Stuart Broad joined Test cricket’s exclusive 600 club as he and Chris Woakes kept England’s hopes of a rousing Ashes comeback alive on day one at Emirates Old Trafford.
Three years after taking his 500th wicket at the same ground, Broad completed another century of scalps to join a hall of fame that includes only four other names: Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne, team-mate James Anderson and Anil Kumble. Among fast bowlers, Anderson and Broad stand alone in the pantheon.
The 37-year-old dismissed the series’ top run-scorer Usman Khawaja early on and returned after tea to bounce out Travis Head as his landmark victim, overtaking Sir Ian Botham’s record of 148 wickets Australian wickets in the process.
But with England in do-or-die territory at 2-1 down heading into the fourth Test, the collective mission in Manchester was even more important than any personal achievements, guaranteeing Woakes a healthy share of the spotlight.
He bowled superbly all day to claim four for 52, with Australia finishing up on 299 for eight after being sent in by Ben Stokes.
Woakes picked up exactly where he left off in an excellent comeback performance at Headingley, picking off David Warner in the morning session before removing Australia’s dangerous duelling all-rounders Mitchell Marsh and Cameron Green in one outstanding over in the evening.
The pair were initially thought to be fighting for one place in the side but Australia surprisingly ditched their spinner Todd Murphy to find room for both. That beefed up their middle order but Woakes swept them both aside at an important moment in the evening session, trapping Green lbw as he hunched forward in defence and then having Marsh brilliantly caught behind.
England kept faith with Bairstow behind the stumps despite a series of costly misses in the first three Tests and got a measure of payback as he held on to an ankle-high nick, sprawling almost horizontally as he scooped the chance in front of first slip.
And it was Woakes who provided a late sting in the tail, taking out Alex Carey with the new ball to squash a vexing stand with Mitchell Starc.
Australia will rue a slightly sloppy day, full of batters getting out just as they looked set. Four of their top six were out between 41 and 51, with Warner making 32, but their failure to kick on could also be read as a testament to England’s dogged determination.
Stokes showed no hesitation in sending the opposition in first, a decision that appeared to be based partially on overcast skies and partially due to the prospect of a weekend washout.
The first of those factors began to change almost as soon as he made the call, with the clouds disappearing and the sun coming out.
Broad ensured England got on the board early, missing out on his nemesis Warner but sending the in-form Khawaja back for three after nailing him on the front pad from round the wicket.
There was no flurry of chances to follow, though, with Australia getting the better of the morning’s play as they posted a lunch total of 107 for two.
Woakes was the pick of the bowlers and picked up Warner just as his confidence started to grow, caught behind as he drove with hard hands.
England might have considered themselves unlucky not to get Labuschagne or Steve Smith early, with both starting awkwardly. Smith uncharacteristically hooked his first ball from Woakes towards fine-leg, but Mark Wood was a few yards in from the rope and missed out on what would otherwise have been a banker of a catch.
Both batters began to look more comfortable but were unable to impose themselves fully.
Smith (41) was undone by Wood’s extra pace, just too late on a 92mph ball that struck him dead in front, while Labuschagne’s relief at making a first half-century of the series evaporated instantly. Nudging forward to a Moeen Ali teaser that gripped off the surface and snuck past the inside edge, he was on his way.
With a tangible hint of first day turn, Australia may well have been ruing their own decision to go with no specialist spinner for the first time in 120 Tests.
Broad’s magic moment came after tea when he followed the team plan to bowl short at Head, digging in a short ball that was flapped obligingly to Root in the deep. The cheers belonged to Broad, cementing his status as one of England’s most enduring Ashes combatants, but the hard work continued.
Marsh, fresh from a fluent century in the third Test, unloaded a 56-ball fifty before he became the second part of Woakes’ double in the 63rd over. Carey, welcomed by the now customary boos, guided Starc through a 39-run partnership in the closing stages before he perished to the fresh Dukes.
Attempting to offer no stroke, he grazed Woakes through to Bairstow as England moved within two wickets of completing the job.
Narine, Hinds on the losing end of court ruling regarding bar rental
Trinidad and Tobago cricketers Sunil Narine and Terrence Hinds have found themselves on the losing side of a court ruling and are now left to fork up just over $60,000 after a business arrangement with a former landlord went sideways.
Justice Ricky Rahim ordered Narine and Hinds to compensate Dave Kangal for a breach of contract after they rented a bar from the claimant at Oropune Gardens in Piarco.
Though Narine’s role in the issue is unfortunate as he was merely rendering financial assistance to Hinds in the business venture, the judge could not ignore the fact that he was also named as a tenant on the agreement dated July 1, 2020.
Interestingly, it was the players that first took Kangal to court, citing a breach of a tenancy contract, before the landlord counterclaimed and won. As such, Narine and Hinds will have to pay $62,246.90 plus interest as outstanding rent, as well as a half of Kangal’s legal fees.
According to Trinidad Express, the judge, in his written ruling delivered on Thursday, found that the two were actually owing Kangal $130,500 in unpaid rent. However, the figure was reduced as the court also found that Narine and Hinds were to be reimbursed $68,263.10 for renovations and improvements to the bar.
Hinds contended that $100,000 was actually spent on renovations and improvements, but he was unable to present some of the receipts to support his claim.
“The chips must lie where they fall. On the other hand, the court was taken aback by the tenor of the dealings between Terrance and Anna (Hinds' sister) on one hand and the defendant on the other,” the judge shared.
“There is a strong inference that they sought to take advantage of the apparent lack of understanding and naivete to a certain extent of the defendant to his disadvantage and to their benefit,” he added.
Mooney's 43* guides Australia to win over Sri Lanka
Australia produced a strong showing as they defeated Sri Lanka by six wickets to get the defense of their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup crown off to the best possible start.
Sri Lanka chose to bat first in Sharjah but struggled to 93 for seven, with Nilakshika Silva top scoring with an unbeaten 29.
Australia showed it was not easy going for either team but could rely on Beth Mooney, who battled through the energy-sapping sun to make 43 not out and see her team home with 5.4 overs to spare.
Sri Lanka needed a positive start against the world number one side, who put the squeeze on from the outset - with 10 balls passing until the first run was scored and Vishmi Gunaratne departing for a duck.
Captain, Chamari Athapaththu soon followed for just three as Australia successfully reviewed an LBW decision with Ashleigh Gardner claiming her first wicket.
Sri Lanka’s first boundary came as Harshitha Samarawickrama took advantage of a free hit with a four after Australia’s third no ball of the innings.
Australia made some unwanted history with a record fifth no ball as Darcie Brown's first over cost 12, taking Sri Lanka to 23 for two at the end of the powerplay. They regained control when Sophie Molineux picked up their third LBW wicket of the innings and Sri Lanka lost the second of their two reviews.
Samarawickrama helped push the score to 43 for three at the halfway stage and was reprieved on 20 as Brown put down a catch as she slid in from extra cover.
The wicketkeeper made only three more runs however, as Molineux got her second wicket with a simple caught and bowled on an impressive return to the World Cup stage after injury trouble.
Silva provided some resistance without improving the scoring rate, finishing on 29 not out from 40 balls.
Her 34-run partnership with Anushka Sanjeewani was ended by Megan Schutt, who took two wickets in two balls to tie Shabnim Ismail for the most T20 World Cup wickets with 43 as Sri Lanka posted 93 for seven.
Australia lost captain Alyssa Healy in the opening over of the reply as she was clean bowled by Udeshika Prabodhani.
The gamble to promote Georgia Wareham up the order did not pay off as she was run out thanks to smart fielding from Kavisha Dilhari to leave Australia at 14 for two.
It was left to the uber-calm Mooney to steer the chase and she steered Australia to 62 for three at the halfway stage alongside Gardner.
The partnership was eventually broken at 43 as Gardner skied a shot that Samarawickrama gladly gobbled up, but it only postponed the inevitable.
Mooney ended on 43 not out, as she picked up where she left off in World Cup cricket, having been named Player of the Final in 2023 for her 78 not out in their victory.
Australia too continued their winning form at World Cups with a 12th victory in a row to triumph by six wickets.
Scores in brief
Australia v Sri Lanka at Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
Sri Lanka 93/7 in 20 overs (Nilakshika Silva 29 not out, Harshitha Samarawickrama 23; Megan Schutt 3/12, Sophie Molineux 2/20)
Australia 94/4 in 14.2 overs (Beth Mooney 43 not out, Ellyse Perry 17; Sugandika Kumari 1/16, Udeshika Prabodani 1/19)
Result: Australia won by six wickets
Matthews hopeful Windies can bounce back against Scotland on Sunday
After an undesirable start to their Women’s T20 World Cup campaign, West Indies Women’s captain Hayley Matthews is hopeful that her team can turn around their fortune and possibly challenge for a spot in the semi-final.
Matthews’ optimism follows their 10-wicket hammering by South Africa in their opening fixture in Dubai on Friday.
In that contest, Matthews believes her team failed to properly acclimatize to the conditions, as they mustered a meagre 118 for six in their 20 overs. South Africa, led by half-centuries from Laura Wolvaardt and Tazmin Brits, then made light work of the target at 119 without loss in 17.5 overs.
However, with Scotland being the Caribbean side’s next assignment on Sunday morning, Matthews says they will have to pick up the pieces and bounce back.
“Obviously a pretty disappointing game (against South Africa). Firstly, not scoring enough runs on the board, and we would have liked to have taken a few wickets and at least put up a bit more of a fight in the second innings,” Matthews said.
“But with a game in two days’ time, we’re going to have to get things back together quickly and pick up the pieces and go again,” she added.
Reflecting on the outcome against South Africa, Matthews felt her team was undone by challenging conditions.
“It’s pretty hot here in Dubai. I’d probably have to say the hottest place I’ve ever played cricket or even been, and that’s someone coming from the West Indies. It’s definitely been some difficult conditions. We’ve been here for about two weeks, thankfully, and we’ve been able to acclimatise as much as we possibly can to conditions like this,” Matthews shared.
She continued: “I think we came down here expecting some pretty good wickets. We’ve camped here quite a bit when we went to Pakistan in April, and we tend to spend some time down here training, so we knew what the ICC Academy grounds were like, and those were pretty decent wickets early.
“It wasn’t a bad wicket. South Africa showed you can really bat on a wicket like that and even us in parts. Stafanie Taylor was able to take charge of the game as well throughout the middle. I don’t think the conditions surprised us too much. We probably just didn’t adapt to them as well.”
Matthews also addressed concerns surrounding Zaida James, who was hit in the face, and Taylor, who appeared to be cramping and had difficulty running between the wickets.
“For Zaida, it was pretty much just a knock on her face. I think the seam might have hit her in the face, so she was in a bit of discomfort. There’s a bit of swelling around her jaw, but she’s a tough girl, so hopefully it’s just one of those knocks that you get on the field, and hopefully she’ll be able to be out on the field for the next match,” Matthews noted.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
