Odi

It was the second consecutive ODI Series in which Pakistan have made a comeback to win 2-1, having defeated Australia in similar fashion earlier this month.

Pakistan ran up a total of 303-6, having got off to a strong start as opener Abdullah Rafique made his fifth half-century off 68 balls before Ghulam's 103 from 99 deliveries put the tourists in the ascendency. 

Zimbabwe’s bowling attack left much to be desired as Pakistan were able to plunder 69 runs from the last five overs, leaving the Chevrons with an uphill task of claiming an unlikely victory. 

Pakistan’s bowlers were in far better form as, aside from Craig Ervine's half-century, Zimbabwe struggled to find a rhythm at the crease, with Brian Bennett (37) the only other batter to make it past 30 runs. 

Saim Ayub (2-29), Abrar Ahmed (2-45), Haris Rauf (2-45), and Aamir Jamal (2-19) did much of the damage, limiting Zimbabwe to just 204 runs in their chase as their innings finished with just under 10 overs remaining. 

Data Debrief – Unwanted milestone for Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe have become the fifth team to record 400 losses in men’s ODI history, joining Sri Lanka (453), India (445), Pakistan (430) and the West Indies (415) to surpass that total.

They have also won only one of their last eight matches in the format (L7), an 80-run victory against Pakistan in the first game of this series (24 November 2024).

Pakistan, on the other hand, have now won four of their last five men’s ODIs away from home (L1). It’s more than they won across their eight such fixtures prior to that span (W2 L6).

Batting first, India got off to a terrific start, scoring 113 runs in the first 22 overs before Hayden Walsh finally found West Indies' first wicket, dismissing Shikhar Dhawan for 58 from 74 deliveries.

An over later, the heavens opened, forcing a two-hour rain delay and a shortened game as a result. With nine wickets in-hand and far fewer overs to survive, India came out of the break swinging, scoring a combined 31 runs in the first two overs when play resumed.

Shubman Gill (98 not out from 98 deliveries) and Shreyas Iyer (44 from 34 deliveries) led the way as India posted a score of 225-3, which the home side never threatened.

A pair of ducks from opener Kyle Mayers and number three Shamarh Brooks crippled the run chase before it could begin, finishing all out for 137 with Yuzvendra Chahal's 4-17 from just four overs leading the way.

Nicholas Pooran (42 from 32 deliveries), Brandon King (42 from 37) and Shai Hope (22 from 33) were the only West Indies batsmen to score more than 10 runs.

Gill's great showing

Indian opener Gill was clearly the star of the show with the bat, finishing two runs shy of his century due to the rain cutting his innings short. 

After the match, he called his score "bittersweet", and admitted "I was expecting to get 100".

With scores of 64, 43 and now 98 not out, Gill posted a series average of 102.5.

Scintillating Siraj

The West Indies fans were expecting to be treated with some big-swinging, hard-hitting action once the home side finally took the crease, but their hopes of a win were dashed almost instantly as Mohammed Siraj removed two of their top three batsmen for a combined zero runs.

Neither player had scored less than 35 runs in the first two ODIs of the series.

After racking up 385-9 at the Holkar Cricket Stadium, India bowled out their opponents for 295, and Tuesday's victory lifts them above England to the top of the ICC ODI team rankings.

Gill, who hit a double hundred in the first match, shared in a stand of 212 with Rohit for the first wicket on Tuesday, the fifth-largest ODI partnership by an India opening pair.

After setting the tone for the contest as both openers reached three figures, Rohit was bowled by Michael Bracewell for 101 from 85 balls at the start of the 27th over, while Gill went soon after for a 78-ball 112 when he got a leading edge to present Blair Tickner (3-76) with the first of his three wickets.

Gill totalled 360 runs across the three games, matching Babar Azam's record for the most scored in a three-match bilateral men's ODI series.

Virat Kohli added 36 and Hardik Pandya weighed in with 54 before becoming the third victim of Jacob Duffy, the New Zealand paceman who returned conspicuous figures of 3-100.

Devon Conway's heroics in New Zealand's reply were in vain, as he cracked 138 from 100 balls before being caught by Rohit at midwicket when looking to pull Umran Malik away to the boundary.

Conway blazed eight sixes in his terrific counter-attack but lacked support. Once he became the sixth Black Caps batter to be dismissed, with the score on 230, the tourists' hopes were all but over, and the innings inevitably petered out.

Holkar a happy home for India

India preserved their 100 per cent record in ODIs at the stadium in Indore, which was staging such a match for just the sixth time. This is the most matches they have won at any venue in ODIs without losing, beating the five wins and one tie they have had at Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

This India team are in a rich vein of ODI form, wherever they play, having won all six of their matches in 2023, with this success improving what was already their best winning run to begin a calendar year.

Duffy's sorry century

Duffy's figures of 3-100 made him just the third New Zealand bowler to concede 100 or more runs in a men's ODI, after Martin Snedden (2-105 vs England in 1983) and Tim Southee (0-105 vs India in 2009). Duffy's three wickets, however, gave him the most victims of any bowler to have conceded a century of runs in such a match.

India started the match chasing a 15th consecutive ODI win against their hosts, as well as a second successive clean sweep on one-day tours of Zimbabwe, and they were not to  be denied in a high-scoring contest.

Gill's landmark knock came after a solid start from opening duo Shikhar Dhawan (40) and KL Rahul (30), while Ishan Kishan made 50 as the tourists posted 289-8 at Harare Sports Club.

Brad Evans (5-54) recorded the best figures of his fledgling ODI career and although Sikandar Raza made a brilliant 115 off 95 balls, Zimbabwe fell short on 276 all out.

The wickets began to tumble when Zimbabwe threw caution to the wind midway through the innings, losing Regis Chakabva (16), Takudzwanashe Kaitano (13), Ryan Buri (8) and Luke Jongwe (14) in the space of just under 10 overs.

Raza led a terrific fightback, hitting three sixes and finding the rope nine times before he was caught by Gill off the bowling of Shardul Thakur in the penultimate over, and Avesh Khan finished off the job by cleaning up Victor Nyauchi.

Avesh took 3-66, while Axar Patel (2-30), Kuldeep Yadav (2-38) and Deepak Chahar (2-75) also made an impact with the ball.

India have now won seven consecutive ODIs away from home, their best run since a sequence of nine in a row between July 2017 to February 2018.

Gill's massive knock of 208 proved crucial despite Michael Bracewell (140) leading a superb New Zealand fightback attempt at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.

Bracewell's heroics were not enough, however, with India finally ending his resistance in the last over.

Generally, it proved a tricky track for batting, with Rohit Sharma the hosts' second-highest scorer on just 34.

But this was all about Gill, whose aggression ensured India's momentum rarely waned even as wickets tumbled around him, the team reaching 349-8.

He got lucky just before reaching 50 as an outside edge off Bracewell was dropped by Tom Latham, but he powered on and tallied his century off just 86 balls.

It was Gill's ruthless approach in the final three overs that was ultimately decisive. Two sixes in the 48th and then a hat-trick of maximums in the 49th saw him surpass 200, before eventually falling to a brilliant Glenn Phillips catch in the last.

It took a while for New Zealand to look capable of threatening India's total, finding themselves in deep trouble at 131-6 in the 29th over.

With the Black Caps floundering, Bracewell had nothing to lose and made a mockery of the India attack.

His 140 off just 78, hitting an astonishing 10 sixes and 12 fours, ensured New Zealand were still in contention in the final over, requiring 13 runs off five balls.

But Shardul Thakur's yorker snared Bracewell lbw, just clipping his heel for the final wicket, leaving India rather relieved with New Zealand 337 all out.
 

Gill goes into the record books

With his exquisite knock, Gill became the only Indian batter to score a double century against New Zealand in the 50-over format.

He is the fifth batter from India to hit 200 or more in an ODI, while he is the joint-second fastest player to reach 1,000 ODI runs, alongside Pakistan's Iman-ul-Haq (19 innings).

Gill had nine sixes and a further 19 fours in his memorable 149-ball knock.

Siraj sharp with the ball

Mohammed Siraj was the only bowler to take more than two wickets on the day, ending with figures of 4-46.

He could not remove Bracewell, with Shardul eventually claiming that honour, but Siraj undoubtedly played a key role here, with the dangerous Mitchell Santner (57) and captain Latham (24) among his scalps.

Afghanistan now have an unassailable 2-0 lead in their ODI series, with South Africa unable to mount any sort of threat in the sweltering heat in Sharjah.

Gurbaz set the tone from the off with his stand of 105 from 110 balls, which included 10 fours and three sixes, and put together a 101-run partnership with Rahmat Shah (50).

Nandre Burger eventually took Gurbaz, but Azmatullah Omarzai kept the pressure on with his unbeaten 86, bringing up his fastest ODI fifty, as they finished on 311-4.

With the intimidating target set, South Africa's chase got off to a decent start through Temba Bavuma (38) and Tony de Zorzi (31), but Afghanistan's bowlers soon stepped up their game.

Rashid Khan (5-19) and Nangeyalia Kharote (4-26) gave their opponents little to work with as none of the final seven batters hit double figures, with South Africa slumping to 134 all out in the 35th over.

Data Debrief: A historic stand

Gurbaz's century was his seventh in ODIs, breaking Mohammad Shahzad's record, while Shah brought up his 29th half-century in their brilliant stand.

Afghanistan's 177-run win against SA is their largest margin of victory in terms of runs in ODIs, beating their 154-win against Zimbabwe. It was also the tenth time they topped 300 in ODI cricket, and the first against South Africa.

Hafeez was recalled for the upcoming three-match T20 series against Bangladesh on Thursday.

The 39-year-old revealed a day later that he will end his long international career after gracing one last major tournament in Australia, if selected.

"It has been a privilege," Hafeez told media.

"I want to play the T20 World Cup and then exit from Pakistan's international team."

Hafeez ended his Test career in December 2018 after playing 55 times in the longest format, having scored 3,652 runs - including 10 centuries - and taken 53 wickets.

The veteran has appeared in 218 ODIs, making 6,614 runs and claiming 139 scalps, and has played 89 times in the shortest format - picking up 54 wickets and amassing 1,908 runs.

Hafeez has been banned from bowling in international cricket on three occasions due to an illegal action.

He added: "I have played 17 years for Pakistan and tried my level best. At times I missed my bowling."

The T20 World Cup commences on October 18.

Will Jacks, Dan Lawrence, Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Henry Brookes are among those selected yet to feature at international level, but there is no place for experienced duo Alex Hales or Liam Plunkett. 

David Willey, Ben Duckett and Dawid Malan, however, will be hoping to make a return for England after they were asked to report for sessions that will go ahead subject to government approval. 

Bowlers were able to begin individual training last week for the first time since they were forced into lockdown due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. 

There has been no confirmation of when England will play next, but a large training group was announced on Friday ahead of a proposed Test series with West Indies on home soil, as well as one-day games against Ireland.

England and Wales Cricket Board performance director Mo Bobat said: "It's really pleasing to be in a position to have players returning to training and a huge amount of work has been done by many to get us this far. 

"The pool of players will give selectors strong options when it comes to selecting squads across formats further down the line, as we move closer to our aim of playing international cricket this summer. 

"We will need to continue to work closely with our medical team and government to ensure that our return to training and play activities are in line with best-practice guidelines. 

"We're also really grateful for the positive and collaborative response from our county colleagues who are doing a great job at facilitating coaching and support for the players. The fact that we can call on our network to support the national effort shows the strength of our system." 

England training group: Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Tom Banton, Dom Bess, Sam Billings, James Bracey, Stuart Broad, Henry Brookes, Pat Brown, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Brydon Carse, Mason Crane, Zak Crawley, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, Joe Denly, Ben Duckett, Laurie Evans, Ben Foakes, Richard Gleeson, Lewis Gregory, Sam Hain, Tom Helm, Will Jacks, Keaton Jennings, Chris Jordan, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, Dawid Malan, Eoin Morgan, Craig Overton, Jamie Overton, Matt Parkinson, Ollie Pope, Adil Rashid, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Phil Salt, Dom Sibley, Ben Stokes, Olly Stone, Reece Topley, James Vince, Amar Virdi, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.

After being put into bat, Sri Lanka started strongly with an opening partnership of 93 runs between Athapaththu and Vishmi Gunaratne. Gunaratne fell just six runs short of her half-century, miscuing a lofted shot to Aaliyah Alleyne at mid-off. Despite losing two more quick wickets, Sri Lanka's captain Athapaththu steadied the innings with a vital 57-run partnership with Nilakshika Silva.

Athapaththu's innings came to an end at 91 off 106 balls when Afy Fletcher spun one through her bat and pad, leaving Sri Lanka at 156 for 4. However, any hopes West Indies had of restricting the hosts were dashed by Silva and Sanjeewani. The duo added 117 runs for the fifth wicket, propelling Sri Lanka to a formidable total. Silva scored 63 off 78 balls, while Sanjeewani contributed a quick-fire 55 off 46 balls. The pair's efforts saw Sri Lanka plunder 93 runs in the final 10 overs, ensuring a challenging target for the visitors.

In response, the West Indies struggled from the outset, losing both Rashada Williams and skipper Shemaine Campbell within the first six overs. The only resistance came from Chedean Nation and Stafanie Taylor, who put together a 57-run partnership off 82 deliveries. However, Taylor's dismissal, edging behind off Oshadi Ranasinghe, left the West Indies in dire straits.

Nation, who top-scored with 46 off 57 balls, was bowled by Athapaththu, reducing the West Indies to 69 for 4. From there, Nisansala took over, exploiting the grip and turn of the surface with her slow left-arm orthodox deliveries. She trapped Zaida James leg before and accounted for Chinelle Henry, Afy Fletcher, and Qiana Joseph, all of whom fell attempting aggressive shots.

Nisansala completed her five-for by dismissing Aaliyah Alleyne, who chipped a return catch after a brief cameo of 27 off 27 balls. The West Indies' innings folded for 115, with Nisansala finishing with figures of 5 for 28, marking her first five-wicket haul in ODIs.

This victory marks Sri Lanka's second series whitewash against the West Indies and highlights the stark difference in form and execution between the two sides. The West Indies will need to reassess and regroup after a disheartening series, while Sri Lanka can take confidence from their dominant performances as they look ahead to future challenges.

Hardik will lead India when they begin their tour of New Zealand with the first of three T20Is in Wellington on November 18 – just five days after the T20 World Cup in Australia ends.

One week later, they begin a three-match one-day series at Eden Park in Auckland, in which Dhawan – who led India on a tour of the West Indies earlier this year – will take the captaincy.

Rohit, Kohli and Rahul will all miss the trip to New Zealand, but as many as eight other players currently in Australia for the World Cup will be in attendance.

Hardik, Rishabh Pant, Deepak Hooda, Suryakumar Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Harshal Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Arshdeep Singh have all been selected for the T20I series, with Pant named vice-captain for the entire tour.

There was no place in either squad for Jasprit Bumrah or Ravindra Jadeja, however, after the duo were forced to miss the World Cup through injury.

India captain Rohit Sharma's decision to bowl first paid dividends as England's high-powered line-up was bowled out for 259.

Hardik starred for an India attack missing Jasprit Bumrah through back spasms, with career-best ODI figures of 4-24 before Pant hit a magnificent 125 not out.

Mohammed Siraj removed Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root for ducks in his first over and, after a mini-recovery, England were 74-4 when Hardik removed both Jason Roy (41) and Ben Stokes (27).

Captain Jos Buttler (60) steadied the ship with his first half-century of a series dominated by the ball, but his stand of 75 with Moeen Ali ended when Ravindra Jadeja had the latter caught down the leg side.

A fascinating short-ball battle between Hardik and Liam Livingstone (27) ended with Livingstone caught on the rope by Jadeja, and Buttler fell to a diving catch from the same fielder.

Craig Overton took advantage of a sloppy period from India thereafter to get England past 250, and it looked as if India may pay the price as Reece Topley ran through their top order; Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit and Virat Kohli all removed by the tall fast bowler to leave the tourists 38-3.

Overton got Suryakumar Yadav caught behind, but England were confounded by the combination of Hardik (71) and Pant, who put on 133 before India's all-rounder was dismissed by a superb catch from his opposition counterpart Ben Stokes.

It mattered not as Pant reached three figures for the first time and then hit David Willey for five fours in an over; getting India over the line with a reverse sweep from Joe Root for his 18th boundary of a tremendous display.

Hardik plays pivotal role

Hardik had never before taken four wickets in an ODI - his previous best figures were 3-31 against New Zealand in 2016. He changed that in stunning fashion as he dismissed the heart of a formidable England XI.

And, with India teetering in their reply, it was Hardik who turned the game firmly in their favour with his sixth-highest ODI score, unfurling a series of sublime cover drives in an innings defined by an impressive combination of discipline and aggression.

Pant punishes missed opportunity

Buttler missed a huge opportunity to end Pant's innings on 18, letting a stumping chance go begging.

Pant punished England's captain in style. He smacked Stokes down the ground for his 50 and brought up 100 in 106 balls, before his remarkable bludgeoning of Willey ended the game as a contest.

All-rounder Pandya had not played an international game since September having undergone back surgery.

A shoulder injury suffered in the ODIs with Australia in January had kept Dhawan on the sidelines, while Bhuvneshwar, who last played for India in December, has been out with a sports hernia.

They return to the squad along with opener Shubman Gill. Kedar Jadhav, Shivam Dube, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami and Mayank Agarwal drop out from the squad that suffered a 3-0 whitewash in New Zealand.

Pandya provided a reminder of his quality with the bat as he proved his fitness to selectors in the invitational DY Patil T20 competition.

He scored two centuries in that tournament, including an unbeaten 158, and will hope to make a similar impact against a South Africa side that completed a 3-0 series win over Australia on Saturday.

The first match of the three-game series takes place on Thursday in Dharamsala.

India squad: Virat Kohli (captain), Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shikhar Dhawan, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Manish Pandey, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, Navdeep Saini, Prithvi Shaw, Kuldeep Yadav.

Pakistan's win also levelled the three-match series with their biggest ODI win over the world champions in Australia, setting up a decider in Perth on Sunday. 

The hosts started poorly with the bat, losing Jake Fraser-McGurk (13) and Matt Short (19) inside the first seven overs, with Shaheen Afridi claiming both early wickets. 

Steve Smith top scored with 35 but was bowled out by Mohammad Hasnain (1-27), before Rauf ripped through Australia's middle order for the second consecutive game.

On his way to figures of 5-29, the 31-year-old claimed the wickets of Inglis (18), Marcus Labuschagne (six), Aaron Hardie (14), Glenn Maxwell (16) and Pat Cummins (13). 

Shaheen Afridi secured the final wicket of Adam Zampa (18), with Pakistan handed a target of 164 runs to take the series to a decider. 

And the tourists made light work of their run chase, with Ayub (83) and Abdullah Shafique (64) combining brilliantly to produce an opening stand of 137. 

Zampa eventually made the breakthrough with the wicket of Ayub, but the damage had already been done. Babar Azam sealed the win with a six, with Pakistan reaching their target in just 26.3 overs. 

Data Debrief: Shaheens stars play their part

Pakistan have not won an ODI series in Australia since 2002, but their showing on Friday will give them confidence of claiming a historic win. 

They registered their biggest ODI win against the world champions in Australia in terms of both balls (141 balls) and wickets (nine) remaining. Previously, Pakistan's biggest ODI triumph over Australia in their own backyard had come in Sydney in 1981, winning by six wickets.

But the victory was inspired by Ayub and Shafique's 137-run stand for the first wicket, which was Pakistan’s second-best opening stand in an ODI against Australia, only behind Mohsin Khan and Mudassar Nazar (141) in 1985. 

Mohammad Rizwan also played his part. His tally of six catches is the joint-most for any wicket-keeper in an ODI for Pakistan, going level with Sarfaraz Ahmed against South Africa in 2015. 

Harrison has spent over seven years as ECB CEO, but his resignation was confirmed on Tuesday.

Clare Connor, managing director of England women's cricket, will step in as interim chief until a permanent successor to Harrison is appointed.

The ECB board will start a comprehensive search for a new CEO, while the governing body is already seeking a new chairman after Ian Watmore quit last year.

Harrison said: "It has been a huge honour to be CEO of the ECB for the past seven years. Cricket is an extraordinary force for good in the world and my goal has been to make the game bigger and ensure more people and more communities in England and Wales feel they have a place in this sport.

"The long-term health of cricket depends on its ability to grow and remain relevant and be more inclusive in an ever-changing world.

"The past two years have been incredibly challenging, but we have pulled together to get through the pandemic, overcome cricket's biggest financial crisis, and committed to tackling discrimination and continuing the journey towards becoming the inclusive, welcoming sport we strive to be.

"I have put everything into this role, but I believe now is the right time to bring in fresh energy to continue this work."

Harrison had come under fire for the ECB's handling of the Yorkshire Cricket Club racism scandal and following England's 4-0 Ashes hammering in Australia.

There have been a number of significant chances at the top of English cricket recently, with Rob Key appointed as managing director of England men's cricket, Ben Stokes named Test captain and Brendon McCullum the new Test head coach.

Matthew Mott, head coach of the Australia women's cricket team, is reportedly set to be named as England's limited-overs head coach.

A chastening World Cup campaign has ushered in a new era for England although it was largely the contributions of individuals out in India who had the biggest impact in the first of three ODIs.

Three weeks on from their final match in the subcontinent, Brook top-scored in England’s 325 all out, with all of their batters reaching double figures except for Buttler and number 11 Gus Atkinson.

Buttler had a torrid World Cup, averaging 15.33 without passing 50 once, and never got going in Antigua before being dismissed for three off 13 balls after gloving a reverse sweep to the lone slip.

Sam Curran and Brydon Carse put on 66 in 38 balls down the order to get England over 300 after they had slipped to 239 for seven against a new-look Windies side who failed to qualify for the World Cup.

Phil Salt gave England a turbocharged start with a boundary-laden 45 in 28 balls after winning the toss under sunny skies while the tourists went on to record the highest ODI score at this ground, helped by occasionally shoddy fielding from their opponents.

Salt wasted no time in settling, crashing five fours and three meaty leg-side sixes off fast bowlers Alzarri Joseph and Romario Shepherd, forcing Windies captain Shai Hope to turn to spin after six overs.

The change worked as Salt ended an electric innings in tame fashion. He has struggled against left-arm spin in the past and he was snared by Gudakesh Motie after backing away to leg and lofting to cover.

Will Jacks had been in Salt’s slipstream in a 77-run stand but still dispatched a 96-metre six arcing over cover, aided slightly by a breeze blowing across the ground, before nicking off as England’s openers departed in quick succession.

Conditions seemed to grow trickier, with the ball occasionally keeping low, as Test openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett attempted to build on England’s rapid start.

Duckett’s customary sweeps, both orthodox and reverse, came to the fore but he had his leg-stump pegged back by one that skidded on from leg-spinner Yannic Cariah, who should have had Crawley on 30 but a top-edged which looped gently to long-on was spilled by Motie, possibly unsighted by the sunshine.

Crawley was run out for 48 after setting off for a single, only to see Brook had not budged, allowing Hope to whip off the bails following Alick Athanaze’s throw from point.

Brook was initially quiet, nudging and nurdling 12 singles from his first 18 balls before reverse sweeping Motie for his first four. His second boundary was the result of more Windies misfielding as Keacy Carty got in a tangle and the ball sailed underneath his legs.

He kept England ticking over then accelerated after Buttler’s departure, clubbing Shepherd then Cariah for sixes. Cariah was also taken the distance twice by Livingstone in an over costing 23 but the England all-rounder fell for 17, trapped lbw by a grubber from Shepherd.

Brook was dropped at point on 70 but added just another run before being deceived by Shepherd’s pace-off delivery and thumping to mid-off.

At 239 for seven, England’s lower order had work to do but Sam Curran, who had a fringe role at the World Cup, and Carse, an unused squad member, helped the tourists finish with a flourish.

Both lower order batters cleared the rope twice to carry England beyond 300 before Curran was run out on 38. Carse was unbeaten on 31.

The Windies had set the hosts 290 to win the opening match of the three-game series, Shai Hope leading the way with 115 as he scored his ninth ODI century.

It was a target that looked like it could well be beyond Sri Lanka after their innings lost impetus following a 111-run first-wicket partnership between Avishka Fernando (50) and captain Dimuth Karunaratne (52).

Thisara Perera played an in important role with a 22-ball 32, but when he was caught off the bowling of Alzarri Joseph the match was very much in the balance with Sri Lanka on 253-7.

However, Hasaranga (42 off 39) produced a performance that belied his ODI average of 14.37 to get Sri Lanka over the finish line.

Hasaranga's ability to find the rope – he struck a quartet of fours and one maximum – and inaccurate death bowling from the Windies left the scores level going into the final over.

A direct-hit run out from Sunil Ambris to remove Lakshan Sandakan frayed the nerves a little, but the one run Sri Lanka needed came from a Keemo Paul no-ball off the next delivery.

Matthews played a pivotal role in setting up the win, first with the bat and then with the ball. She showcased her batting prowess by scoring an impressive unbeaten 140 runs, anchoring the West Indies' innings to a challenging total of 269-8 in their allotted 50 overs. Matthews' innings was decorated with 15 boundaries (fours) and a well-struck six.

After losing an early wicket, Matthews combined forces with Shemaine Campbell to forge a crucial partnership of 102 runs for the second wicket. Campbell contributed a valuable 45 runs to the cause before departing.

Chinelle Henry (23) and contributions from Chedean Nation and Aaliyah Henry, who scored 17 each, further solidified the West Indies' innings as Matthews led from the front, steering her team to a formidable total.

In response, Pakistan Women struggled to build partnerships against the disciplined West Indies bowling attack. Tuba Hassan top-scored with 25 runs, while Muneeba Ali and Nahida Alvi made contributions of 22 and 20 runs, respectively.

However, it was Matthews who turned the game decisively in her team's favor with the ball, claiming three crucial wickets for just 17 runs. Afy Fletcher and Zaida James also made significant contributions with the ball, picking up two wickets each to bundle out Pakistan Women for 156 runs in 35.5 overs.

Sadia Iqbal (2-38) and Tuba Hassan (2-48) were the standout bowlers for Pakistan, but they couldn't contain Matthews' brilliance.

With this commanding victory, West Indies Women have taken a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series against Pakistan Women, setting the stage for an exciting contest in the upcoming matches.

Siraj conceded 37 runs off just three overs in India's 10-wicket loss to Australia on Sunday, which caused the paceman to slump behind Hazlewood and New Zealand's Trent Boult.

Mitchell Stark took 5-53 in that rout, equalling the record number of five-wicket ODI hauls by an Australian bowler.

Hazlewood's rise to the top of the rankings comes despite the 32-year-old having not played in an ODI since November, while his last appearance in any format came in January.

However, he is expected to be back playing for this year's Ashes series in England, which commences on June 16 at Edgbaston.

Meanwhile, Kane Williamson has moved up four spots to second in the Test batting rankings behind Marnus Labuschagne. 

Williamson scored a remarkable 215 runs in New Zealand's victory over Sri Lanka in their two-match series, which the Black Caps won 2-0.

Stokes has taken the Test captaincy by storm, winning his first two matches against the world Test champions New Zealand, while England have been playing white-ball fixtures in the Netherlands.

England coasted to an eighth straight ODI win on Wednesday, their longest run since a streak between January and May 2017 (also eight), to complete the series sweep over the Netherlands.

Morgan missed that outing in the Amsterdam suburbs due to a groin issue, but the 35-year-old failed to score a run in each of the first two games.

The England white-ball skipper has passed 50 just once in his last eight ODI innings since scoring 106 against Ireland in February 2020, but Stokes was quick to back Morgan.

"Well, he's only had two low scores so I wouldn't say he's going through a hard time at the moment," said Stokes as England prepare for the third Test against New Zealand at Headingley on Thursday.

"I think the press are the only ones giving him a hard time and I think the players have shown it's not an issue with them.

"People are allowed to not score many runs and more than that he's our captain. He's a phenomenal leader and always will be so I've got no issues with anything going on with him at the moment."

Buttler stepped in as captain against the Netherlands in the absence of Morgan, blasting an unbeaten 86 from 64 deliveries as England chased 245 in just 30.1 overs.

The absence of Morgan was labelled as a "precautionary issue" by England and Buttler assured his captain has the backing of the entire team.

"There's certainly no questioning of his position from within the camp," Buttler said. "I can't put into words what he's achieved. 

"Everyone always talks about his captaincy but you forget what a brilliant batsman he's been for England in over 200 ODIs – that doesn't just go away overnight. Everyone in the team is backing him."

The destructive white-ball form of Buttler has led to suggestions he could return to the England Test side, with Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum encouraging an aggressive brand of cricket.

Buttler acknowledged he is in the form of his life, but says there has been no contact regarding a return to the red-ball team.

"I'd have to say yes," said Buttler, when asked whether he was in the form of his life. "The IPL was incredibly special personally to have a tournament like that, I surprised myself.

"I think what's important for us in white-ball cricket in England is we talk about playing in a particular fashion and we must try and live that to the max.

"Of course, there's a bit of a risk element to that way of playing but it's what we ask of everyone."

"I haven't had any conversations with anyone about [the Test team]. I'm very happy with where I'm at, at the moment. It might not ever be a question that has to be answered."

The openers forged an alliance of 269 runs as Australia posted 355-5 in a rain-interrupted match in Melbourne, with England only able to muster 142 all out in reply, suffering a third emphatic defeat.

Australia's innings was trimmed to 48 overs, which meant under the Duckworth–Lewis–Stern calculations England's target was set at 364 for victory, which they got nowhere near. Nine days after winning the T20 World Cup on the same ground, England's response to Australia's total was largely listless.

Head made an ODI career-best 152, while Warner was out for 106, his 19th century in this format. They put on the ninth-highest first-wicket stand in ODI history, second only for Australia to the 284 that Head and Warner themselves amassed in January 2017 against Pakistan.

It was their second 200-plus partnership, and only Sri Lanka's Mahela Jayawardene and Upul Tharanga, who have managed three, have achieved more as a pairing in ODIs.

Olly Stone eventually removed both openers in the same over, the 39th of Australia's innings, on the way to bowling figures of 4-85 from 10 overs.

England's opening partnership, in stark contrast, was worth only 15 runs, with Dawid Malan falling for just two to Josh Hazlewood in the third over. Jason Roy top scored with 33, as Adam Zampa took 4-31 in the rout.

Warner beats Hayden record

Warner now has 6,007 runs from 139 ODI innings, becoming the 10th Australian batter to reach 6,000 runs in the format. He has reached the milestone in the fewest innings of all Australians, beating Matthew Hayden's previous record of 154 innings.

Head rush

Head's 152 goes down as the second-highest score by an Australian player in the history of men's ODIs against England, bettered only by Shane Watson's unbeaten 161 in January 2011. The thrashing gave Australia's men just their second whitewash of England in a multi-game bilateral ODI series, 29 years after the first, also a 3-0 victory.