England to start Cricket World Cup defence against 2019 final foes New Zealand

By Sports Desk June 27, 2023

England will begin the defence of their Cricket World Cup crown against New Zealand in Ahmedabad on October 5 in a rematch of the nerve-racking 2019 final.

After tied scores in the regulation ODI and Super Over in the Lord’s showpiece, England controversially prevailed on boundary countback alone in a tie-breaking rule which has since been abolished.

The teams have not met in a 50-over contest since then but they will get the tournament in India under way at the 132,000-capacity Narendra Modi Stadium, which is also set to stage the final on November 19.

Jos Buttler’s side will then take on Bangladesh, Afghanistan and South Africa in the round-robin group stage before the first of two still-to-be-determined qualifiers and then a clash against hosts India.

England will then head back to Ahmedabad – the site of the world’s largest cricket stadium – to face Ashes rivals Australia before an encounter against another qualifier.

England close their group campaign on November 12 against Pakistan, whom they defeated in last year’s T20 World Cup final to become the first side to hold both white-ball World Cups simultaneously.

The India-Pakistan clash will be held in Ahmedabad on October 15 as the International Cricket Council confirmed the calendar with less than four months to go until the tournament gets under way.

The semi-finals will be held on consecutive days on November 15 in Mumbai and November 16 in Kolkata before the showcase three days later.

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    West Indies will take a 181-run lead heading into day four of their opening Test against Bangladesh.

    Having dominated day two, West Indies turned in another excellent display on Sunday to further gain control of the match.

    After resuming on 40-2, Bangladesh saw Shahadat Hossain fall to Kemar Roach (1-30), but Mominul Haque did reach 50 before he was pinned lbw by Jayden Seales (2-42).

    Shamar Joseph dismissed Litton Das (40) soon after as the Windies bowlers stepped into their rhythm, and Mehidy Hasan Miraz (23) was soon sent packing by Alzarri Joseph, who grabbed his second wicket when he bowled Taijul Islam (18).

    However, that wicket came after Taijul had combined with Jaker Ali (53) to offer some resistance and ensured the tourists avoided the follow-on.

    Jaker was caught by Seales when attempting to slog Justin Greaves (2-34), with Taskin Ahmed (11 not out) and Shoriful Islam (five not out) guiding Bangladesh to 269-9 at stumps, chasing West Indies' first-innings total of 450.

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    It is all about hanging on now for Bangladesh, who have to somehow see out the next two days if they are to avoid a fifth straight Test defeat.

    West Indies, meanwhile, look all set to make it five Tests unbeaten at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua, where Bangladesh are out to avoid a third loss.

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    Justin Greaves hit an unbeaten century – his first red-ball ton – as West Indies ended day two of their first Test against Bangladesh with a commanding 410-run lead.

    Greaves resumed alongside Joshua Da Silva with West Indies 250-5 after day one in Antigua, eventually slamming 115 runs off 206 balls faced as the hosts established a dominant position.

    His steady knock ensured the Windies recovered nicely after slipping to 261-7 early on, while Kemar Roach hit a career-best 47 through four defiant hours at the crease.

    Hasan Mahmud took three day-two wickets for Bangladesh, including that of Roach, as his short delivery angled in to clip the top of middle stump.

    Windies skipper Kraigg Brathwaite declared to put Bangladesh at the crease late on, and there was no respite for the tourists against the hosts' four-man pace attack.

    Zakir Hasan fell to Jayden Seales for 15, while Mahmudul Hasan Joy edged Alzarri Joseph for five shortly after being dropped, leaving Bangladesh 40-2 at stumps.

    Data Debrief: Career-best for Greaves

    Greaves' unbeaten 115 marked his first century in Test cricket, surpassing his previous best knock – a score of 33 versus Australia in January – by some distance.

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    Stoinis, who was named player of the match, added: "Nice to score some runs on a beautiful wicket but credit to the bowlers who kept the total down.

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    During their white-ball tour, Pakistan won the ODI series, their first time doing so in Australia in 22 years, but got whitewashed in the T20Is.

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    "I think in the middle overs, we didn't capitalise on the start," he said. "But lots of positives.

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    "It's obviously a big achievement winning the ODI series, but we could have done much better in the T20Is."

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