Sports
Rain forces early close after Zimbabwe fold for 210 despite Masvaure’s 74
A wicketless first session gave the impression that Zimbabwe would dominate the first ever day of Test cricket in Northern Ireland, but Ireland took all ten wickets in just over 40 overs to vindicate Andy Balbirnie’s decision to bowl first on an overcast morning.
Barry McCarthy’s relentless eight-over spell after lunch denied Joylord Gumbie a half-century, left Dion Myers looking clueless, and set up a 65-run session where the visitors couldn’t get away. Curtis Campher blew hot and cold but dismissed Prince Masyaure. the top scorer with 74, allowing Andy McBrine to run through the lower half of the middle order.
Zimbabwe had their share of soft dismissals, and the risks their batters took, particularly after tea, backfired as they lost their last six wickets for 17 runs. A second spell of rain came amid the change of innings and took out about half an hour, which was enough for the umpires to call stumps.
Zimbabwe had the upper hand going into the evening session despite losing three wickets in the afternoon. The sun had peeked out, and Sean Williams was off and running. Campher was bowling the odd beauty, but it was an innocuous back-of-a-length ball going down leg that strangled Masvaure.
Williams continued to take on McBrine despite Masvaure falling, and hit two fours. The offspinner did create a chance in the 59th over, but McCarthy, running back from mid-on, spilled it. But Balbirnie was rewarded for keeping McBrine on as he turned one away to have Williams edge to slip.
An adventurous first-ball swipe from Clive Madande, trying to pump the spinner down the ground, found mid-off. A bouncer from Mark Adair had Brian Bennett edge a pull to the wicketkeeper as Zimbabwe lost two wickets with the score on 193, and the next on 194. The bowling duo took another wicket each before McCarthy closed out the innings. McBrine, who started the session with the ball, bowled 11 straight overs and took 3 for 32.
The initial damage was done after lunch. Gumbie and Masvaure, Zimbabwe’s openers, had batted through a session, softened the new ball and were inching towards a hundred stand. But Gumbie, who went into lunch unbeaten on 49, fell after facing 11 dots as he clipped a leg-stump half volley from McCarthy to Campher at square leg. Four balls later, a brief rain break forced players off the field.
Masvaure was getting off strike as the bowlers strayed down leg often. A flick to fine leg was what brought up the opener’s fifty, even as Dion Myers took 14 balls to get off the mark. But Myers pulled Adair for two fours amid leaving balls with exaggerated rotations.
But McCarthy bowled a legbreak, angling the ball in before straightening it off the pitch, to Myers to hit the top of off stump. He took two wickets and gave away 14 runs in an eight-over spell. Craig Ervine couldn’t get going, and the first aerial shot he played was a pull that went straight to McBrine at deep-backward square leg. Masvaure, who made 35 in both sessions, was solid all the while.
Thick grey clouds, a bit of grass on the pitch, and lush outfield. The conditions couldn’t have been better for the seamers in the morning. But Gumbie and Masvaure saw off the new ball. Gumbie’s early movement across the crease to work the ball leg side resembled Steven Smith’s batting style and allowed him to score off balls in and around the fifth-stump line. Masvaure was more orthodox but just as compact to help see off McCarthy and Adair’s new-ball spell.
There were a few nervy moments in the first hour. Gumbie was hit on the pad while offering no shot off McCarthy in the second over but was saved by the bounce. He edged Adair to deep third for four off the next over, fended one that reared off the pitch over the slips in the eighth, and was beaten by a jaffa that straightened off a full length in the 11th.
But Gumbie, who hit the first six fours of the innings, was often able to cover the line and duck under the odd bouncer. The tension built up by Adair and Young’s consecutive maidens was dissipated in the following two overs where Masvaure drove overpitched balls. The let-off balls between the good ones allowed Zimbabwe to turn strike and go into lunch unbeaten. But loose batting and luck combined to wreck Zimbabwe’s advantage as they lost all ten wickets for 113 runs.
Brief scores:
Zimbabwe 210 in 71.3 overs (Prince Masvaure 74, Joylord Gumbie 49, Sean Williams 35, Mark Adair 2-49, Andy McBrine 3-37, Barry McCarthy 3-42) vs Ireland
In the fifth T20I in Pakistan’s tour of New Zealand last year, the hosts had been dismissed for 92 chasing 135 in Christchurch. In the first T20I of this five-match series, that was a winning total for New Zealand after Kyle Jamieson and Jacob Duffy took apart a new-look Pakistan side.
The dropping of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan signalled that Pakistan were trying to step out of their comfort zone in T20 cricket, which is broadly very good. But on Sunday, they saw the risks that also come with it as they were bundled out for 91, their lowest total in New Zealand and their fifth-lowest in the format.
The Black Caps followed the WhiteFerns in bringing up comprehensive victories on a double-header day in Christchurch as Jamieson and Duffy shared seven wickets between them, the bounce they were able to generate being too much for the Pakistan batters.
Jamieson, back in the T20I set up for the first time in nearly two years, set the tone for New Zealand with a wicket maiden, Mohammad Haris only able to help a short ball behind to wicketkeeper Mitch Hay.
Debutant Hasan Nawaz then got a leading edge off Duffy to Jamieson at deep third as Pakistan lost both openers without a run on the board. This was only the second time both Pakistan openers were dismissed for ducks.
Jamieson then had Irfan Khan edging behind in the third over as Pakistan slumped to 1 for 3 – their lowest score at the fall of the third wicket.
Tim Robinson then evoked rather fresh memories of Glenn Phillips from the Champions Trophy as he took a blinder at backward point to give Jamieson his third, with the scoreboard reading 11 for 4.
Pakistan were restricted to 14 for 4 in the powerplay, and it could have gotten worse immediately afterwards, but Tim Seifert dropped Khushdil Shah at point off the captain Michael Bracewell.
Agha then looked to drive a full ball from Zakary Foulkes the next over, only to get an edge but Daryl Mitchell shelled the chance in the slip cordon.
Agha and Khushdil used their second lives to arrest Pakistan’s free-fall. They finally looked to up the tempo in the tenth over, when Agha reverse-swept Ish Sodhi for four behind point and Khushdil smacked him over midwicket for Pakistan’s first six.
In the next over, Khushdil took Bracewell on for back-to-back sixes to try and put some pressure back on the bowlers. But it was a very short-lived phase of ascendancy for Pakistan.
Agha tried another reverse-sweep off Sodhi’s next ball, but he could only pick out deep backward point. Duffy was brought back into the attack for an over, and the move paid dividends as Khushdil slapped a short ball to backward point. Pakistan were 64 for 6 after 13.
Debutant Abdul Samad and Jahandad Khan then fell trying to play big shots before Duffy returned in the penultimate over to take the last two wickets, picking up from where he left off in the T20I series against Sri Lanka where he finished as the highest wicket-taker
Pakistan’s 91 is the fourth-lowest T20I score by any team in New Zealand.
After playing out the first over, Seifert got New Zealand going with a pull through midwicket off debutant Mohammad Ali. He then picked up three boundaries off Shaheen Afridi’s next over, including another pull in front of square.
Seifert gave the charge to Ali to pick up another boundary, before getting two off Jahandad’s first over, and the fifth of the innings. Finn Allen, largely a spectator until then, also joined the party as he lofted Jahandad down the ground for the first six of the chase.
Pakistan switched to spin and Seifert welcomed Abrar Ahmed with a massive hit over long-off. Abrar got the better of him with a carrom ball that Haris did well to hold on to behind the stumps off the bottom edge, but New Zealand by then had effectively won the match in the two powerplays.
Allen hit another six and two fours, while Robinson also got a six to his name as New Zealand completed the chase just one ball after the halfway mark of the innings.
Brief scores:
New Zealand 92 for 1 in 10.1 overs (Tim Seifert 44, Finn Allen 29*, Tim Robinson 18*; Abrar Ahmed 1-15) beat Pakistan 91 in 18.4 overs (Salman Agha 18, Khushdil Shah 32, Jahandad Khan 17; Jacob Duffy 4-14, Kyle Jamieson 3-8, Zakarie Foulkes 1-11, Ish Sodhi 2-27) by nine wickets
[Cricinfo]
At the recently concluded International Schools Athletic Championship (ISAC), Lyceum International School Wattala emerged as champions. However, during the competition, a protest was lodged, alleging that one of Lyceum Wattala’s athletes was on the payroll of the Sri Lanka Army and, therefore, ineligible to participate in ISAC. Following an inquiry, the athlete was disqualified, and the points he had earned were deducted from the school’s total. By that time, he had already won gold medals in the Long Jump, Triple Jump, and 4x100m relay.
Lyceum Wattala has built a reputation for excelling in sports, but many attribute this success to its large-scale recruitment of athletes through scholarships. Notably, the two champion athletes of this year’s ISAC had previously represented other schools. Further inquiries have now revealed that another athlete, who competed for Lyceum Wattala at ISAC 2025 and secured the Under-20 Champion title by winning the 400m, 110m hurdles, and 4x400m relay, is also on the payroll of the Sri Lanka Army.
Unethical practices of this nature create an unhealthy competitive environment and discourage underprivileged schools, which struggle to retain their talent. Lyceum is not the only international school offering scholarships to top athletes; other international schools have also followed suit. One such leading institution, known for its strong academic results, has extended its scholarship program to sports, aggressively recruiting high-achieving students from other schools.
This school has reportedly granted scholarships to several students and even gone as far as providing free textbooks, exam fees, and opportunities for foreign travel.
Rather than nurturing homegrown talent, these international schools seem more focused on acquiring ready-made athletes from other institutions. The era of developing skilled players appears to be fading, as these schools increasingly prioritize assembling teams over fostering individual talents.
Strong all-round performances fromSuzie Bates and Brooke Halliday along with a breakout bowling display from Bree Illing helped New Zealand breeze to a seven wicket win against Sri Lanka in Christchurch to level the series at 1-1.
New Zealand’s bowlers set the tone with a frugal display after winning the toss and electing to bowl, restricting Sri Lanka to 113 for 7 in their 20 overs before Bates and Halliday made 47 and 46 not out respectively as the hosts cruised home with seven wickets and nine balls to spare. Bates was named player of the match after also bowling four overs for just 16 runs while Halliday also took 1 for 12 with the ball in addition to posting her highest T20I score.
Illing made use of the early morning start picking up a wicket in the opening over and a second in the seventh as she bowled straight with the new ball to finish with figures of 2 for 18 in just her second T20I after going wicketless in her debut in game one of the series on Friday
Sri Lanka skipper Chamari Athapaththu was well held as Eden Carson, Jess Kerr and Bates were rotated at the other end with the latter bowling a maiden to Athapaththu in her first over. The scoreboard pressure told when Kerr castled her for 23 off 29 in the following over, the ninth of the innings, with Sri Lanka stalled at 3 for 46.
That soon became 4 for 53 when debutant Flora Devonshire picked up a wicket in her first over in international cricket.
Sri Lanka steadied thanks to a 54-run stand between Manudi Nanayakkara and Nilakshika Silva. Nanyakkara made 35 from 32 with four boundaries while Silva made 20 from 22. But neither player could break free as Bates bowled four overs for just 16 runs while Halliday also took a wicket in her two overs for 11 runs. Kerr took a wicket in the final over to finish with figures of 2 for 29.
New Zealand’s chase started poorly with Georgia Plimmer caught behind in the second over for just 4. Emma McLeod followed suit in the seventh over for a sluggish 11 from 13 but Bates controlled the chase at the other. Safe in the knowledge she needed less than a run-a-ball, she struck just four boundaries and only faced consecutive dot balls once in her 46-ball innings before she was caught and bowled in 15th over with 29 still needed to win.
Halliday ensured they were knocked off with ease striking multiple boundaries in both the 16th and 18th overs as she made 46 not out from 40 balls to steer her side home and go past her previous T20I best of 38.
The series will be decided in the third T20I in Dunedin on Tuesday.
Brief scores:
New Zealand Women 117 for 3 in 18.3 overs (Suzie Bates 47, Emma McLeod 11, Brooke Halliday 46*; Inoshi Priyadarshini 1-19, Sugandika Kumari 1-16, Achini Kulasuriya 1-11)beat Sri Lanka Women 113 for 7 in 20 overs (Chamari Athapaththu 23, Harshith Samarawickrema 11, Kavisha Dilhari 12, Manudi Nanyakkara 35, Nilakshika Silva 20; Bree Illing 2-18, Jess Kerr 2-29, Flora Devonshire 1-12, Brooke Halliday 1-11) by seven wickets
[Cricinfo]
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