundaries (4 out of 7) her team scored. Thanks to that, Laura Wolvaardt could drop anchor and go at her preferred pace, though 37 off 39 wasn’t a good look for the captain, who later admitted they were well short of a competitive total.
A pitch with 10mm of grass offered enough for the seamers and even someone with their eye in was found out when Devine went into the pitch. The little legcutter – a response to being hit for six the previous ball – found Dercksen in two minds, whether to attack or defend, and took down her off stump. South Africa lost 59 for 5 between the eighth and the 18th overs, going 38 balls without a boundary.
Bates continued to find more success with the ball. She took a wicket in her first over and took responsibility in the death as well. New Zealand held their line and length really well, refusing access to the straight boundary and routinely cramping the batters up, guiding them to hit the areas – midwicket and square leg – that they had covered in the field.
Then Mair missed her length and was clubbed down the ground for six. It highlighted how a bowler had to be perfect against a batter of such power. Reyneke is immense when she can free her arms and go down the ground. She grew up playing in boys’ teams. She came into this series with a 75 off 63 for Western Province, who were 93 for 6 and still ended up winning the Pro50 game thanks to their 20-year-old phenom. She captained South Africa in the Under-19 World Cup when they went to the final last year. She’s marked for big things.
Reyneke’s presence forced Jess Kerr to go wide in the final over – too wide. The umpire penalising her made the bowler shift her line and that little bit was enough for Reyneke to smash two sixes and a four, all down the ground, and hoist South Africa to 149 for 7. She wasn’t given a lot to get under but as soon as she was given one, she smashed it out of the park. The margin for error was breathtakingly small.
Brief scores:
New Zealand Women 152 for 4 in 18.4 overs (Isabella Gaze 17, Amelia Kerr 30, Sophie Devine 59*, Maddie Green 34*; Annerie Dercksen 1-17, Ayanda Hilubi 1-31, Nonkululeko Mlaba 1-30 ) beat South Africa Women 149 for 7 in 20 overs (Laura Wolvaardt 37, Annerie Dercksen 27, Kayla Reyneke 34*; Jess Kerr 1-30, Rosemary Mair 1-32, Sophie Devine 2-21, Suzie Bates 2-10) by six wickets
(Cricinfo)
When governing body officials the Africa Cup of Nations title to Morocco, overturning Senegal’s victory two months after the chaotic final, football fans were stunned.
The impact of the decision could spread beyond sport and weaken the bond between the nations.
While Moroccan fans took to the streets to celebrate their team’s belated success, the decision by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) was met with disbelief in Senegal, with fans and authorities calling the decision “unjust”.
Senegal’s government on Wednesday said it will pursue “all appropriate legal avenues” to overturn the decision and called for an international investigation into “suspected corruption” within African football’s governing body.
The Senegal Football Federation (FSF) then announced on Thursday that it had instructed lawyers, aparently carrying through its threat to take the matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Such a move could lead to a yearlong legal battle before a ruling.
CAF’s appeals board on Tuesday ruled that Senegal forfeited the final by leaving the field of play without the referee’s authorisation, and it awarded Morocco a default 3-0 win.
The game was delayed for 14 minutes as most of the Senegalese players and staff returned to their dressing room, while Senegal fans battled stewards behind one of the goals in protest against a controversial penalty call for Morocco after Senegal had a goal ruled out.
The players returned, Morocco missed the penalty, and Senegal won the match 1-0 in extra time.
Morocco and Senegal have long shared close ties built on religion, trade and culture. Tijaniyyah, a Sufi Muslim order, is widely followed in both countries. Moroccan banks and companies heavily invest in Senegal’s finance and agriculture sectors. Cultural exchanges include student programs, migration and joint festivals.
But the tensions surrounding the final and CAF’s appeals court decision to overturn Senegal’s victory have put a strain on the relationship between the two countries.
Last month, 18 Senegal fans who were arrested on charges of hooliganism at the final were given prison terms of up to a year by a Moroccan court. The Senegalese government has expressed solidarity with the Senegalese supporters.
Seydina Issa Laye Diop, president of the Senegalese national team’s fan group called “12th Gainde”, told The Associated Press on Thursday that the incidents should not damage the relationship between Senegal and Morocco.
“However, there are limits: if this continues, it could somewhat affect the pride of the Senegalese people,” Diop said. “If the goal is to preserve friendship, then it must be nurtured. Small gestures can have a big impact. These are things we can move past, especially since, during the trial, no solid argument has justified the continued detention of these supporters.”
Mariama Ndeye, a student in Senegal’s capital Dakar, said the decision has negatively affected her view of Moroccans.
“When everything goes well, they call us their brothers. But when things don’t go their way, they start being nasty,” Ndeye said.
Politics and sport are rarely separated as Senegal and Morocco find out
On Wednesday, Morocco’s embassy in Dakar called on Moroccans in Senegal to “demonstrate restraint, vigilance, and a sense of responsibility.”
“It is important to recall that, in all circumstances, it is only a match, the outcome of which should never justify any form of escalation or excessive remarks between brotherly peoples,” the embassy said.
While the dispute has remained centred around the football match, bad feelings have spread more generally.
In Casablanca, home appliances business owner Ismail Fnani said he felt like other African countries were rooting against Morocco during the final.
“Honestly, my views toward Senegalese and sub-Saharan Africans changed after this,” he said. “We used to feel sympathy and help them because they were migrants who had struggled to get here. Where there was once sympathy and compassion, now I will treat them as they have treated us.”
Mohamed el-Arabi, who works in a grocery shop in Casablanca, said he did not celebrate the decision awarding Morocco the title.
“We would have preferred it to stay with Senegal because it doesn’t feel right otherwise,” El Arabi said.
“People here have started hating Senegalese. They no longer provide them with help. We used to be like brothers, especially since they are Muslims like us, but that is no longer the case,” he added.
African football thrust into spotlight as CAF face accusations
The Senegalese government’s allegation of suspected corruption” at CAF followed anger at perceived favouritism towards Morocco, which is a 2030 World Cup co-host and has invested heavily to become a football superpower.
On Wednesday, CAF President Patrice Motsepe defended the body against perceptions of favouritism towards Morocco.
“Not a single country in Africa will be treated in a manner that is more preferential, or more advantageous, or more favourable than any other country on the African continent,” Motsepe said in a video published on the CAF website.
[Aljazeera]
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