Sports

Six balls that changed the night

Published

4 months ago

2026/02/28

Priyan

Glenn Phillips conceded 22 runs in the 18th over [Cricbuzz]

For most of the evening, Glenn Phillips looked like the safest investment on the field.

He batted with clarity. Against spin, anything too full was driven straight, anything too short pulled with control. He finished as New Zealand’s top-scorer without appearing to force the pace.

With the ball, he delivered a crucial breakthrough. Harry Brook looked to make room but Phillips, bowling his offbreaks from round the wicket, drifted the ball away. It meant the shot travelled much straighter into the hands of long-off instead of much squarer, where Brook’s intention had been to clear the 62-metre boundary.

Minutes later, Phillips sprinted in from the deep and dived forward to take a low catch inches above the turf. It was sharp, instinctive, and got rid of Jacob Bethell, who was set and posing a threat.

It felt like the making of one of those complete T20 nights for Phillips, the kind where one player seems to sit at the centre of the action and the game appears to move in rhythm with him. Runs, wickets, catches. Influence in every phase.

Then came the inflection point.

England needed 43 from three overs. The decision to hand Phillips the ball was not casual. It was a call built on evidence gathered through the evening. The pitch had rewarded spin. England had bowled 16 overs of it in the first innings, the most they have sent down in a T20I, and had even turned to Will Jacks for the 18th over earlier in the night, when he removed Phillips. The match had already shown how a part-time offspinner could tilt its direction.

With two right-handers at the crease, Phillips’ offbreaks would spin into them and, in theory, invite hits to the longer part of the ground, where batters had been caught in the deep. The dimensions mattered. The surface mattered. The match-ups mattered. It was the sort of decision that feels right in the moment because it has logic layered into it.

There were fewer obvious alternatives than hindsight suggests. Ish Sodhi had already conceded 21 in two overs. The seamers had been used in defined bursts and had not found exaggerated assistance at the death in the previous match on this strip. In fact, Sri Lanka had bowled three of the last four overs with pace and paid the price, with Santner putting the bowlers to the sword over the short boundary.

Santner’s thinking was about control and geometry, about forcing England to hit against the turn and into the bigger side of the ground, about backing the bowler who had influenced the night in multiple ways already.

“Yeah, I guess the toss-up was whether you bowled seam at some stage,” the New Zealand captain later said. “In the first innings, obviously, Brookie (Brooks) in England bowled a lot of seam at the end as well, and I guess it probably wasn’t doing as much as it was the other night, where we bowled a lot of spin. It was still obviously a challenging wicket, but yeah, you can always look at those things in hindsight.”

For a brief moment, it felt aligned with the script. Rehan Ahmed, playing his first-ever match in a T20 World Cup, charged down the track and wasn’t quite to the pitch of the ball, but managed to clear long-on. It was not just six runs. It shifted the mood. Will Jacks sensed it.

“I think that ball that Rehan hit, a six-second ball, that gave me energy as well,” Jacks said. “And I thought, right, we’ve got a chance here. And then obviously I finished over 6-4-4, and we were on. I think small moments like that is so important and not just the runs but the way it happens, hitting a big six and really showing the bowler that you’re on here and we believe that we can win this is really crucial and from that moment I think the mindset changed,” Jacks said.

22 runs came off Phillips’ over. 6, 4, 4 to close it from Jacks. The required rate shrank. The belief grew.

The defining image of Phillips’s night is not the dismissal of Brook or the catch to remove Bethell. Or of looking untroubled even against the guile of Adil Rashid on a slow pitch assisting big turn. Instead, it of Jacks standing tall and hitting straight, once over the larger boundary and again with enough conviction to make field settings feel secondary.

“I think as soon as he came in, we needed 12, maybe 13 and over, so we knew we had to put some impetus into the game,” Jacks said. “Even though there was a big side, we knew off spin to us was a good matchup and we had to take a risk there, knowing Santner was probably going to bowl the next over and it might be harder. And then that 19th over, the second-to-last ball, I said to him, I’ll get a single here and you have a free hit. And that six, obviously, needing five off the last over. It’s pretty much won us the game and that’s brilliant.

“That 18th over was a massive turning point, but you still have to do a lot of work to get to that point,” Jacks added.

Santner did not retreat from the logic. “GP [Glenn Phillips] bowled a good length and he charged and he wasn’t quite there, but great swing of the bat, goes for six,” he said. “And then you’re kind of thinking, is that the option or should I change or with the big boundary it was still trying to get hit to that side and then you could probably think about changing the field a little bit but it’s again it’s even Jacksey absolutely smoking that one just for six over the big side.

“On another day, that could be called or that’s the options we want them to take. Obviously, square was the bigger boundary versus straight. So I think as a bowler, it’s how do you keep getting it square versus down the ground,” Santner added.

Tim Seifert, who stood behind the stumps and watched the over unfold, put it bluntly: “You’ve got to take your hats off. One of them went straight over that big boundary. Sometimes you’ve got to tip your head.”

For 37 overs, Glenn Phillips had influenced the match in small, decisive ways. In the 38th, one over, built on a decision that made sense at the time, was met by three shots that were struck cleaner. In T20 cricket, that is often the difference.

[Cricbuzz]

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Sports

Nilakshika guides Sri Lanka to historic win over New Zealand

Published

22 mins ago

2026/06/18

Sahan Weerasooriya

Nilakshika Silva and Kaushini Nuthyangana shared an unbeaten 48 run partnership for the sixth wicket as Sri Lanka recorded a stunning come from behind victory over defending champions New Zealand at the Rose Bowl on Tuesday.

A gutsy half-century by middle-order batter Nilakshika Silva helped Sri Lanka upset defending champions New Zealand in their Group ‘A’ fixture of the Women’s World Cup at the Rose Bowl on Tuesday, keeping their semi-final hopes very much alive. It was the first time Sri Lanka Women had beaten the White Ferns in a World Cup encounter after seven successive defeats.

New Zealand started as overwhelming favourites and appeared to be cruising towards another victory when they reduced Sri Lanka to 55 for four while defending a target of 151.

But Nilakshika, showing nerves of steel and years of experience, produced a splendid innings, forging crucial partnerships with the lower order to guide Sri Lanka home just before rain threatened to intervene.

Batting at number six, the 36-year-old veteran remained unbeaten on 54 off just 37 deliveries, striking five fours and a six, as Sri Lanka completed a remarkable recovery and sealed victory with two balls to spare.

The revival was first engineered by Nilakshika and Kavisha Dilhari, who added 50 runs for the fifth wicket. Just when Sri Lanka had begun to regain control, Dilhari was run out attempting a risky second run. But Nilakshika was not prepared to throw in the towel.

Together with wicketkeeper Kaushini Nuthyangana, she added an unbeaten 48 run stand for the sixth wicket to ensure that Sri Lanka secured a memorable come from behind victory.

After suffering a crushing 87 run defeat to England in their opening game, Sri Lanka’s bowlers responded magnificently to restrict New Zealand to 150, although their fielding once again left plenty to be desired.

Chamari Atapattu and Vishmi Gunaratne provided a rollicking start during the Powerplay, but the captain’s dismissal triggered a collapse as Sri Lanka lost four wickets for the addition of just ten runs.

The victory owed much to Nilakshika, who has been serving Sri Lankan cricket with distinction for the last 13 years and delivered when her side needed her most.

Sri Lanka now head to Bristol for crucial encounters against West Indies and Ireland before wrapping up their group campaign against Scotland in Manchester.

Sri Lanka women have never reached the semi-final stage of an ICC event and their clash against West Indies has now assumed enormous significance. Another victory could put Chamari Atapattu’s side on the brink of history.

There will, however, be plenty of focus on improving the fielding over the next few days, as it was once again a major concern against New Zealand.

Rex Clementine in Southampton

Sports

Javelin focus shifts to South Asia as Tharanga heads to Doha as the athlete to beat

Published

24 mins ago

2026/06/18

Sahan Weerasooriya

Rumesh Tharanga

Rumesh Tharanga will arrive at Friday’s Doha Diamond League as the athlete to beat following a commanding victory at the Ostrava Golden Spike meeting on Tuesday.

‎Fresh from his recent record-breaking exploits, Tharanga once again asserted his dominance on the international stage, winning the men’s javelin with three throws beyond the 85-metre mark. Remarkably, any one of those efforts would have been sufficient to secure victory in the Czech Republic.

‎The 23-year-old produced his best throw of 86.57 metres in the third round to finish ahead of two-time world champion Anderson Peters, who placed second with a best effort of 84.27 metres.

‎Tharanga’s consistency throughout the competition underlined his status as one of the world’s leading javelin throwers. The victory further strengthened his credentials ahead of the Doha Diamond League, where he is expected to challenge a field featuring world champion Keshorn Walcott, Peters and world bronze medallist Curtis Thompson.

‎Tuesday’s triumph continued a remarkable season for the former Peterite, who has emerged as a genuine title contender on the global circuit with a string of world-class performances.

‎The men’s javelin is expected to be one of the highlights of the Doha Diamond League, with the entire podium from the 2025 World Championships returning to action. Walcott, Peters and Thompson will renew their rivalry in what promises to be a highly competitive contest.

‎Tharanga heads to Doha as the world leader after his stunning Sri Lankan record throw of 92.62 metres in Rome earlier this month. That performance elevated him to eighth place on the world all-time list and established him as one of the sport’s biggest stars.

‎Adding further intrigue will be the South Asian rivalry involving Tharanga, 2021 Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra and reigning Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem, should the Pakistani star make a rare appearance on the Diamond League circuit.

‎Tharanga has won six of his seven competitions this season. His narrow defeat to Peters in Rabat during his Diamond League debut remains his only setback of the year.

‎Doha has a reputation for producing outstanding javelin performances. Chopra joined the exclusive 90-metre club in the Qatari capital with his personal best of 90.23 metres, while Peters (93.07m) and Jakub Vadlejch (90.88m) went beyond the 90 metres mark during their memorable duel there in 2022.

‎Prior to Ostrava, Tharanga said he was not targeting a massive throw in the Czech Republic but hoped to produce something special in Doha. With the world’s best converging on a venue known for big distances, another thrilling contest could be on the horizon.

‎The Doha Diamond League was originally scheduled for early May but was later moved to June.

by Reemus Fernando

Sports

Bowling coach hails Nilakshika’s match winning effort

Published

24 mins ago

2026/06/18

Sahan Weerasooriya

Sri Lanka women’s fast bowling coach Chamila Gamage hailed the efforts of middle order batter Nilakshika Silva after her side pulled off a stunning victory over defending champions New Zealand on Tuesday.

Sri Lanka were staring down the barrel at 55 for four in pursuit of 151 when Nilakshika walked out to the middle. The experienced campaigner produced a superb counterattack, turning the game on its head with a composed yet aggressive innings.

“Nilakshika is one of our most experienced players and she showed what she is capable of today. It was a terrific knock and one the team desperately needed. We are all delighted for her,” Gamage told reporters.

Sri Lanka’s seamers also delivered a vastly improved performance after enduring a torrid outing in the tournament opener against England, which ended in an 87-run defeat.

“We sat down and discussed what went wrong in the first game and what needed to be done. These players are quick learners and they adapted really well. They are all young and have bright futures ahead of them. I believe they are going to accomplish great things,” Gamage added.