Australia retained the Women’s Ashes after Nat Sciver-Brunt’s excellent innings of 111 not out could not prevent England suffering an agonising three-run defeat in the second ODI at the Ageas Bowl.
Victory in Bristol on Wednesday had levelled the multi-format series at 6-6, but Heather Knight’s side knew only a fourth consecutive win over the world champions would keep alive their hopes of winning back the urn.
Put into bat first in Hampshire, Australia posted 282 for seven with Ellyse Perry hitting 91 and Annabel Sutherland adding 50, but it was Georgia Wareham who changed the momentum with 24 runs off the final over.
Tammy Beaumont ensured England’s chase started strongly with 60 but wickets fell regularly with the recalled Alana King claiming three for 44 from her 10 overs.
Sciver-Brunt’s presence kept alive England’s faint hopes and she reached another century against Australia, but could not get the required 15 runs from Jess Jonassen’s final over.
It puts Australia 8-6 up in the series with only one ODI left to play in Taunton, which means the urn will remain with Alyssa Healy’s side.
England captain Knight had won the toss and saw her decision to bowl first immediately pay dividends with Lauren Bell able to claim the early wickets of Phoebe Litchfield and Healy in windy conditions in Hampshire.
Litchfield was pinned in front lbw and Healy inexplicably cut straight to Alice Capsey, but Perry and Beth Mooney rebuilt the innings and put on 61 for the third wicket.
Spin duo Sophie Ecclestone and Sarah Glenn kept Australia in check with Mooney sweeping the former to Bell at short fine leg for 33 and Tahlia McGrath out cheaply after edging behind.
The outlook could have been even better for England with Perry dropped on 50 when Glenn put down a tough caught-and-bowled chance, which occurred the ball after the Aussie number three had survived a close lbw appeal.
Perry was given another life on 63 when she chipped Ecclestone to Kate Cross at mid-on, but the England seamer put down the opportunity and injured her right leg as a result.
Ashleigh Gardner was already out for 33 to Bell by this point, but Australia were able to kick on from 158 for five with Sutherland improving their tempo.
An important 81-run partnership for the sixth wicket was broken in the 47th over by Ecclestone, who claimed Perry for 91 and Sutherland for 50 with substitute fielder Charlie Dean and Capsey taking smart catches on the boundary rope.
Wareham crucially swung the momentum back in Australia’s favour though with a scintillating onslaught on Bell, smashing two sixes over midwicket after an earlier maximum in the last over of the innings to help her side post 282 for seven from their 50 overs.
It left England facing another record ODI chase, after achieving the same feat in Bristol on Wednesday, but Beaumont ensured they made a strong start with 66 put on with Sophia Dunkley, who was then bowled after a scratchy 13.
Beaumont had already celebrated fifty before four runs initially awarded to her were later changed to leg byes but the milestone was officially reached in the 14th over.
England’s progress was quickly ground to a halt by leg-spinner King after she won her battle against Knight, who was unhappy to walk off given out lbw for 12 after reviewing immediately.
King was in full flow now and Beaumont was bowled for a fine 60 with a wonderful spinning delivery that clipped off stump before Capsey holed out to deep midwicket where Gardner took the catch.
When Danni Wyatt succumbed to Gardner’s off-break with a slog sweep straight to Sutherland, England had gone from 107 for two to 144 for five.
The presence of Sciver-Brunt, who successfully reviewed an out lbw call on three, retained some hope and she moved to another half-century off 53 balls with a sweep for two.
Sciver-Brunt desperately needed a partner to stick around and wicketkeeper Jones started to take the attack to Australia, hitting back-to-back fours against Wareham, but soon after being dropped on 34, she was out.
After putting on 57 for the sixth wicket to take England past the 200-mark, Jones top-edged her attempted reverse sweep and Ecclestone lasted just two balls – with Gardner picking up two wickets from the 39th over.
England still needed 80 runs for victory but Sciver-Brunt continued to get success with the sweep shot.
Glenn stuck around to bring the equation down to 15 off six balls, but Sciver-Brunt, who reached her century in the previous over, was only able to hit one boundary.
England fell short on 279 for seven after her attempted slog-sweep for six from Jonassen’s last delivery only went for one.
Javelle Glenn’s maiden century leads high-scoring Jamaica Scorpions to CG Insurance Super50 Final
Javelle Glenn’s maiden List A century was the backbone of a remarkable recovery as the Jamaica Scorpions defeated the Leeward Islands Hurricanes by 107 runs in the second semifinal of the CG Insurance Super50 at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy on Thursday. The victory secured the Scorpions a spot in the final against the Barbados Pride.
Set 353 to win, the Hurricanes were dismissed for 245.
Batting first, the Scorpions posted a tournament-high 352-9, overcoming a middle-order collapse thanks to Glenn’s composed and unbeaten 114. The innings was supported by crucial knocks from John Campbell (77), Jeavor Royal (73), and Kirk McKenzie (48).
The Scorpions started shakily, losing Carlos Brown early for one, leaving them at 12-1 in the third over. However, Campbell and McKenzie rebuilt with a 114-run stand for the second wicket. McKenzie fell to Rahkeem Cornwall for 48, sparking a dramatic collapse.
Cornwall and Hayden Walsh Jr wreaked havoc on the Scorpions’ middle order, reducing them from 132-2 in the 21st over to 138-7 in the 24th over. Glenn, who had been at the crease during this carnage, held firm as wickets tumbled around him. Jermaine Blackwood, Romaine Morris, and Peat Salmon all departed without scoring, while Brad Barnes managed just four.
With the Scorpions in dire straits, Glenn found a willing partner in Jeavor Royal. The pair staged a sensational eighth-wicket fightback, adding 124 runs in just 64 balls. Royal’s aggressive 73 off 42 deliveries included six fours and six sixes, providing the Scorpions with much-needed momentum before he fell to Walsh.
Glenn continued the charge, adding 78 runs for the ninth wicket with Gordon Bryan, who contributed 11 runs to the partnership. Glenn’s unbeaten knock ensured Jamaica crossed the 350-run mark, with Markino Mindley accompanying him in the final overs.
Cornwall ended with figures of 4-67, while Walsh Jr took 3-78, but their efforts were undone by Glenn’s heroics and the Scorpions’ lower-order resistance.
Chasing 353, the Hurricanes made a bright start despite losing early wickets and reached 60-3 in the eighth over. Kofi James led the charge with a spirited 79 off 64 balls, featuring seven fours and five sixes. He combined with Jewel Andrew for a 66-run fourth-wicket stand that kept the Hurricanes in contention.
Jahmar Hamilton added 58, while Walsh Jr chipped in with 31, but the Hurricanes fell short of the required tempo. Mindley’s incisive bowling broke key partnerships, finishing with 4-46. Javeor Royal (2-37) and Brad Barnes (2-65) also played important roles in dismissing the Hurricanes for 245 in 35.4 overs.
'What's gone, is gone': Brathwaite warns against complacency heading into Bangladesh Test Series
West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite has struck a measured tone as his team readies to face Bangladesh in the opening contest of their two-match Test series at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Friday.
While acknowledging his team’s enthusiasm to return to the longest format, Brathwaite also stressed the need for focus and execution against what he believes is a talented Bangladesh team.
"Well, the guys are really looking forward to it. We haven't played Test cricket for a little while, so the guys are excited to get out there. You know it's a ground we love playing at; we enjoy playing here, and you know the guys are ready and raring to go,” Brathwaite said in a pre-game conference.
The Antigua venue has fond memories for the West Indies, most notably the dismissal of Bangladesh for a record-low 43 in 2018. However, Brathwaite insists that past triumphs are irrelevant heading into this series, as he warned against complacency.
His warning comes with the anticipation of a balanced wicket that will reward disciplined cricket, as he believes the pitch will offer movement and bounce for the pacers early on, with spin likely to play a role as the match progresses.
“Everything that’s gone is history. I mean, we're playing against a talented Bangladesh team now, so what's gone, is gone. We are obviously all looking forward to coming tomorrow and starting well in whatever we do,” he stated firmly.
“We got to focus on tomorrow morning and starting well; that's on our minds. Again, what is gone is gone, and we look forward to this challenge of playing good Test cricket,” Brathwaite noted.
That said, Brathwaite pointed to the invaluable presence of seasoned pacer Kemar Roach, both for his bowling prowess and his off-field mentorship. Roach’s devastating spell was pivotal in Bangladesh’s infamous 2018 collapse.
“Kemar is a very experienced player and obviously a Test bowler. On the field, he's great, but off the field, the information he shares with us is phenomenal. So having him around, I think, is very important for this team because on the field we know his statistics and he is playing here in the Caribbean as well.
“So I would say look forward to that. But, you know, on and off the field, I think Kemar is a true example of a leader for the West Indies going into this particular Test match,” the Barbadian said of his compatriot.
Interestingly, both Bangladesh and West Indies currently sit at the foot of the ICC World Test Championship standings in eighth and ninth positions, with both also coming off recent defeats to South Africa.
Despite that, Brathwaite expressed confidence in his batters, many of whom have recently shown form in the regional Super50 competition, as he highlighted the Caribbean side’s determination to finish the cycle on a high.
“Obviously, we looked at the points as a team, and we know we got four games left in this cycle and we could still pretty much come high up in the table. We just got to believe, and as I said, we are playing against a talented Bangladesh team, so it won't be easy, and we got to come ready and raring to go tomorrow morning,” Brathwaite said.
“I think they (batsmen) are in a good space; a few of the guys have played in the Super50 tournament and got some scores, so that was good to see. It's just all about that belief now; we’ve had a difficult year thus far, but we also had some good performances with the bat. It's just to draw from those performances as much as possible; we got four innings here, and it's just to bat and give it 100%,” he ended.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh enters the series missing key players like Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, and captain Najmul Hossain Shanto. However, all-rounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz, who will serve as stand-in captain, believes the team’s younger players have the opportunity to step up.
“It’s tough without some of our senior players, but we’ve worked hard in practice and are focused on playing positive cricket. We still have a good side right now. Some of the young players coming have a good opportunity to perform well in these conditions, so we actually believe that we can play well and we can come strongly,” Hasan Miraz shared.
West Indies have named a pace-heavy lineup that includes Roach, Jayden Seales, Alzarri Joseph, and Shemar Joseph to complement the batting of Brathwaite, Mikyle Louis, Keacy Carty, Kavem Hodge, Alick Athanaze, Justin Greaves, and wicketkeeper Joshua da Silva.
Bangladesh: Mehidy Hasan Miraz (Capt), Shadman Islam, Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Zakir Hasan, Mominul Haque, Mahidul Islam Ankon, Litton Das (wkt), Jaker Ali Anik, Taijul Islam, Shoriful Islam, Taskin Ahmed, Hasan Mahmud, Nahid Rana, Hasan Murad
Barbados Pride soar into CG United Super50 final after commanding 153-run win over T&T Red Force
Barbados Pride delivered a clinical performance to storm into the CG United Super50 Cup final, as they hammered defending champions Trinidad and Tobago Red Force by a massive 153 runs in their semi-final clash at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy on Wednesday.
This victory propelled the Pride—who last tasted glory in the 2016-17 season and reached their last final in 2017-18—into contention for their seventh title.
Scores: Barbados Pride 339-7 (50 overs); Trinidad and Tobago Red Force 186 all out (36.3 overs)
After being sent in to bat, the Pride’s openers, Zachary McCaskie and Leniko Boucher, laid the foundation with a scintillating 142-run partnership. McCaskie, the more aggressive of the pair, entertained with a blistering 94 off just 82 deliveries, smashing six boundaries and six towering sixes.
However, his departure, courtesy of Mark Deyal, did little to disrupt the Pride’s momentum.
This, as Captain Raymond Reifer joined the fray with a brisk 65 and added another crucial 50-run stand with Boucher, who contributed a steady 69 off 84 balls in a knock that had seven boundaries. Reifer's 60-ball knock, which included six fours and a six, epitomized controlled aggression that applied further pressure to the Red Force bowlers.
Even when Boucher fell to Deyal and Kevin Wickham (14) went to spinner Khary Pierre, Reifer, and Roston Chase (43), on return from West Indies duties, added another 50 for the fourth wicket.
Chase’s quick-fire 31-ball knock, which had only two fours and a six, ensured the Pride capitalized on the foundation laid by the top order.
Reifer eventually became Deyal’s third scalp, and Chase went to Shannon Gabriel, but the damage was already done as the Pride were at 297-5 at that point. The lower order contributed the remaining runs to the daunting total.
Deyal stood out for the Red Force with figures of 4-53, but his efforts were insufficient to stem the tide.
Facing a mountain of runs, the Red Force faltered early and never recovered. The only bright spot in their reply was a 68-run second wicket partnership between Tion Webster and Amir Jangoo (16). Webster’s aggressive 56 off 47 balls, which featured eight boundaries and a six, gave fleeting hope before he became the fourth wicket to fall with the score at 91.
After Webster’s dismissal, Deyal (34) and Isiah Rajah (28) added a brief 53-run stand for the seventh wicket, but the Red Force were ultimately bowled out for a paltry 186 in just 36.3 overs.
Dominic Drakes led the Pride’s bowling charge with 3-24, with Chase (2-40) and Kemar Smith (2-42) also doing some damage.
The Pride’s dominance sets up a highly anticipated final against the winner of the Jamaica Scorpions versus Leeward Islands Hurricanes semi-final, scheduled for Thursday.
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