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WWC 2025: Mooney’s rescue act for the ages denies Pakistan a historic win

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Beth Mooney's hundred rescued Australia [Cricinfo]

Beth Mooney’s masterful maiden World Cup century rescued Australia from 76 for 7, set up a match-winning total of 221 and denied Pakistan the opportunity to pull off the first upset of the tournament. Australia are now at the top of the points table, with two wins and a washout while Pakistan remain winless in last place.

Mooney continued a magnificent 2025, in which she now averages 63.42, with an innings that was a class above anyone else on a slow, low turner in Colombo. Only two other batters, Alana King and Sidra Amin, got more than 20; King’s innings came with Mooney at the other end. The pair shared a 106-run ninth-wicket stand and King’s 51* was the highest score for a player batting at No.10 or lower in women’s ODIs. They completely eclipsed the efforts of Pakistan’s spinners, who shared six wickets for 98 runs in their 30 overs and gave their side real hope before the batters completely faded away.

Pakistan were bowled out for 114, undone by seam and swing. As much as Pakistan will need to question their batting, they will wonder how they squandered the opportunity to bowl Australia out for one of their lowest World Cup scores after getting themselves into a position of such advantage. The answer lies in Mooney’s approach.

Unlike all the other batters, she demonstrated an ability to play late and move in the crease and showed patience in the face of extreme pressure. All told, Mooney hit 11 fours in her century and ran 44 singles, nine twos and a three. She earned the right to play with freedom at the end and Australia’s final flourish of 81 runs in the last 10 overs including 53 off the last four, iced the cake.

Their takedown of Diana Baig, who conceded 74 in her 10 overs, will also ask questions of Pakistan’s bowling options. They only had five at their disposal and while four had an excellent day out, they could not close things out quickly enough after Fatima Sana chose to bowl in hot, humid conditions because she suspected spin could play a role. She was proved right almost immediately.

Sana introduced spin in the form of Sadia Iqbal in the fifth over, Iqbal ended it by drawing Alyssa Healy forward as she tried to flick. Healy gave Baig a simple catch at midwicket.

Four balls later, Sana, after bowling 12 dot balls and with her hero Ellyse Perry at the other end, had Phoebe Litchfield playing across the line and skying it straight up. The Pakistan captain kept her composure to take a good catch. In the end, Sana did not get to bowl to Perry at all as she took herself off to go all spin.

Nashra Sandhu struck with her fifth ball when Perry came down the track, was beaten by turn and Sidra Nawaz did some excellent work behind the stumps to break them. With that, Sandhu became the leading wicket taker for Pakistan in ODI World Cups, going past former captain Sana Mir and she showed no signs of stopping. In her next over, Sandhu deceived Annabel Sutherland with the one that held its line and beat the inside edge to bowl her.

Though left-arm spin has been the discipline of destruction at this tournament, offspinner Rameen Shamim was not to be denied a share of the spoils. Ash Gardner chipped Shamim straight to Sana at midwicket. Then, Sandhu sent one down slow, Tahlia McGrath tried to get it over extra cover but could not get to the pitch of the ball and sliced it to Baig, who lunged forward to take the catch in the infield.

When Georgia Wareham was done in by extra bounce and gave Shamim a relatively simple return catch, Australia were 76 for 7 – the second lowest at the fall of the seventh wickets since 67 for 7 against New Zealand in 1993. Sandhu thought she had the eighth in the 23rd over when Garth missed a straight one and was given out lbw but she reviewed and replays showed she had hit the ball.

That proved crucial as it allowed Australia to rebuild, in a similar fashion to the way they did after being 128 for 5 against New Zealand. This time, they were able to do it against a Pakistan attack that had to go back to their seamers, in the absence of another spin option. Sana brought herself back on in the 28th over and should have run Garth out but got herself into a poor position at the non-striker’s end. She also had to go back to Baig, and Australia’s 100 and Mooney’s fifty both came off her in a sign of things to come.

The eighth-wicket stand between Mooney and Garth grew 39 before another Nawaz special behind the stumps. Baig sent a full ball down leg, Garth missed the flick with her front foot out of the crease and back heel lifted. Nawaz reacted quickly to collect, stay low and break the stumps. Australia were 115 for 8 and again, Pakistan could not close things out.

King did a sterling job of holding her end and helped Mooney drag the innings into its latter stages. Mooney was on 85 when she was given lbw to Iqbal, against a delivery that turned in and pinned her on the back leg. She reviewed and ball tracking showed it was doing too much and would have missed leg stump. King was 17 off 35 at the time.

Mooney entered the nineties when she whipped Baig behind square and moved swiftly to 97 with a cut that went to the deep-third boundary. Her hundred came with a single off Sana, and then she let King have some fun. King took 13 runs off Baig’s final over and then back-to-back sixes off Sana’s last over to bring up 50 off 48 balls. Mooney then smashed two more fours before being dismissed off the last ball as she cut Sana to cover.

Pakistan’s demoralisation with how they fielded showed in their batting. Sadaf Shams looked nervy initially, edged Megan Schutt between the keeper and slip and then nicked off against Garth. Schutt got on the board three overs later when Muneeba Ali was caught low by Sutherland at mid-off, in a dismissal that looked eerily similar to Heather Knight’s not out against Bangladesh.

Nawaz, promoted to No.4, had no footwork when she edged Garth to Healy, Schutt had Natalia Pervaiz caught by Mooney at slip and then Garth bowled Eyman Fatima, playing and missing as she attempted a slog. Pakistan were in a mess at 31 for 5 and it didn’t get much better.

Sana chopped a short Sutherland ball onto her stumps before Sidra Amin and Shamim put on 29 in 52 balls, which was Pakistan’s best stand. Spin ended it when Amin picked out Sutherland at long-on. Pakistan were 78 for 7 but had no batters to take them close. Shamim and Sandhu delayed the inevitable for 68 balls in a 25-run stand. Pakistan were dismissed in 36.3 overs and their net run rate plunged to -1.887.

Brief scores:
Australia Women  221 for 9 in 50 overs  (Alyssa Healey 20, Beth Mooney 109, Alana King 51*; Fatima Sana 2-49, Rameen Shamin 2-29, Nashra  Sandhu 3-37) beat Pakistan Women  114 in 36.3 overs (Sidra Amin 35; Kim  Garth 3-14, Annabel Sutherland 2-15, Megan Schutt 2-25) by 107 runs

[Cricinfo]

 



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Tuesday at T20 World Cup: New Zealand eye first win; Ireland run into England

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Charlie Dean has picked up 23 wickets since 2025, most by an England spinner [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

Ireland will hope their captain, Gaby Lewis, can produce a big score against England. Still only 25, she is Ireland’s leading run scorer in women’s T20Is and was also the top scorer at the qualifiers in Nepal this year. As the cornerstone of the top order, Ireland will need Lewis to carry that form into Southampton.
Tuesday in Southampton is forecast to be partly sunny with temperatures climbing to 22 degrees Celsius. Only one match has been played at the venue so far, where West Indies successfully chased down 163 against New Zealand. The game was played on a hybrid surface with a healthy covering of live grass.

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]

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Trump says deal to end war with Iran already signed and details to be released ‘pretty soon’

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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]

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Holder completes heist for West Indies after Joseph picks up five

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Shamar Joseph collected his best figures in T20I cricket [Cricinfo]

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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