Alice Capsey found her form with a fine 46 as England kept alive their hopes of regaining the Ashes with a five-wicket victory over Australia in a rain-hit final T20 international at Lord’s.
England had responded from defeat in the Test at Trent Bridge and losing the opening T20 at Edgbaston to pull off a three-run win in a thrilling finale at the Oval on Wednesday.
Heather Knight’s side continued that momentum to restrict Australia to 155 for seven and then Capsey led the chase of a Duckworth–Lewis–Stern revised target of 119 in 14 overs to win the T20 series and reduce the multi-format deficit to 6-4 ahead of the deciding one-day internationals.
Australia, put into bat after Knight had won the toss for the first time in this Ashes, made a swift start in front a crowd of 21,610, another record attendance.
Captain Alyssa Healy and Beth Mooney hit 10 off the first over from Charlie Dean and Healy was then dropped when on 13 off Nat Sciver-Brunt, the all-rounder unable to take a caught-and-bowled chance down to her left.
Dean made the breakthrough with the first delivery of the fourth over to trap Healy lbw for 16 with a length ball.
England took another wicket in the seventh over when Tahlia McGrath (10) sent a short ball from Danielle Gibson to Capsey at mid-off, leaving Australia at 37 for two.
Mooney sent Sarah Glenn for three consecutive boundaries in the eighth over, but was then bowled by Sciver-Brunt for 32 when attempting a ramp shot.
Ash Gardner hit Gibson for the first six of the match in the 11th over before Sciver-Brunt failed to hold a testing diving catch chance.
Sciver-Brunt then had Gardner (32) caught behind off a top edge from a short ball.
Australia pushed on past 100 before rain took the players off during the 15th over, but it proved only to be a short delay.
Ellyse Perry again set about the England bowlers, racing to 27 off 21 deliveries. Lauren Bell eventually had her lbw for 34 in front of middle, which was not able to be reviewed because of a technical problem with the DRS.
Grace Harris was dropped by Bell in the last over before Gibson put down Annabel Sutherland, with Ecclestone eventually getting her wicket when taking out leg-stump.
Harris (25) was run out going for a second run off the final delivery, as Australia finished 155 for seven.
During the interval, the covers came out as rain again set in which delayed the restart until just after 9pm. As a result, England’s run chase was revised to 119 from 14 overs, with four of those comprising the powerplay.
Danni Wyatt – who hit 76 at the Oval – and Sophia Dunkley put on 17 in the opening two overs.
England’s momentum was halted at the end of the fourth over when, after a run of boundaries, Wyatt edged Megan Schutt behind to depart for 26 off 15 balls.
Australia struck again with the next delivery when Dunkley (nine) sent Darcie Brown’s opening delivery straight up and was caught by Jess Jonassen at backward point to leave England reeling at 39 for two.
Capsey, who had made just 17 runs in her last five England innings, sent Jonassen over deep midwicket for a huge six as England passed the half-century mark.
Sciver-Brunt hit Sutherland for another boundary, before Capsey had a let-off when Georgia Wareham failed to hold a diving catch in an expensive ninth over from Gardner.
Capsey’s onslaught continued as she smashed Schutt for a huge six and then a four – but was then out to a fine catch from Gardner from a shot over deep square leg to fall just short of her half-century.
Just when England looked to be cruising to victory, Sciver-Brunt was bowled by a flatter delivery from Wareham for a run-a-ball 25.
England were left needing two off the final over from Jonassen – who promptly trapped Knight (six) lbw with the first delivery.
Gibson, in just her third game for England, showed nerves of steel to reverse sweep Jonassen for a boundary and secure another dramatic victory.
West Indies in control despite Bangladesh avoiding follow-on in Antigua Test
The West Indies maintained firm control of the first Test against Bangladesh at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua, ending the third day with a 181-run lead. Bangladesh, despite a spirited late resistance, reached stumps at 269 for 9, narrowly avoiding the follow-on after the hosts declared their first innings at 450 for 9.
Alzarri Joseph and Jayden Seales led the West Indies bowling effort, each taking key wickets as Bangladesh struggled for momentum on a slow surface. Jaker Ali (53) and Mominul Haque (50) provided the only half-centuries for the visitors, while Litton Das added 40. A seventh-wicket stand of 68 runs between Jaker and Taijul Islam pushed Bangladesh past the follow-on mark of 251 in the final hour of the day.
Starting the day on 40 for 2, Bangladesh batted cautiously, with Mominul Haque and Shahadat Hossain looking to rebuild. Shahadat’s 18 from 71 balls came to an end when he edged Kemar Roach to Kavem Hodge at first slip.
Mominul continued his resistance alongside Litton Das, guiding Bangladesh through to lunch. Litton, known for his fluent stroke play, curbed his natural instincts and focused on survival, though he managed a few boundaries off Alzarri Joseph and Shamar Joseph.
After the break, Seales trapped Mominul lbw for 50, breaking a promising partnership. Litton Das followed soon after, dragging a Shamar Joseph delivery onto his stumps for 40 off 76 balls. Stand-in captain Mehidy Hasan Miraz also struggled against a barrage of short-pitched deliveries, eventually succumbing to an Alzarri Joseph bouncer caught at short-leg by Mikyle Louis.
Bangladesh looked in danger of folding cheaply, but Jaker Ali and Taijul Islam mounted a defiant stand.
Jaker and Taijul frustrated the West Indies attack for 19 overs, combining disciplined shot selection with opportunistic boundary-hitting. Jaker brought up his half-century with a pull shot, but the partnership ended when Taijul was bowled by Joseph for 27.
Jaker continued to fight, but his innings ended at 53 when he holed out to Seales at deep midwicket off Justin Greaves. The West Indies bowlers, tiring in the fading light, were unable to dismiss the final Bangladeshi wicket, with Taskin Ahmed and Hasan Mahmud surviving till stumps.
The hosts had set the tone for the match with a dominant first-innings batting display, led by Justin Greaves (115*), Mikyle Louis (97), and Alick Athanaze (90). On day three, their bowlers ensured that Bangladesh remained under pressure despite avoiding the follow-on.
Heading into the penultimate day, West Indies remain firmly in control, with a healthy lead and a single Bangladeshi wicket standing between them and a shot at victory. Bangladesh, meanwhile, face an uphill battle to avoid defeat in the first Test.
Global Super League trophy unveiled
The trophy for ExxonMobil Guyana Global Super League (GSL) has been unveiled by Guyana’s President, His Excellency President Dr Mohammad Irfan Ali and shown to the Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi at a cricket event which was part of the Indian leader’s state visit to Guyana. GSL Chairman, Sir Clive Lloyd and Guyanese cricket great Alvin Kallicharran were also in attendance for the ceremony.
The trophy has been inspired by Guyana’s 276 discovered waterfalls including the magnificent Kaieteur Falls, the largest single drop waterfall in the world and has been designed by Indian company Loka Lifestyle.
Sir Clive Lloyd, Chairman of GSL, said: “The Global Super League is South America’s first standalone T20 tournament and is a fantastic opportunity to showcase beautiful Guyana to the rest of the world. With that in mind it is very fitting that the trophy highlights Kaieteur Falls, one of the most stunning landmarks in the region. We are looking forward to seeing which of the five competing teams will claim the trophy on 6th December.”
The Global Super League will see teams from Australia, Bangladesh, England, Guyana and Pakistan competing for the trophy and a US$1million prize pool. The tournament runs from 26 November to 6 December with all matches taking place at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence.
Zimbabwe crush Pakistan in rain-affected ODI series opener
Zimbabwe's spinners took centre-stage as they earned a crushing 80-run victory over Pakistan in the teams' rain-affected ODI opener on Sunday.
Torrential rain, thunder and lightning halted play after 21 overs of the Pakistan innings, with the tourists toiling at 60-6 after bowling Zimbabwe out for 205.
Sean Williams, Blessing Muzarabani and Sikandar Raza each scalped two wickets apiece as no Pakistan batter surpassed the 19 runs managed by Mohammad Rizwan.
The dismal weather would ensure no further play was possible, with Pakistan having completed the requisite 20 overs to ensure a result would be declared, ensuring Zimbabwe won on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method.
Richard Ngarava had earlier top-scored for Zimbabwe with a steady 48 off 52 balls, with Raza adding an important 39 from 56 deliveries after the hosts had been dropped to 99-5.
Salman Agha and Faisal Akram finished with three wickets apiece for Pakistan, but it was not enough to prevent Zimbabwe from being declared comfortable victors, with their total some way clear of the DLS par score of 141.
Data Debrief: Zimbabwe end Bulawayo hoodoo
Zimbabwe's victory may not have come in the circumstances they would have envisaged, but it did end their dismal run against Pakistan at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo.
They had lost each of their previous eight matches against Pakistan at the venue, only winning one of their last nine there overall (one draw, seven defeats), after winning three of their previous four.
They will hope to carry this momentum into Tuesday's second match at the same venue, as they bid to clinch victory in the three-match series.
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