Latest News
Ecclestone, Jones help England level series with rain-affected win
England’s spinners assured their side of a manageable target before Amy Jones took them across the line in a rain-hit second ODI at Lord’s to level the series with India at 1-1.
After a four-hour rain delay reduced the match to 29 overs per side, England’s three-pronged spin attack restricted India to 143 for 8, sharing six wickets between them as Sophie Ecclestone led the way with 3 for 27. Linsey Smith took two and Charlie Dean one.
Another heavy downpour in the evening sent players running for cover with England 102 for 1 after 18.4 overs chasing 144 and, after a delay of about 20 minutes, their target was reduced to 115 in 24 overs, giving them 5.2 overs in which to score 13 runs.
Kranti Goud bowled Nat Sciver-Brunt with the second ball after play resumed but Jones, unbeaten on 46, and Sophia Dunkley, with 9 not out, saw England home by eight wickets with 18 balls to spare.
Smriti Mandhana top-scored for India with a 51-ball 42 and Deepti Sharma was their next-best with an unbeaten 30 off 34 balls but no other batter passed 16, although it could have been worse had the hosts capitalised on five further chances which went begging in the field.
Tammy Beaumont started England’s run-chase brightly, easing to 18 off eight balls after the first three overs.
If there was an air of tension surrounding the match as these sides returned to the scene of Deepti’s run out of Dean backing up in 2022, the band was pulled tighter during an umpire review for obstructing the field against Beaumont in the fifth over.
Beaumont clipped a Deepti delivery towards midwicket then turned back as Jemimah Rodrigues fired the ball back to the striker’s end. Beaumont’s left foot was grounded inside her crease as she moved her right leg forward and the ball ricocheted off her pad as wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh threw her arms up in appeal but Beaumont was adjudged not out.
Beaumont couldn’t relax, however, Deepti pulling out of her delivery stride in her next over. Beaumont, the non-striker, recovered her ground with relative ease.
England had been 37 without loss after a truncated six-over powerplay, compared to India’s 25 for 1 at the corresponding point in their innings, but India got their first wicket in the 11th when Sneh Rana got one to keep low as it slid under Beaumont’s attempted reverse and hit her in line. Beaumont reviewed but ball-tracking predicted it to hit leg stump.
Jones and Sciver-Brunt had put on an unbroken stand of 48 off 50 balls for the second wicket when the rain returned, eight balls shy of the 20 overs required to constitute a match.
Earlier, the sun was blazing as seamer Em Arlott celebrated removing Pratika Rawal with just her fourth delivery, a gem of a yorker on the base of off stump.
The hosts introduced spin in the ninth over with Dean conceding nine before Ecclestone struck with a return catch off the second ball of the 10th to remove Harleen Deol.
After seeing a couple of half-chances missed off her bowling, Ecclestone took matters into her own hands again in her second over, pushing a faster ball through Harmanpreet Kaur’s attempt to cut and hitting the top of off stump.
Harmanpreet’s dismissal for just 7 continued a lean tour for her, in which she has scored 89 runs all up from six innings across formats with a highest score of 26.
India’s woes deepened through Dean’s caught-and-bowled dismissal of Rodrigues to make it 69 for 4 for the tourists in the 15th over. It should have been five down two balls later but Dean spilled a more straightforward chance off Ghosh.
Ecclestone ensured the mistake wasn’t too costly however when she trapped Ghosh lbw in the next over.
That brought Deepti to the crease and as she faced Dean, there was a murmur of reminiscence from the crowd. Dean beat the bat with her first two deliveries before Deepti got off strike with a cut through point.
Smith almost did herself a mischief when she dived after a firm drive through the covers off Mandhana and face-planted the turf at the edge of the square, but she bounced back to combine with Dean in Mandhana’s downfall.
After watching Mandhana’s perfectly placed sweep pierce deep backward square and deep midwicket to reach the boundary, Smith drew a top edge that sailed towards cover, where Dean took a tumbling catch, drop-kicking the ball away in celebration.
Smith claimed her second when pinned had Arundhati Reddy lbw and Arlott finished as she began, knocking back Rana’s off stump.
The teams meet again in the final match of India’s tour at Durham on Tuesday.
Brief scores:
England Women 116 for 2 in 21 overs (Amy Jones 46*, Tammy Beaumont 34, Nat Sciver Brunt 21; Sneh Rana 1-12 ) beat India Women 143 for 8 in 29 overs (Smriti Mandhana 42, Deepti Sharma 30*; Em Arlott 2-26, Sophie Ecclestone 3-27, Linsey Smith 2-28) by eight wickets (DLS method)
Torrential rains have killed more than 100 people across Southern Africa, forcing mass evacuations and rescue operations as authorities warn that more destructive weather may still be to come.
Weeks of heavy rainfall have battered South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe, overwhelming rivers and infrastructure and leaving entire communities cut off. Weather services across the region have issued further alerts, raising fears of additional flooding.
In South Africa, officials said on Friday that flooding in the northern provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga had killed at least 30 people.
Army helicopters have been deployed to rescue residents trapped on rooftops and in trees as swollen rivers swept through towns and villages. Security personnel were also evacuated from a border checkpoint with Zimbabwe after floodwaters surrounded the area.
President Cyril Ramaphosa toured affected parts of Limpopo on Thursday, saying the province had received about 400mm (16 inches) of rain in less than a week. In one district, he said, “there are 36 houses that have just been wiped away from the face of the earth.”
Limpopo Premier Phophi Ramathuba said more than 1,000 homes had been damaged across the province. “It’s so terrible,” she said.
In neighbouring Zimbabwe, the government’s disaster management agency reported at least 70 deaths since the start of the year, with more than 1,000 homes destroyed, and schools, roads and bridges collapsing under the force of the floods.
Mozambique has been the hardest hit. Its disaster management authorities said 103 people had died during an unusually severe rainy season since late last year. The figure includes deaths caused by flooding, lightning strikes, infrastructure collapse and a cholera outbreak linked to contaminated water supplies.
More than 200,000 people have been affected nationwide, with thousands of homes damaged and tens of thousands facing evacuation, according to the World Food Programme. The agency warned that flooding has submerged more than 70,000 hectares (173,000 acres) of crops, deepening food shortages for small-scale farmers in a country already struggling with poverty and repeated cyclones.
The United States Famine Early Warning System said flooding was reported or expected in at least seven Southern African countries, possibly linked to the La Nina phenomenon, which often brings heavier rainfall to the region.
South Africa’s Kruger National Park has also been hit, with about 600 tourists and staff evacuated from flood-affected camps. Park authorities said no deaths or injuries had been reported, but large areas remain inaccessible after rivers burst their banks.
Southern Africa has endured a series of extreme weather events in recent years, from deadly cyclones to severe droughts, exposing the region’s vulnerability to climate-driven disasters and fragile infrastructure.
A 119-run partnership between MegLanning and Phoebe Litchfield set up a second successive win for UP Warriorz (UPW) against Mumbai Indians (MI) as they continued their bounceback after starting the season with a hat-trick of defeats.
Put in to bat, Lanning and Litchfield hit fifties before MI managed to restrict them to 187 for 8. However, a rejigged batting line-up faltered in the chase as the defending champions succumbed to their third defeat of the season in their last game in Navi Mumbai. UPW became just the second team to do the league double over MI in the WPL, after Delhi Capitals last year, also led by Lanning.
Nicola Carey, opening the bowling with Shabnim Ismail rested, continued her great form in WPL 2026 as she cleaned up Kiran Navgire for a golden duck with an inswinging yorker that beat the batter all ends up. But Lanning ensured a good powerplay for UPW.
After Litchfield picked up her first boundary courtesy an inside edge through backward square, Lanning got going with a pick-up flick off Carey that went all the way as 12 runs came off the third over. She then swept Nat Sciver-Brunt through square leg before picking up two more boundaries off Carey.
When Hayley Matthews was introduced in the sixth over, Litchfield first drove her through cover before Lanning hit back-to-back boundaries to take UPW to 56 for 1 at the end of the powerplay.
After a quiet eighth over bowled by Amelia Kerr, Litchfield was on 18 off 16 and needing to pick up the tempo. Next over, she square drove Amanjot Kaur for four before skipping down the track to loft her over long-off.
Lanning reached her half-century off 35 balls in the next over, hammering Kerr over long-off to get there. Litchfield, who Kerr had dismissed eight times in T20s, also lofted her over her head for a boundary as the two Australians started to pick up the pace. A quiet over followed, courtesy Sciver-Brunt, which also saw Triveni Vasisht drop Litchfield, but Litchfield and Lannning both picked up a boundary each off Sanskriti Gupta.
In a two-over period of frenzy that followed, UPW racked up 34 runs but lost both their set batters. Litchfield first just beat Carey running to her left at deep midwicket as she swept Amanjot for six and then brought up a 33-ball half-century with a cover drive. When Amanjot went short, Litchfield pulled her for another boundary through midwicket. She then chipped one to cover, where she was given another life, this time by Harmanpreet Kaur. Litchfield picked up another six off long-off to make it a 20-run over before a pick-up flick found deep backward square, where Sanskriti held on this time.
Lanning didn’t want to release any pressure and took on Matthews next over, putting away a couple of short balls for back-to-back fours. She swept the spinner for another boundary before picking out deep square leg to finish on 70 off 45.
After a period of 12 balls without a boundary after Lanning’s departure, Chloe Tryon launched a six over long-off. Tryon and Harleen Deol kept the boundaries coming as they picked up 23 runs off the next two overs.
But, MI’s star overseas allrounders then dampened the finish for UPW. First, Sciver-Brunt started the 19th over with back-to-back wickets. Tryon sliced a full toss to cover, where Harmanpreet made amends by holding on to the catch before Shweta Sehrawat was caught behind first ball. She got a thin edge that popped up off G Kamalini’s gloves but she did well to grab it in the second attempt.
Deol hit another boundary before missing a legbreak from Kerr in the final over to be out stumped. Kerr then also had Sophie Ecclestone stumped and Deepti Sharma caught behind to give away only two runs in the final over and restrict UPW to 187 for 8.
MI came into the game with the second worst average for the opening partnership and the worst run rate. On Saturday, they tried their fourth different combination of the season, with Sajeevan Sajana partnering Matthews. Matthews started well, with a three boundaries through the off side off Kranti Gaud and Shikha Pandey.
Sajana got into the action in the third over, pulling Gaud for six over midwicket before getting an outside edge for four. But, Gaud came back strong by trapping her in front to give UPW the first breakthrough.
Ecclestone then nearly had Matthews lbw, choosing not to review after the batter missed a sweep, even though it looked close. But it didn’t matter as Matthews chipped the next ball back to Ecclestone, who went on to bowl a wicket maiden.
Sciver-Brunt then got a couple of boundaries off Gaud and Harmanpreet was crafty in gliding one between backward point and short third off Ecclestone, but they only managed 38 runs in the first six, continuing their trend of slow starts.
Sciver-Brunt, who was looking in great touch, hit Pandey straight to Lanning at cover in the first over after the powerplay as MI’s job got harder. Then Deepti, who bowled a quiet first over, had Carey miscuing one down the ground and Deol took a good catch running back from mid-on.
Harmanpreet, who was struggling to get going, pulled Tryon for a six over midwicket but fell in the same over trying the same shot. Having lost half their side and needing to score at over 13 runs an over, it was effectively game over for MI.
Kerr and Amanjot tried to mount a comeback, with an 83-run stand that saw the latter hammer three sixes, but they could not keep up with the asking rate. Amanjot offered a return catch to Pandey in the penultimate over and MI ended up 22 runs short.
Brief scores:
UP Warriorz Women 187 for 8 in 20 overs (Meg Lanning 70, Phoebe Litchfield 61, Harlene Deol 25, Chloe Tryon 21; Nicola Carey 1-38, Amelia Kerr 3-28, Nat Sciver-Brunt 2-22, Hayley Maththews 1-40, Amanjot Kaur 1-38) beat Mumbai Indians Women 165 for 6 in 20 overs (Hayley Maththews 13, Sajeevan Sajana 10, Nat Sciver Brunt 15, Harmanpreet Kaur 18, Amelia Kerr 49*, Amanjot Kaur 41; Kranti Gaud 1-38, Shikha Pandey 2-30, Sophie Ecclestone 1-33, Deepti Sharma 1-35, Chloe Tryon 1-18) by 22 runs
[Cricinfo]
President Yoweri Museveni has been declared the winner of Thursday’s election extending his four decades in power by another five years.
He gained 72% of the vote, the election commission announced, against 25% for his closest challenger Bobi Wine, who has condemned what he described as “fake results”.
Wine has called on Ugandans to hold non-violent protests.
Museveni, 81, first came to power as a rebel leader in 1986 but since then has won seven elections.
The election process was marred by violence and Wine, a 43-year-old former pop star, says that at least 21 people have been killed.
The authorities have so far confirmed seven deaths.
Access to the internet has been cut in the country since Tuesday, making it hard to verify information.
The authorities say the blackout was necessary to prevent misinformation, fraud and the incitement of violence – a move condemned by the UN human rights office as “deeply worrying”.
Wine has demanded that the internet be restored.
[BBC]
Floods kill more than 100 across southern Africa as rains intensify
Lanning, Litchfield and Pandey help UP Warriorz do the double over Mumbai Indians
Ugandan leader to extend 40-year rule after being declared winner of contested poll
Iran supreme leader blames US for deadly protests
Trump names Tony Blair, Jared Kushner to Gaza ‘Board of Peace’
The Government is taking steps to regulate early childhood education to ensure quality education while enhancing the professionalism of preschool teachers. — PM
‘Dates have the highest sugar content to fight Coronavirus’
Sunday Island 27 December – Headlines
#SundayIsland 17th December – Headlines
Sunday Island – 28th March
Sunday Island Headlines – 21 March
Sunday Island – 21st February – Headlines
-
News21 hours agoUNDP’s assessment confirms widespread economic fallout from Cyclone Ditwah
-
Business3 days agoKoaloo.Fi and Stredge forge strategic partnership to offer businesses sustainable supply chain solutions
-
Business7 days agoDialog and UnionPay International Join Forces to Elevate Sri Lanka’s Digital Payment Landscape
-
Editorial21 hours agoCrime and cops
-
Editorial2 days agoThe Chakka Clash
-
News7 days agoSajith: Ashoka Chakra replaces Dharmachakra in Buddhism textbook
-
Features7 days agoThe Paradox of Trump Power: Contested Authoritarian at Home, Uncontested Bully Abroad
-
Features7 days agoSubject:Whatever happened to (my) three million dollars?