Shai Hope on his way to another ODI hundred
CWI Media
A century from Shai Hope and a half-century from Evin Lewis helped West Indies cruise to a comfortable eight-wicket victory over Sri Lanka with 18 balls to spare at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium and take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
Chasing a target of 233, Man-of-the-Match Hope scored 110 and Lewis featured in an opening stand of 143, a record-opening stand for the West Indies against Sri Lanka in the West Indies, which was ended when the latter was bowled by an in-swinging yorker from Dushmantha Chameera for 65.
Lewis had faced 90 balls in his 109-minute stay at the crease hitting four fours and two sixes.
Hope, who dropped from the West Indies Test squad last year for loss of form, was a picture of composure, facing 136 balls from which he hit 12 fours and a six in his 10th ODI century before he, too, was bowled by Dushmantha Chameera who finished with 2-50 from his 10 overs.
Hope also shared in a 72-run second-wicket stand with Darren Bravo who hit two fours and a six and in his unbeaten on 37 at the end. With him was Jason Mohammed, who was not out on 13.
Sri Lanka would have been disappointed after winning the toss and opting to take first strike, were given a solid platform of 105.
The partnership was broken two balls into the 20th over by Kieron Pollard, who brilliantly caught Dimuth Karunaratne off his own bowling for 52. He had faced 61 balls and struck four fours in his 89 minutes at the crease.
Eleven balls later it was 112 for 2 when Danushka Gunathilaka, who was going well on 55 when he was controversially given out for obstructing the field, ending his 98-minute stay at the crease during which he struck seven fours from the 61 balls he faced.
The incident seemed to rattle Sri Lanka as two run-outs (Pathum Nissanka and Angelo Matthews) followed that saw Sri Lanka slide to 126 for 4.
Ashen Bandara scored the third half-century of the Sri Lankan innings that provided some stability to the lower order but by then the run rate had fallen before five runs and over and he was without a partner who could successfully take on the West Indies bowling attack.
His was the ninth wicket to fall in the 48th over bowled by Jason Holder for an even 50 that included four fours.
Holder, who also accounted for the wicket of Chameera returned figures of 2-39. Jason Mohammed, who was introduced into the attack late had 2-12 from his four overs having claimed the wickets of Kamindu Mendis and Wanindu Hasaranga de Silva.
There was a wicket each for Alzarri Joseph, Pollard and Fabian Allen, in a performance of which Coach Phil Simmons would be proud.
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Australia in complete control over India in World Test Championship
India were scrapping to stay afloat in the World Test Championship final after a top-order collapse left Australia in the driving seat on day two of the World Test Championship final.
Australia were all out for 469 in their first innings, Steve Smith following in the footsteps of first-day centurion Travis Head to post 121, and then snapped up key wickets to establish a dominant position.
Each of their seam quartet struck as India lurched to 71 for four in the 19th over, before spinner Nathan Lyon joined the party and ended a battling fifth-wicket stand.
Ajinkya Rahane and Ravindra Jadeja doubled the score before the latter nicked Lyon to slip for 48. By stumps India were 318 behind on 151 for five, with plenty of work to do retain a realistic chance of succeeding New Zealand as red-ball world champions.
Australia arrived in the morning already boasting a healthy position on 327 for three. At that stage, they were surely hoping to clear 500, but India landed a few handy blows of their own as they took the last seven wickets for 108.
With 10 overs before lunch to work their magic, the Australian seamers made short work of the India openers. Captain Pat Cummins made the initial opening, thumping his opposite number Rohit Sharma halfway up the front pad with one that shaped in towards middle and off.
Scott Boland then joined the fray, seaming one in sharply and rearranging Shubman Gill’s stumps as he paid the price for a poorly-judged leave.
Boland filled his boots against England Down Under in 2021/22, taking a remarkable six for seven on debut at the MCG, and he made a compelling case for holding his spot at Edgbaston next week with 11 high-quality overs with the Dukes ball.
India survived a potential gut punch when star batter Virat Kohli came close to departing for a duck, withdrawing the bat only to see an inside edge spray off the toe and zip past his stumps, but their struggles continued after the break.
Cheteshwar Pujara belied his years of experience in English climes by repeating Gill’s error, shaping to leave all-rounder Cameron Green and paying the price with his off-stump. Kohli’s exit left India in strife but he was at least guilty only of receiving a brutish delivery from Mitchell Starc.
The left-armer was expensive, shipping 52 from nine overs, but showed off his ability to deliver big moments when he got one to explode off a length at Kohli and rap the thumb of his bottom hand as it sprayed to slip.
India’s position left a lot to be desired but, with Australians sensing blood Rahane’s perseverance and Jadeja’s counter-attacking nature served them well. They put on 71 together, parted only when Lyon offered a change of pace. He forced Jadeja into an unusually defensive stroke and clipped the outside edge to break the stand.
Smith had earlier brought up his 31st Test century, his seventh in England and his third at the Oval. Resuming on 95, he dispatched his first two balls of the morning from Mohammed Siraj to the boundary to reach three figures with minimal fuss.
India made regular inroads to keep the game moving forwards, Head departing for a classy 163 as Siraj got him brushing to the keeper with a bumper aimed at the ribs and Smith ending a five-and-a-half hour stay with an uncharacteristically loose prod that canoned into his stumps.
India struggle for runs as Australia gain upper hand in World Test Championship
India were scrapping to stay afloat in the World Test Championship final after a top order collapse left Australia in the driving seat on day two of the World Test Championship final.
Australia were all out for 469 in their first innings, Steve Smith following in the footsteps of first day centurion Travis Head to post 121, and then snapped up key wickets to establish a dominant position.
Each of their seam quartet struck as India lurched to 71 for four in the 19th over, before spinner Nathan Lyon joined the party and ended a battling fifth-wicket stand.
Ajinkya Rahane and Ravindra Jadeja doubled the score before the latter nicked Lyon to slip for 48. By stumps India were 318 behind on 151 for five, with plenty of work to do retain a realistic chance of succeeding New Zealand as red-ball world champions.
Australia arrived in the morning already boasting a healthy position on 327 for three. At that stage, they were surely hoping to clear 500, but India landed a few handy blows of their own as they took the last seven wickets for 108.
With 10 overs before lunch to work their magic, the Australian seamers made short work of the India openers. Captain Pat Cummins made the initial opening, thumping his opposite number Rohit Sharma halfway up the front pad with one that shaped in towards middle and off.
Scott Boland then joined the fray, seaming one in sharply and rearranging Shubman Gill’s stumps as he paid the price for a poorly judged leave. Boland filled his boots against England Down Under in 2021/22, taking a remarkable six for seven on debut at the MCG, and he made a compelling case for holding his spot at Edgbaston next week with 11 high-quality overs with the Dukes ball.
India survived a potential gut punch when star batter Virat Kohli came close to departing for a duck, withdrawing the bat only to see an inside edge spray off the toe and zip past his stumps, but their struggles continued after the break.
Cheteshwar Pujara belied his years of experience in English climes by aping Gill’s error, shaping to leave all-rounder Cameron Green and paying with the off stump.
Kohli’s exit left India in strife but he was at least guilty only of receiving a brutish delivery from Mitchell Starc.
The left-armer was expensive, shipping 52 from nine overs, but showed off his ability to deliver big moments when he got one to explode off a length at Kohli and rap the thumb of his bottom hand as it sprayed to slip.
India’s position left a lot to be desired but, with Australians sensing blood, Rahane’s perseverance and Jadeja’s counter-attacking nature served them well.
They put on 71 together, parted only when Lyon offered a change of pace. He forced Jadeja into an unusually defence stroke and clipped the outside edge to break the stand.
Smith had earlier brought up his 31st Test century, his seventh in England and his third at the Oval. Resuming on 95, he dispatched his first two balls of the morning from Mohammed Siraj to the boundary to reach three figures with minimal fuss.
India made regular inroads to keep the game moving forwards, Head departing for a classy 163 as Siraj got him brushing to the keeper with a bumper aimed at the ribs and Smith ending a five-and-a-half hour stay with an uncharacteristically loose prod that canoned into his stumps.
CWI CEO rubbishes reports of host change for next year’s T20 World Cup- “There’s no truth to it”
Cricket West Indies has rubbished reports about the International Cricket Council (ICC) possibly asking England to step in and hist next year’s ICC T20 World Cup, originally scheduled to take place in the West Indies and the USA.
A number of media outlets including CricTracker, Sportskeeda and the Daily Mirror have reported that the venue shift is being considered due to a lack of infrastructure in the USA but CEO of Cricket West Indies, Johnny Grave, denied these claims and questioned the source of the information.
“No!” was Grave’s answer when asked about the validity of the claims being reported.
“I don’t know where that’s coming from. I’m in London for the World Test Championship final and I’ll be here again for the ICC Annual General Meeting (AGM) in a few weeks’ time so who knows what the agenda is. There’s no truth to it,” Grave added.
The West Indies previously hosted the ICC T20 World Cup in 2010.
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