Pathum Nissanka continued his good form in the ILT20 with 67 off 31 balls, to give the Gulf Giants their second win in as many games in the competition as they beat the Dubai Capitals. James Vince anchored the innings with a composed 45-ball 50* as the Giants chased down the target of 161 with four wickets to spare.

‎‎With the Capitals having been put in to bat, they began with a boundary in each over but Azmatullah Omarzai got Shayan Jahangir to chop one back onto his stumps. After four quiet overs, David Willey and Sediqullah Atal slammed a six each off the Afghan fast-bowler to bring some oomph into the innings. The duo put on a 61-run stand in seven overs before Atal miscued a pull off Moeen Ali to deep mid-wicket.

‎‎The wicket ensured Moeen and Liam Dawson could fire in a couple of quiet overs before the latter picked up the set David Willey. Ayaan Khan scalped Gulbadin Naib in the next over as the Capitals fell to 93/4 in 14 overs. Jordan Cox slammed two sixes and two fours in a quick 17-ball 31 and found success against fellow Englishman Moeen to get the Capitals’ innings moving. But the brakes were once again applied, when Cox and Rovman Powell fell to Omarzai in the 18th over.

‎‎Looking for a strong finish, Dasun Shanaka pulled Omarzai over fine-leg for four before smashing two sixes on the offside, in an 18-run final over, to take the Capitals to 160 for 6 in their allotted overs.

‎‎In reply, Rahmanullah Gurbaz survived a review in the first over and then slammed David Willey over mid-wicket for six before falling to a stunning catch by Cox. Nissanka, who had scored 81 in his last game, took a liking to Mustafizur Rahman with a boundary down-the-ground and a six over mid-wicket to get his innings moving.

‎‎The Sri Lankan then smashed James Neesham for 22 runs in the fifth over flat-batting two sixes and a four along with a maximum down the ground. Vince hit two boundaries off Mustafizur as they raced to 60 for 1 at the end of the PowerPlay. He was also dropped by Willey as the Capitals began to look poor on the field.

‎‎Nissanka hit consecutive boundaries in the 10th over to bring up his 50 of just 23 balls. He then slammed Waqar Salamkheil for two fours and a six in a 15-run 11th over as the Giants continued to cruise to victory. He was finally dismissed by Mustafizur after failing to hit one over Cox’s head at long-on.

‎‎Towards the end, there was a flurry of wickets but Vince stood firm at the other end bringing up his 11th fifty of the competition and taking his team home.

‎Brief Scores:

‎Dubai Capitals

160/6 in 20 overs (Sediqullah Atal 35, Jordan Cox 31; Azmatullah Omarzai 3-46)

‎Gulf Giants

161/6 in 18.5 overs (Pathum Nissanka 67, James Vince 50*; Dasun Shanaka 2-16) (cricbuzz)

‎

England batted against type and belatedly produced a rearguard, but it was in vain as seamer Michael Neser justified his contentious selection with a five-wicket haul to lead Australia to a crushing second Test victory.

Just six days in, Australia have a stranglehold of an Ashes series that is quickly becoming decidedly one-sided. But they were made to work on day four with England skipper Ben Stokesand Will Jacks stonewalling for almost half a day in a 96-run seventh-wicket partnership lasting almost 37 overs.

But Neser, surprisingly selected ahead of offspinner Nathan Lyon, dismissed both batters as England quickly fell away much like they have done numerous times in this series. Neser was sensational on the back of a deadly spell with the pink ball under lights on day three.

There’s a glut of riveting Test cricket going on around the world, the kind that warms most fans hearts. Joe Root has finally bagged his maiden hundred in Australia after a 12-year vigil – meaning Matthew Hayden no longer has to stroll around the MCG in nothing but his cowboy hat. The big man had vowed to walk naked in Melbourne if Root didn’t reach three figures this Ashes. Elsewhere, the West Indies are digging in to save a game against New Zealand, while Temba Bavuma’s South Africans have just handed India a 2-0 hiding in their own backyard.

Ordinarily, December is when cricket reporters hop from Wellington to Brisbane to Cape Town, chasing Tests like fielders patrolling the rope. Instead, this year we’re stuck at home, glued to the television, wondering why Sri Lanka are treating the longest format like a bouncer to the helmet — duck first, ask questions later.

The numbers make for grim reading. Sri Lanka have played just four Tests this year — one fewer than England and Australia will cram into seven frenetic weeks between November and December. And the plot thickens: the next Sri Lanka Test isn’t until June 2026. For specialists like Dhananjaya de Silva and Dinesh Chandimal, that’s not a gap between series — that’s an ice age. What motivation can you muster when your next red-ball assignment is two monsoons away?

Consider this: Joe Root debuted a year after Chandimal. Root has strutted out 160 times in Test cricket; Chandimal, just 90. Same era, different calendars — and Sri Lanka’s one looks very disappointing.

The World Test Championship was supposed to be a level playing field, but smaller nations often get the short end of the stick. Unless Sri Lanka are up against England, three-match series have become as rare as hat-tricks in Test cricket. With two-match rubbers becoming the norm, it’s almost impossible for teams like Sri Lanka to rack up ten Tests a year. A conscious push is needed to keep the red-ball flame alive.

To their credit, Sri Lanka Cricket have tried to plug the gaps by scheduling Tests outside the WTC — Afghanistan last year, Ireland the year before. Useful, yes, but still not nearly enough to prevent the longer format from slipping through to oblivion.

Let’s be blunt: there’s not much money in Test cricket. Unless the opposition is India or England, hosting a Test barely breaks even. But sport isn’t merely a cash register with stumps — not every moment of entertainment needs to pay for itself.

There are solutions. Each WTC cycle gives nine teams six series — three home, three away. Add just one series against a non-WTC Test nation and the tally improves. Make it mandatory that at least two of those six series must feature a minimum of three Tests, and suddenly the calendar looks healthier.

We often hear about shifting player priorities, how franchise leagues offer life-changing fortunes. Fair enough — but administrators can’t simply shrug and hope loyalty will magically return. If the suits don’t stage regular Test cricket, the players can hardly be blamed for choosing the shortest queue to a payday.

Test cricket is the game’s heartbeat. Ignore it long enough and the sport risks flatlining.

by Rex Clementine ✍️