Canada substitute Cyle Larin made an instant impact as his goal rescued a point for the co-hosts as they began their 2026 World Cup campaign with a draw against Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Southampton striker Larin had only been on the pitch for just over two minutes when he superbly spun away from Tarik Muharemovic and fired past Nikola Vasilj, aided by a slight deflection.

It was the first time Canada had avoided defeat in the World Cup finals, after they had been beaten in all three games in 1986 and then again in 2022.

Bosnia, who gained penalty shootout wins in the qualifying play-offs over Wales and then Italy to secure their place in North America, took a 21st-minute lead in Toronto.

Jovo Lukic grabbed his first goal for his country when he headed in after ex-Arsenal defender Sead Kolasinac had flicked on Ivan Basic’s corner.

Canada nearly equalised early in the second half as Richie Laryea’s shot was going in, only for Kolasinac to produce an excellent clearance by diverting the ball on to the crossbar and away.

The hosts pushed for a leveller and had another good opportunity, only for Nikola Katic to clear off the line from Tani Oluwaseyi’s goal-bound header.

But, in a thrilling end-to-end match, Canada got a deserved equaliser in the 78th minute for their first ever World Cup draw.

Canada are one of three host nations for the 2026 World Cup, along with Mexico and the United States, and were looking to record a win, just as Mexico did when they beat South Africa 2-0 in Thursday’s tournament opener.

The Toronto Stadium was packed, with the majority of the home fans wearing red shirts and those away supporters in blue, with both groups contributing to a superb atmosphere.

After Alanis Morissette had sung the Canadian national anthem, the fans were treated to an entertaining, open game.

Canada, managed by former Leeds boss Jesse Marsch, had seen Jonathan David, Oluwaseyi and Stephen Eustaquio all guilty of missing opportunities, with Bosnia looking to hold on to their one-goal advantage.

But Marsch’s attacking substitutions proved successful, with Larin’s goal coming 121 seconds after he was introduced.

Group B always looked like being one of the closest, and Canada will still fancy their chances of advancing with games against Qatar on 18 June and Switzerland on 24 June still to come.

[BBC]

Danni Wyatt-Hodge led a command performance with the bat, and in the field, as England defied the gravity of their home World Cup opening match, to produce a thrilling statement victory over Sri Lanka, in front of a 14,865 crowd at Edgbaston.

Aided and abetted by Amy Jones and Nat Sciver Brunt,  Wyatt-Hodge dominated a toiling Sri Lanka attack with a superb unbeaten 105 from 62 balls – her third in the T20I format and her first since returning from maternity leave only a handful of weeks ago.

In her eighth T20 World Cup, and at the age of 35, this was a performance to banish any doubts about England’s readiness to seize their opportunities in the coming weeks. She followed it up with a stunning running catch to ignite England’s fielding display, which was in turn seized by the left-arm seam of Freya Kemp,  whose innings-breaking haul of 4 for 21 allowed her side to cruise to an untroubled 87-run win.

England’s openers make statement start

Sri Lanka chose to bowl first after winning the toss, though without much cause. “We don’t know these conditions and yesterday it rained,” Chamari Athapaththu said at the toss. Well, today it poured, with runs, as Wyatt-Hodge and her new-old opening partner, Jones, climbed onto the offensive with an uncompromising stand of 135 from 82 balls.

The pair hadn’t opened together in a full international since their unremarkable alliance at this same tournament in Australia in 2020, when the pair’s performances had included a brace of ducks against Thailand. But, with Sciver-Brunt restored to the XI after her calf injury, and Sophia Dunkley paying the price for a fallow run of form, the timing was right for a reunion, and the conditions could hardly have proved more conducive.

Sri Lanka’s nerves weren’t helped by a lengthy delay before the first ball – with something glinting behind the bowler’s arm, perhaps a left-over from the Wicked set that had served as the tournament’s opening ceremony – and Athapaththu duly rang the changes in the powerplay, with four different bowlers used in consecutive overs.

England didn’t come springing out of the traps, but nor did they need to, with the absence of a conventional midwicket kickstarting a diet of regular leg-side runs. But, after Jones had been dropped at backward square off Athapaththu – a one-handed attempt from Kavisha Dilhari, who perhaps had more time than she thought – the guard-rails came off, with Wyatt-Hodge battering three off-side fours off Malki Madara, to carry England to 51 for 0 after six.

Wyatt-Hodge takes command

With her new baby Daisy at the forefront of her thoughts, Wyatt-Hodge exuded experience and contentment in a showstopping performance. She had arguably been a touch short of runs since her return, though her domestic performances for Surrey – two centuries and a 96 in four innings – had left little doubt about her enduring class. There was never any doubt about her place at the top of England’s pecking order, and now we know why.

With Jones ticking over alongside her, Wyatt-Hodge took command of England’s tempo. She cracked eight fours in her 33-ball fifty, the last of which – up and over extra cover – brought out the first sighting of her Bebeto-style rock-a-baby celebration. She followed that up with the first six of the tournament, a muscular slap over long-on off Athapaththu, as England kept pounding along at a ten-an-over tempo that offered Sri Lanka no chance to collect their thoughts.

The only real jeopardy in her chanceless innings was the prospect of landing her third T20I century. She was on 96 as Madara began the final over, but immediately lost the strike to a miscued swipe across a slower ball. It could have been costly with Sciver-Brunt oozing familiar class in her unbeaten 46 from 22 balls, and proving merciless in her own boundary-hunting.

But a sharp piece of fielding on the bounce at backward square denied Sciver-Brunt a third boundary in a row, and Wyatt-Hodge was left with two balls to seal the deal. She needed just one – a pre-meditated shuffle to the off-side, and a firmly placed sweep through backward square. Edgbaston roared, as the Bebeto came out again, and one final launch up and over long-off completed an exceptional evening out for England’s longest-serving campaigner.

England’s support act show their class

Jones is an enthusiastic England opener, having thrived in the ODI role of late, including with back-to-back centuries against West Indies last summer. And though she was outshone by her partner in the final analysis, her return to the top was ample justification for England’s rejig. With a fifty from 34 balls, she scarcely paled in terms of tempo, even if she had a touch more fortune along the way, including a bad drop on 48, as Sugandika Kumari fumbled a return chance at the third attempt. It was left to the skipper to show how it should be done, with a comfortable low take at cover to give Madara her first World Cup wicket.

If that felt like respite for Sri Lanka, it was nothing of the sort. Sciver-Brunt’s calf tear has been a lurking concern for England all summer long, and the fact that she is playing solely as a batter is proof that she’s not entirely out of the woods. And yet this was a return to allay any immediate fears.

Notwithstanding a tough chance in the deep on 14, Sciver-Brunt’s timing was exquisite from the outset, and her range of shots remains a cut above. Her six fours included a dinky ramp over the keeper off Mithali Ayodhya, whom she immediately drilled down the ground one ball later, as well as arguably the shot of the night in the final over – a contemptuously powerful drive through the covers to bring up England’s 200. Barring an untimely ‘pop’ of that pesky calf, England’s skipper is in the form, and the mood, to make hay at this tournament.

England close it out with attitude

Even allowing for an Athapaththu masterpiece, a target of 220 was never realistic for Sri Lanka. The main contest in the second half was England against themselves – and they won hands-down with a hugely encouraging display of confidence and skill. All six of England’s bowlers were given a sighter inside the first nine overs, just to get them involved in the World Cup vibe, and by the time the last of those, Kemp, had ripped through the lower order, including taking three in four balls, they had utterly nailed their brief.

The honour of England’s first wicket of the World Cup went to Lauren Bell, with a pinpoint lbw that Vishmi Gunaratne reviewed to no avail whatsoever. But the moment of ignition went to the player of the moment, Wyatt-Hodge, with a sprinting, swirling, sprawling catch at deep square leg to prise out Sri Lanka’s queen-pin, Athapaththu. It was a catch she had no right to take, but she styled it out all the same, not unlike Ben Stokes’ epic at The Oval in the men’s opening match of the 2019 World Cup.

Wyatt-Hodge did take the gloss off her own display with two subsequent drops, though neither was anything close to a sitter, but her standards were upheld by the rest of England’s fielders. Kemp clung onto a sharp take at short backward square to see off Imesha Dulani and give Linsey Smith her first wicket; Smith then returned the favour at deep square leg, to ignite Kemp’s remarkable late surge.

After a history of back stress-fractures, Kemp’s return to bowling has been gradual and micro-managed, with this tournament the absolute end-game. Her first ball of the evening was inauspicious, but ultimately misleading, as Harshitha Samarawickrama cuffed her dismissively over deep midwicket for six. Before the over was done, she’d got her vengeance with an offcutter – the first of six chances in the space of ten balls.

It was left to England’s other old stager, Sophie Ecclestone, to mop up the resistance with two wickets in the match’s final over, to put the seal on the most morale-boosting night out imaginable for the tournament hosts.

SCORES:
England 219 for 1 in 20 overs (Amy Jones 53, Danni Wyatt-Hodge 105*,  Nat Sciver-Brunt 46*; Malki Madara 1-51) beat Sri Lanka 132 in 20 overs  (Harshitha Samarawickrama 29, Hansima Karunarathne 11, Kavisha Dilhari 19, Nilakshi Silva 39; Lauren Bell 1-15, Linsey Smith 1-24, Charlie Dean 2-18, Sophie Ecclestone 2-27, Freya Kemp 4-21)by 87 runs

[Cricinfo]

West Indies survived a spirited Sri Lankan defence in chase of a middling target of 148, as they eventually secured a final-over, but ultimately comfortable, seven-wicket victory in the first T20I at Sabina Park. The rain which had been forecast pleasantly stayed away, as a raucous home crowd finally got something to celebrate following the ODI washouts.

A flicked Rovman Powell six over deep midwicket off the expensive Dilshan Madushanka sealed the win, but it was one built on the patience of Shai Hope. The West Indian skipper made it a point to carry his bat through the innings in a 54-ball 65, as ensured there would be no hiccoughs come the crunch.

Hope was part of a rampant 39-ball opening stand of 67 with Brandon King, before shifting gears through the middle to string crucial partnerships of 28, 33 and 21*, with Shimron Hetmeyer, Roston Chase and Powell.

Sri Lanka’s bowlers toiled to drag the game deep in the second half of the chase, buffering a 66-run powerplay to take the game into the final over. Wanindu Hasaranga was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 2 for 32, while Eshan Malinga also impressed with 1 for 26. ‘

But on a wicket that wasn’t necessarily the most conducive to shot-making it was Sri Lanka’s batting that let them down. Kamindu Mendis waged a lone war for much of the innings during a 39-ball 51, and prior that Kusal Mendis had blitzed 36 off 23. But contributions aside from theirs was not nearly enough.

Jason Holder’s 3 for 18 was the catalyst for all the good West Indies managed with the ball, and it earned him a deserved Player of the Match award.

Generally when chasing a middling target on a sticky surface, a fast start in the powerplay when the ball is hard and fielders are in the ring is almost a prerequisite. And on that front the West Indian openers delivered.

The pair of Shai Hope and Brandon King struck 66 in an opening six-over salvo, as Sri Lanka were left ruing a host a missed opportunities – and King was at the centre of each of them.

The first was off Dushmantha Chameera, who rushed the right-hander with a short one that he could only miscue to midwicket. A third umpire no-ball check though offered a reprieve, much to the delight of the home crowd. The following free hit was a yorker squeezed to mid-on for a single that was never on, Sri Lanka again letting a chance slip by with a missed direct hit.

Then off the first ball of the very next over, Madushanka looked to have trapped King leg before, only for the decision to be overturned upon review for having pitched outside leg.

King made the most of his good fortune as he soon after found his timing, racing along to a 22-ball 37 before eventually been knocked over by a Hasaranga googly. Hope at the other end carried on at a similar click, managing 29 off 17 during the stand; he would crucially bat through to the latter stages to see the hosts home.

If West Indies’ start was belligerent, what followed certainly belied that. The 10 overs leading up to the death brought 54 runs and two wickets, as Sri Lanka clawed themselves back into proceedings. Such was West Indies’ early impact, it meant Sri Lanka were always underdogs but it crucially kept them in the game till the latter stages – when anything could happen.

Key to this was the Sri Lankan spin pairing of Maheesh Theekshana and Hasaranga. The latter was more expensive, giving away 32 in his four overs but picking up the wickets of King and Hetmyer. Theekshana meanwhile went wicketless but his four overs went for just 20 runs.

Ably assisting them was Malinga, carrying over his IPL form, mixing up his lengths and pace with a four over spell of 1 for 26. Chameera also responded well from the early tap he was on the receiving end of, landing some crucial yorkers in the death overs.

To put it into context, between the 10th and final over West Indies struck one six and two fours. It meant they need six off the final over. And Powell needed just two deliveries to ensure that very outcome.

Earlier, Kusal Mendis continued his rich vein of form with a with a 23-ball 36 to ensure a near 10-per-over powerplay for Sri Lanka. Twenty-six of those runs came in boundaries, including three sixes – two consecutively off Matthew Forde in a 17-run fourth over. That though would be Sri Lanka’s most profitable of the evening as a flurry of wickets to end the powerplay period reeled in the visitors just as they were looking to build a head of steam.

From 43 for no loss, Sri Lanka found themselves 56 for 3 at the end of the powerplay, and then 65 for 4 midway through the eighth over. A situation made considerably more perilous owing to the fact that their 6-5 combination meant a shorter batting lineup.

Following the sudden loss of their top order, including their in-form skipper, Kamindu and former skipper Dasun Shanaka had their work cut out for them. With only Hasaranga to come in the form of any sort of batting, wickets were at a premium and risks a minimum.

This was reflected in just the eight boundaries scored between the pair – including three sixes – in the eight overs they batted together. That they managed a run rate of 7.37 in this period was a credit to the pair’s running between the wickets. Even so Chase in particular proved hard to get away with his quick off breaks, as he snuck in 13 dots to the pair – pressure which eventually told in Shanaka slicing chase to backward point as he attempted to up the tempo.

That wicket was timely for the Windies, coming just as Sri Lanka would have been eyeing a death overs assault. It meant Hasaranga had little time to get his eye in, and he too would fall two overs later for an inconsequential 3 off 6.

Here the pressure on Kamindu mounted, and the West Indies also did well to starve the set batter of the strike for concerted periods, with him eventually dismissed in the final over looking to retain the strike on an ill-advised double.

Fresh off a run to the IPL final, Jason Holder once more proved his worth – particularly in the shortest format – as he read the conditions quickly and assertively to rein in Sri Lanka after a fast start. Introduced in the fifth over, he induced a miscue over short third first up from Pathum Nissanka, before following up with a well directed full inducker to knock over the dangerous Lankan opener.

Holder then set himself up for a hat-trick with a successful LBW review the very next delivery, to dismiss Lasith Croospulle who was playing just his second T20I. While the hat-trick was not forthcoming, Holder’s intervention had successfully shifted the momentum.

He would then return at the death to pick up his third as part of an outstanding two-run penultimate over, to end with figures 3 for 18. It meant that despite Kamindu and Shanaka’s best efforts at a mid-innings recovery, Sri Lanka were unable to land the finishing blows, managing just 25 for 4 in the death overs as the innings petered to a limp close.

Scores:

West Indies 149 for 3 in 19.2 overs

(Brandon King 37, Shai Hope 65*, Shimron Hetmyer 17, Roston Chase 16, Rovman Powell 10*; Eshan Malinga 1-26, Wanidu Hasaranga 2-32) beat Sri Lanka 147 for 9 in 20 overs (Pathum Nissanka 18, Kusal Mendis 36, Kamindu Mendis 51, Dasun Shanaka 22; Jason Holder 3-18, Shamar Joseph 3-29, Roston Chase 1-18) by seven wickets

[Cricinfo]