Ben Stokes believes Harry Brook can emulate Virat Kohli's all-format batting dominance after the England youngster again impressed in Pakistan.
Yorkshire batter Brook played a key role as England secured a first Test series victory in Pakistan in 22 years after a nail-biting 26-run victory in Multan on Monday.
The 23-year-old managed only nine runs in the first innings but responded with 109 in the second – the only century of the second Test – to help England to an unassailable 2-0 series lead.
That form comes as no surprise given Brook blasted 153 and 87 in Rawalpindi, with his red-ball international average sitting at an impressive 73.8 from his five innings.
Yet Stokes believes this is only the start for Brook, who he expects to shine across all formats of cricket as he compared the England batter to India great Kohli.
"After the summer he had last year, getting all the big-ups before he made his debut, to come here and put in that kind of performance again was just phenomenal," Stokes told Sky Sports.
"He's one of those rare players that you look across all formats and you can just see him being successful everywhere.
"It's a massive shout, but Virat Kohli is one of those guys where his technique is just so simple and works everywhere. The pressure that he puts back onto opposition is exactly what we're about."
Brook accumulated just 56 runs, averaging just 11.2 across six innings, as England lifted their second T20 World Cup in Australia.
The middle-order batter has impressed in the shortest format for England in his 20 outings, though, with the expectation he will slot into Jos Buttler's side for the 50-over Cricket World Cup in India in 2023.
Stokes does not foresee the pressure impacting the form of Brook, given the comfortable manner in which he stepped into the Test side.
"The expectation on his shoulders coming into this team, because of how good he's been for Yorkshire, was obviously huge," he said.
"But I think that just shows that kind of stuff doesn't really affect him. He's a player whose technique is suited to all three formats, he wants to always look to be putting pressure back onto the opposition, and he's won another game for England.
"[He made a] huge contribution last week, and the hundred he scored here was obviously massive for us in getting that big lead.
"He's a pretty simple lad to captain: he just gets about his business, loves his batting, wants to constantly improve, constantly work on it. He's a pretty easy bloke to have in your dressing room."
Jonny Bairstow's injury offered Brook the chance to take the number-five role for Stokes, with the England Test captain acknowledging he is fortunate to have a wealth of batting talent to call upon.
"We're very, very lucky with the way in which we can replace Jonny, to have Harry coming in, because those two, batting No.5, they both go about it in exactly the same way," he added.
"They bring so much to the team and obviously Harry playing the way he has done at the moment with Jonny not being in the team, unfortunately, it's the best thing you want.
"You want competition for places, you want a strong squad to be able to pick from, and you want those headaches when it comes to the final XI every week, rather than saying 'I'm not sure who we're going to pick, let's pick a name out of the hat.'
"We're definitely not in that situation, and we feel like we've got all bases covered at the moment."
Delhi Capitals advance to WPL final, Mumbai Indians to play UP Warriorz in eliminator
The Delhi Capitals have advanced to the final of the inaugural Tata Women’s Premier League after a five-wicket win over the UP Warriorz at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai on Tuesday.
The Warriorz made 138-6 off their 20 overs after being put in to bat by the Capitals. Talia McGrath made 58* and captain Alyssa Healy made 36 against 3-26 off four overs from off-spinner Alice Capsey.
Meg Lanning (39), Capsey (34) and Marizanne Kapp (34*) then led a successful Delhi chase as the finalists needed just 17.5 overs to reach 142-5.
Pacer Shabnim Ismail took two wickets for the Warriorz.
With the league phase of the tournament now complete with all teams having played eight games, the Capitals, after finishing top-of-the-table with 12 points, are automatically into the final.
The Warriorz will have an opportunity to meet them there when they take on the Mumbai Indians, who finished as runners-up in the league phase, in the eliminator on Friday.
Earlier on Tuesday, Mumbai also finished the league phase with 12 points after a four-wicket win over the Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Sr DY Patil Sports Academy in Mumbai.
RCB made 125-9 from their 20 overs after losing the toss. Ellyse Perry and Richa Ghosh both made 29 for RCB as Amelia Kerr continued her good form with the ball with 3-22 from her four overs for Mumbai. Nat Sciver-Brunt and Issy Wong also took two wickets each.
Kerr then completed a fine all-round performance with an unbeaten 31 while Yastika Bhatia made 30 and Hayley Matthews 24 as the Indians reached 129-6 in 16.3 overs.
The eliminator will be held at the Dr DY Patil Sports Academy on Friday while the final will take place at the Brabourne Stadium on March 26.
Klaasen masterclass sees South Africa coast in third ODI to tie series
Heinrich Klaasen brilliantly took the third ODI away from West Indies with his unbeaten century to give South Africa a four-wicket win and tie the three-match series.
Klaasen scored 119 off just 61 deliveries, completing a routine victory with three consecutive boundaries.
There were still 123 balls remaining, with South Africa's number five batter having accelerated the scoring just as the tourists had recovered some hope at Senwes Park in Potchefstroom.
The Windies were all out for 260, losing their way after a strong start from Brandon King (72) lifted them to 110-1 in the 19th over.
King contributed to his team's downfall when he chose not to run and left partner Shamarh Brooks (18) stranded, slipping in the middle of the pitch for a run out that triggered a steady stream of Windies wickets.
It was still no sure thing the Proteas would chase down their target despite scoring at a good rate, losing four wickets inside 13 overs – including that of captain Aiden Markram for 25.
Yet Klaasen came to the fore, bringing up his hundred off just 54 balls to swiftly bring the finish line into sight.
A showstopping finale saw poor Yannic Cariah punished, conceding 49 runs off only three and a half overs as the Windies' hopes of a rare series win against South Africa were wiped out.
Windies' wait for series win goes on
West Indies have not beaten South Africa in a multi-game ODI series since April 1992, but this represented a real opportunity, leading 1-0 ahead of the final match after the opener was abandoned without a ball bowled.
A failure to capitalise on competitive starts to both innings extended that wait, although the Windies at least ended South Africa's run of seven straight series victories.
Klaasen crashes six after six
Coming into this match, South Africa had hit only 70 sixes in ODIs since the start of last year, compared to 143 for West Indies over the same period.
But Klaasen alone matched the Windies in that regard on Tuesday, smashing five maximums – as many as the entire touring team – to go with 15 fours in South Africa's fourth-fastest ODI century.
Economic impact of Hero CPL passes US$200 Million in 2022
The 2022 Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) generated a huge economic impact for the countries who hosted matches with a total figure of US$200,935,772, a 47% increase on the amount generated during the 2019 tournament, the last time the Hero CPL travelled around the region.
The total direct economic impact on the region from Hero CPL 2022 was US$134,686,551 with an additional US$66,250,232 in sponsorship value as a result of the Hero CPL broadcast which was watched by over 700million viewers in 2022.
The four countries who held Hero CPL matches were St Kitts & Nevis, Saint Lucia, Trinidad & Tobago and Guyana. St Kitts & Nevis also hosted the first running of the Massy Women’s CPL (WCPL) and the SKYEXCH 6IXTY. The tournament has created jobs and generated income in all of these countries as the Caribbean continues to be central to the success of the Hero CPL.
The rise in economic impact has, in part, been driven by the change to the tournament structure that now sees all six teams, TV production crew and tournament staff travelling around the region as one cohort, spending more time in each of the host countries. With more matches being played per host country, travelling fans are now offered even greater value to come and watch the Hero CPL and as a result there was a significant increase in international arrivals across the tournament in 2022.
This figure was generated by independent, world-renowned research company, YouGov Sport. This figure takes into account the total spent by Hero CPL to put on the 2022 event, the value of media exposure for the country from the broadcast of matches and the money spent with local business by those who travelled around the region for the tournament.
The Hero CPL was responsible for filling 54,702 hotel nights across the region, with players, TV crew, CPL and franchise staff and other visitors all helping to generate further revenue for local businesses and suppliers.
The total viewership for the 2022 Hero CPL was a record 721.8million, a record for the tournament. This is the third successive year that the tournament has generated a viewership figure of over half a billion. This increase in viewership gave even more exposure to host countries throughout the tournament, adding further value to hosting Hero CPL matches.
Pete Russell, Hero CPL’s CEO, said: “The value that Hero CPL brings to host countries has been long established but for the economic impact of the tournament to pass US$200million for the first time is another milestone in the decade long history of the event. Hero CPL creates jobs, fills hotel rooms, boosts tourism and attracts visitors into host countries, both during the tournament and beyond. We are very excited to see this Caribbean product continue to grow its global reach while still hugely benefiting the region.”
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