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• Pollard puts TKR’s up and down season down to injuries; happy with where team is heading into playoffs

  Trinbago Knight Riders captain Kieron Pollard is happy with where his team is ahead of the 2024 Caribbean Premier League playoffs set to begin on October 1 in Guyana.

  With two games left for them in the preliminary phase of the tournament, the four-time champions have a record of five wins and three losses in their eight games.

  “From a performance perspective, we’ve played eight games. Won five, lost three. We’ll take that. The first step in any tournament is to qualify. If we were in fifth place or sixth place it’d be a different conversation. You expect this to happen. It’s T20 cricket,” Pollard said in a press conference on Thursday ahead of their game against the Barbados Royals at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy on Friday.

  “Given all the obstacles that we’ve had transpire throughout this season, we’ll take where we are at this particular time. We have an opportunity to finish in the top two. We still have to play good, consistent cricket,” he added.

  The major obstacle that Pollard referred to in his comments on Thursday was the number of injuries that have hampered his team’s ability to field their best eleven consistently throughout their eight outings.

  “Throughout the entire tournament we’ve been hampered by injuries. We have not mentioned what sort of injuries we’ve had throughout and we’ve had to sort of chop and change. That might’ve caused a lot of discussion amongst fans as to why this one and that one is not playing but we had to battle that,” he said.

  Nevertheless, Pollard commended his team for their performance despite the circumstances.

  “The way how the guys have battled forward through injuries, coming in at the late stages, we have to commend them for their efforts,” he said.

  The Knight Riders and the Royals have met 24 times in the past with the Knight Riders holding a 15-9 edge.

  Their last meeting came on September 13 when the Knight Riders won a thriller by two wickets with one ball remaining at the Kensington Oval.

  The Knight Riders, currently fourth in the standings with 10 points, could secure a top two spot with wins in their final two games over the Royals and the Guyana Amazon Warriors.

  “It’s known in the dressing room what needs to be done and hopefully, all the experience that we have and the exuberance of the youth as well will come forth and we’ll be able to finish the tournament a lot more consistently,” Pollard said.

   

   

   

• Kamindu Mendis ton helps Sri Lanka to 600 against struggling New Zealand

  Kamindu Mendis' century helped Sri Lanka cruise past 600 in their first innings, strengthening their already iron grip on their second Test against New Zealand on day two.

  The hosts picked up where they left off on Thursday, with New Zealand offering little resistance as the run count continued to tick over.

  Dinesh Chandimal's ton propelled them to 306-3 on day one, and Kamindu carried on their momentum, claiming his fifth Test century in the second session.

  His 117-run partnership with Kusal Mendis in that session piled the misery on the tourists, as Kamindu plundered an unbeaten 182, and his partner 106, to help the hosts put 602-5 on the board.

  New Zealand's bowling left a lot to be desired, and they struggled to get going with the bat too when they eventually stepped up to the crease.

  In just 14 overs, Tom Latham (2) and Devon Conway (9) were dismissed, with Kane Williamson set to continue on Saturday having got six from 42 balls.

  With just 22-2 under their belt, they trail by 580 runs and will need a huge performance on day three to chase it down.

  Data Debrief: Kamindu steals the show

  There was some exceptional batting from Sri Lanka's new star Kamindu, with his unbeaten 182 on Friday his highest-ever score.

  He also became the fastest batter to 1,000 Test runs in 75 years (1,004), getting there in 13 innings to equal Don Bradman's pace.

  He averages 91.27 a match, maintaining a strike rate of 65.02, and has crossed 50 in nine of those innings, reaching a century in five. 

• Marsh: Australia have 'moved on' from Ashes drama ahead of Lord's return

  Mitchell Marsh insists Australia have moved on from the "drama" that marred last year's Ashes Test with England, ahead of their return to Lord's.

  The Baggy Greens lead England 2-1 in the ongoing ODI series heading into the fourth instalment on Friday.

  It will be Australia's first visit to Lord's since unsavoury scenes involving their players and spectators ensued during the notorious Ashes Test, following Alex Carey's controversial stumping of Jonny Bairstow. 

  The incident culminated in an MCC member receiving a lifetime ban, while two others were suspended for directing "abusive, offensive or inappropriate behaviour or language" towards Australia's players.

  Carey has enjoyed an impressive series, hitting 74 in the second ODI at Headingley and 77 in the third in Durham, and Marsh insists his team-mates are motivated by last year's events.

  When asked if there had been any discussions ahead of their return, he told reporters: "No, there hasn't. We've really moved on from that.

  "I think there's always excitement playing at Lord's. It's the greatest ground in the world, bar the WACA, of course - the history and the tradition here, it's always a fantastic place to play.

  "Obviously, these things happen in Ashes Test matches. There's not a series that goes by that doesn't have some sort of drama."

  On Carey, he added: "I don't think [being motivated by last year's events is] in his character. But Alex certainly loves playing in England. We all do.

  "The fans are always incredible, and it's always a tough challenge playing against England, so I think he's just wrapped to be back here playing for Australia."