Ollie Pope led the resistance with a brilliant, battling century as England fought hard to keep the first Test against India alive in Hyderabad.
Faced with the unenviable task of overturning a 190-run first-innings deficit, the vice-captain dug deep to make an unbeaten 148 as his side found their way to 316 for six at stumps on day three.
While the tourists still have plenty of work ahead of them to turn the pressure fully back on India, they showed admirable steel to build a lead of 126 with four wickets still in hand.
Pope’s fifth Test hundred was the mainstay, marking a welcome return after six months out following surgery on a dislocated shoulder.
The Surrey batter had not played since the second Ashes Test last summer and, without any warm-up games to find his feet, looked short of rhythm when he was dismissed for just one on the first day.
He started sketchily again, aiming an errant reverse sweep at his second ball as he searched for scoring shots, but grew in stature as he put together an innings of real substance.
Having bounded along to his half-century in just 54 deliveries, he took 100 more to reach three figures.
The longer Pope took, the more controlled he appeared, and this was a knock that reinvigorated a contest that seemed destined to slip away from England in a hurry.
The scoreboard looked ominous when skipper Ben Stokes fell at 163 for five, India still 27 ahead, but Pope and Ben Foakes, with 34, gritted their teeth in a partnership worth 112.
India began the day on 421 for seven and were mopped up efficiently for the addition of just 15 runs.
Joe Root, continuing his unexpected emergence as his side’s most threatening bowler, snapped up two in two balls, Ravindra Jadeja lbw for 87 and Jasprit Bumrah for a golden duck. Rehan Ahmed provided the finishing touch when he zipped one low through Axar Patel.
If India losing three wickets without a run caused jitters in the away dressing room they were not evident in a dashing opening stand of 45 between Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett.
Crawley reverse swept with authority and lifted Patel down the ground for six, but was gone for 31 before the end of the 10th over, nicking Ravichandran Ashwin to slip.
Pope’s presence was not immediately reassuring, hitting fresh air almost immediately as he attempted to get off the mark with a reverse sweep of his own, but Duckett’s arsenal of sweeps proved a reliable source of runs.
England took lunch at 89 for one and were up to 113 when a masterful spell of reverse swing from Bumrah cut their fightback down.
He should have had Duckett lbw but saw his appeal wrongly shrugged away by the on-field umpire and his captain.
Undeterred he came again, shaping the ball through the air, through the gap that Duckett’s lavish drive left and sent his off stump flying for 47.
Root followed after just six balls, trapped in front by another that tailed in and thudded his front pad. On a pitch that had rendered the pace bowlers an afterthought for so long, it was an exceptional intervention from Bumrah.
It was credit to Pope that he not only survived it but also kept his score moving, picking off boundaries and topping them up with hard running between the wickets.
He needed a partner to help but lost Jonny Bairstow for 10, offering no shot to Jadeja’s arm ball, and then saw Ashwin snake one past Stokes’ outside edge and into the top of off.
England were still 18 behind at the start of the evening session but Pope and Foakes knuckled down to turn that into a workable lead.
Foakes watched the ball on to his bat and took minimal risks, while Pope showed real poise as he built his score with a new sense of calm.
By now the reverse sweep that had left him looking vulnerable earlier was coming out of the middle of the bat and providing a vital supply of boundaries.
He gradually became more inventive as he sought gaps in the field, leaving India scratching their heads as they tried to pin him down.
He scrambled three off Jadeja to reach a hard-won hundred, his first in the second innings and third overseas, and marked it in under-stated fashion.
Foakes’ stay was ended by a grubber from Patel, who blotted his copy book by dropping Pope on 110.
That allowed Pope to walk off unbeaten at the close with Ahmed at his side, dreaming of further heroics on day four.
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.
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