Kane Williamson has no immediate desire to leave his role as New Zealand captain or the Black Caps' set-up, though he sees the appeal of big-money offers from elsewhere.

New Zealand face Australia in a three-match ODI series starting on Tuesday in Cairns, Queensland, looking to end a 13-year search for a 50-over win in the country.

They will do so without a key player in the form of Colin de Grandhomme, who last week announced his international retirement.

De Grandhomme's decision came after he had taken up an offer to play for the  Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash League, which clashed with his New Zealand duties.

Trent Boult, the world's best ODI bowler who has taken 36 per cent of the Black Caps' wickets when he has played in the format in 2022, is another player who has been released from his New Zealand Cricket central contract.

Paceman Boult is included in the 15-man squad to face Aaron Finch's side, but this year's T20 World Cup might well prove the 33-year-old's swansong on the international stage.

Williamson himself is no stranger to playing in lucrative competitions such as the Indian Premier League, having featured for Sunrisers Hyderabad since 2015.

However, the 32-year-old has no plans to call time on his New Zealand career as he aims to end a seven-match losing streak against Australia in the 50-over game.

"It's a tricky one because it is changing - so much seems to have happened so quickly," Williamson told reporters. "It does seem to be a movement in the landscape of the game.

"Every case is unique and every case has got their individual needs at different stages of their lives.

"There are a lot of different franchise events happening and seeing players make decisions on their playing careers, it suggests that there is a balance to strike and some things to work through.

"At the moment I'm very much here and looking to do my very best for the team. I love being involved in this environment."

The series is the first between the two rivals – who faced off in last year's T20 World Cup final – since the start of 2020, with only one match played on that occasion before New Zealand's team travelled home with borders closing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

There is not set to be another bilateral ODI series between the nations for the next four years.

While they have not lost an ODI on home soil to New Zealand since 2009, Australia will be looking to avoid back-to-back defeats at home for the first time since January 2019, following their shock three-wicket reverse at the hands of Zimbabwe last week, though they did at least win that series 2-1.

Finch's cause for concern

Australia's World Cup-winning captain is not in fine fettle. He scored just 21 runs across three innings against Zimbabwe and is going up against a fearsome bowling attack this time out.

Finch's record against New Zealand is nothing to shout about, either, with his 17.2 average from 10 ODIs the worst against any nation in the format. With the World Cup just around the corner, he will be desperate to hit his stride.

"Across his career, it's ebbed and flowed. His movement patterns sometimes early in his innings are compromised, whether that's through perceived pressure that he puts on himself or what the bowler does," head coach Andrew McDonald said of Finch's form. "We are working through it. He's working hard on his game."

Southee chasing a milestone

New Zealand have won nine of their 10 ODIs in 2022 (L1) – only Scotland (W12) and India (W11) have won more games this year.

In Boult and Southee, they have a brilliant bowling duo. The latter is three wickets away from becoming the fifth Black Cap to take 200 in the format, while if he achieves that in Tuesday's opener (his 147th ODI) he will be the second-quickest player to the landmark (after Kyle Mills – 135 matches).

Virat Kohli has revealed MS Dhoni was the only one of his current or former team-mates to reach out to him after he quit India's Test captaincy.

The top-order batsman, widely considered one of the finest cricketers of his generation, gave up the T20I armband last year following the World Cup, and subsequently lost ODI skipper duties to Rohit Sharma in December.

The moves came amid a turndown in his frequently prolific form, with his decision to relinquish the Test captaincy coming as the two-time ICC Men's Player of the Year sought to revive his fortunes.

That has led to a strong personal showing in the 2022 Asia Cup, where Kohli is the second top scorer with 154 runs through three innings.

But speaking after Sunday's loss to Pakistan, he has now revealed that only Dhoni, who retired from the international game in 2020, messaged him after he made the call to step down from the captaincy.

"Let me tell you one thing," Kohli stated. "When I left [the] Test captaincy, I got a message from only one person, with whom I had played previously [and] that was MS Dhoni.

"Many people have my number. On TV, people give lots of suggestions, people have a lot to say. But none of the people who had my number sent me a message.

"That respect [with Dhoni], that connection you have with someone, when it is genuine, it shows like this, because there is no insecurity with either of us.

"Neither does he [Dhoni] need anything from me, nor do I need anything from him. Neither of us suffers from insecurity. I can only say: if I want to say something to someone, I reach out to that person individually if I want to help.

"I mean, if you give the suggestions in front of the world, it has no value for me. If it is for my improvement, you can talk with me one-on-one, (tell me) that I genuinely want you to do well. I live life with a lot of honesty."

A captain’s knock from Deandra Dottin and bowling brilliance from Anisa Mohammed steered the Trinbago Knight Riders to a 10-run victory over Barbados Royals to see them crowned champions of the inaugural Massy Women’s Caribbean Premier League (WCPL).

With her team put into bat, it was the Knight Riders’ captain Dottin who shone, scoring the maiden half-century in WCPL history and helping her team to a defendable first innings score of 100-7.

Hayley Matthews was the pick of the Royals’ bowlers taking three wickets in the 19^th over to finish with 3/22 including the key wicket of Dottin.

 In response, Aaliyah Alleyne and Britney Cooper went early in the chase, while Matthews dug in and looked to be the key to leading her team home. But wickets fell around her and, when she went for 46, the run-chase was all but done.

 With just the tail to clean up, Knight Riders had the momentum and it was only fitting that Anisa Mohammed should take the final wicket and finish the game with 3-16 as her side cleaned up the Royals for 90. 

 With their male counterparts watching on and the eyes of the world on the game, it was a massive moment for the Trinbago Knight Riders and for women’s cricket after a ground-breaking tournament.

 When the Knight Riders were put into bat, it wasn’t the explosive start they might have hoped and just as the boundaries began to flow, Kirby was dismissed cheaply.

 Dottin and Sune Luus began to accelerate before Luus’ South African team-mate Chloe Tryon, who hadn’t yet bowled in the tournament, dismissed her national captain to put the Royals in the driver’s seat with the Knight Riders 43-2.

 In true Deandra Dottin style, the World Boss was the lynchpin of the innings, playing shots to all parts and bringing up her half-century from just 54 balls.

 Bragging rights went to her counterpart, Matthews who removed her for 59 off 62 in an over that also claimed the wickets of Kyshona Knight and Jannillea Glasgow.

 The Royals’ openers came out of the traps flying, reaching 14 from the first two overs but when Alleyne fell for 7 and Cooper soon after without scoring and the chase looked more tricky.

 When Tryon was stumped just as the rebuild was on, the game was in the balance and all hopes rode on Matthews with the Royals 36-3. 

 Wickets continued to tumble and the key moment came with 13 needed off 12 as Matthews couldn’t clear Glasgow at mid-wicket. She went for 46 leaving her team needing 12 from 10. 

 It was too much for the tail-enders facing the bowling of Anisa Mohammed, who cleaned up the tail sending Mandy Mangru’s bails flying.

 The Knight Riders, who lost the final of the inaugural SKYEXCH 6IXTY against the Barbados Royals, now have their payback. It was a phenomenal team performance led brilliantly by the power-hitting and elite display of batting from Deandra Dottin and a fitting finale for an incredible inaugural Massy Women’s CPL.

The Barbados Royals made it two wins from two with a comfortable DLS victory against Saint Lucia Kings in game six of the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) on Sunday.

The Kings won the toss and opted to field first hoping to take advantage of the effects of the inclement weather. However, that decision backfired somewhat as Kyle Mayers and Rahkeem Cornwall once again got off to a flyer in the PowerPlay.

The Kings managed to slow the innings down in the middle and back end with wickets at regular intervals but that did not stop the Royals from posting a very challenging 162-7.

In reply, the Kings chase was almost over before it began with Mayers removing the top order with a two-over spell of four wickets for four runs.

Rain threatened to end the match with a no result but DLS reset the total to 103 to win from 9 overs. Faf Du Plessis and Alzarri Joseph took the game down to the last over but ultimately fell short with the asking rate proving too much.

The tone for the Royals' victory was set with the power of their opening partnership. They raced to 49 runs before Cornwall was dismissed for 32 off 17 balls.

When Mayers departed for 36 with the scorecard reading 76-2 the Royals looked set for a huge total, however, between the 13th and 17th over no boundaries were scored and regular wickets fell to seemingly hand the Kings the advantage.

However late order hitting from David Miller and Joshua Bishop ensured a competitive total was set all the same.

Kyle Mayers was yet to bowl in this year's Hero (CPL) but when he was handed the ball at the beginning of the Kings innings, he produced a devastating two-over spell that ended the game as a contest.

His clever in-dippers cleaned up Johnson Charles and Roston Chase’s middle stump before also dismissing Mark Deyal and Roshon Primus to leave the Kings tottering at 10/4.

The rain came to offer some respite but when the players returned the Kings needed a highly improbable 93 runs from 30 balls.

Some enterprising hitting from Alzarri Joseph and Faf Du Plessis nearly pulled off an unlikely heist, but the equation proved too steep to overcome.

(Barbados Royals 162/7 (Mayers 36, Cornwall 32; Deyal 2/15, Joseph 2/31) beat Saint Lucia Kings 91/4 (Du Plessis 47*, Joseph 29*; Mayers 4/4) by 11 runs (DLS))

Mohammad Rizwan's stately half-century helped set the table for Pakistan to edge India with a ball to go in a thrilling five-wicket Asia Cup Super 4 victory.

Virat Kohli's tidy 60, ably supported by knocks of 28 for both KL Rahul and captain Rohit Sharma, had guided their side to 181-7 after they were put in to bat.

But their opponents edged them in a taut finale at Dubai International Stadium, with opener Rizwan forming the bedrock of their victory as they made 182-6 with only one ball left to go.

It served up sweet revenge for Saqlain Mushtaq's side, who lost by five wickets to India in their Asia Cup opener last month, with the result pushing them joint-top of the Super 4 stage with Sri Lanka.

Kohli, who scored a record-equaling fourth T20I century against Pakistan on the back of his 59 not out against them in August, will be left to rue what his side could have done.

India will next play Sri Lanka on September 6, after which Pakistan will face Afghanistan a day later on September 7.

Batting heroics from Qiana Joseph helped Barbados Royals book a spot in the Massy Women's Caribbean Premier League (WCPL) final against Trinbago Knight Riders after beating the Guyana Amazon Warriors by 4 wickets in a thrilling winner-takes-all game on Saturday.

St. Mary defeated St Elizabeth by seven wickets (D/L) to get their hands on the Kingston Wharves U15 Cricket Competition for the first time on Thursday at Sabina Park in Kingston.

St. Elizabeth was bowled out for 113 all in 31.5 overs in the low-scoring affair. The weather then intervened and based on the Duckworth/Lewis method, St. Mary only had to make 75 in 33 overs to win the match and they duly obliged.

Five of St. Elizabeth's players got into double figures but failed to capitalize. Jayden Shaw, 14; Adrian Silvera, 12; Shaaairi Jadoo, 12; Dimitri Binns, 11; and Odane Binns, 10; were the principal scorers but they were all outdone by 36 extras conceded by St. Mary.

Jevaughny Brown took 5-33 while Tedain Noyan, 2-18 and Dijon Taylor 2-20 were decisive in support.

St Elizabeth conceded 11 extras before any of St. Mary's batsmen got a run on the board as the bowlers struggled in the damp conditions.

They would eventually concede 31, making life that much easier for St Mary’s batters.

Opener Tyreece Saunders, 12, and Jevaughny Shim, 13, led the scoring for the victors.

Jahliel Smith, Adiran Silvera and Demitri Binns each took a wicket for St Elizabeth.

 St. Mary's Jevaughny Shim took home several awards; Most Wickets (23), MVP for St. Mary and final MVP for his five wickets for 33 and top score of 13.

“It’s been a very good competition, I have seen some good performances (and) I tell myself that I did well and I am looking forward to next year to start playing again," he said afterwards.

St. Elizabeth's Kevaun Brown, who scored 330 runs during the competition including a top score of 129, won the award for most runs scored.  He was also named the MVP for St. Elizabeth with 16 wickets along with his 330 runs.

David Dewar, the captain of Kensington Cricket Club was the best wicketkeeper in the competition with nine dismissals that included four stumpings.

Cricket Operations Manager at the Jamaica Cricket Association Oneil Cruickshank was pleased with the running of the tournament.

"It went much better than we expected,” he said.

“The performances that we saw coming out of this competition were very heart-warming.  We thought it may have been less but we saw a youngster scoring over 300 runs, one youngster taking over 23 wickets, and one young lady making a century.  When we put it all together it was a fantastic tournament.”

 Simone Murdock, Corporate Services and Client Experience Manager at Kingston Wharves was also pleased.

"Today's winner St. Mary is proof that we are moving the needle because it's St. Mary's first time with the trophy and we are so glad for them.  We are also celebrating with St. Elizabeth who is a consistent performer," she said.

Bangladesh wicketkeeper-batter Mushfiqur Rahim has announced his Twenty20 International retirement.

The 35-year-old has called time on his T20I career in order to "focus on Test and ODI formats of the game".

An Asia Cup defeat to Sri Lanka on Thursday will be Mushfiqur's 102nd and final appearance for his country in the shortest format.

He tweeted on Sunday: "Today, I am announcing my retirement from T20 Internationals.

"I will proudly continue to represent Bangladesh in Test and ODI formats. I am hopeful that I can bring success for our nation in these two formats. I will continue to take part in Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) and other franchise tournaments."

Mushfiqur's decision comes just over a month before the T20 World Cup gets under way in Australia.

He scored 1,500 T20I runs at an average of 19.48, taking 42 catches and finishing with 30 stumpings after making his debut back in November 2006.

Captain Rovman Powell played a gem of an innings to help his Jamaica Tallawahs secure their second win in the 2022 Caribbean Premier League with a four-wicket triumph over the Guyana Amazon Warriors at Warner Park in St. Kitts on Saturday.

The Tallawahs won the toss and decided to bowl first, restricting the Amazon Warriors to 142-6 from their 20 overs.

On a difficult pitch for batting, the Warriors endured a slow start to their innings, only mustering 71-3 by time the 15^th over was ready to be bowled.

They overcame that slow start thanks to crucial middle-order knocks from Shai Hope (25), captain Shimron Hetmyer (39), Romario Shepherd (36) and Heinrich Klaasen (22). Pakistani pacer Mohammad Amir took 3-22 from his four overs while South African Migael Pretorious took 2-35 from his four for the Tallawahs.

Captain Rovman Powell then played a masterful knock to help the Tallawahs achieve their target and get their second win of the season.

At one point, Powell had faced 12 balls for just three runs but ended up scoring 44 not out off 38 including just one four and four sixes, three of which came within the last two overs.

Brandon King also contributed 32 as the Tallawahs finished 143-6 off 19.2 overs.

West Indies batting great Brian Lara has replaced Tom Moody as head coach of Sunrisers Hyderabad for the 2023 IPL season, the franchise announced on Twitter on Saturday.

Lara was part of the SRH team management last season as a strategic advisor and batting consultant, and this will be his first assignment as a head coach of a T20 team.

As SRH Head Coach, Lara will be working alongside a star-studded support staff with South Africa pace legend Dale Steyn playing the role of bowling coach, while Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan is the franchise's spin-bowling and strategic coach.

He’ll have a difficult task on his hands in his new role as head coach as the past two years have been the worst in franchise's history. The Sunrisers finished at the bottom of the table in the previous edition, winning only 3 of their 14 matches.

Former West Indies captain Sir Richie Richardson admits he was surprised but honoured to receive recognition from the University of the West, which is poised to issue the retired cricketer with an honorary Doctor of Laws (LLD) award for his contribution to the sport of cricket.

Richardson, a former opening batsman, led the West Indies from 1991-1996 and scored 5,949 runs in 86 Tests and scored 6,248 runs in 224 One Day International (ODI) matches.  One of a handful of West Indies players that have been knighted, Richardson remains involved with the sport as he is now also an ICC match referee.

“The University of the West Indies is a very important institution to us as a Caribbean people and it’s ranked as one of the best universities in the region so for them to see the need to bestow such an honour on me, then I am deeply touched, honoured and I am very grateful,” Richardson told the Good Morning Jojo Radio Show.

“I was surprised to be honest because I never really expected it but when I realised that it was going to happen I was very excited and deeply honoured.”

US Ambassador to Jamaica Noah Nickolas Perry was inducted into the Cricket Hall of Fame during a brief ceremony at the Melbourne Cricket Club in Kingston on Friday.

Established in the United States in 1981, the Cricket Hall of Fame was set up to honour individuals who have contributed to the sustained growth and development of cricket in the United States and Canada and for individuals who have played at the international level who have had distinguished careers in the sport.

Ambassador Perry, who was born in Jamaica and attended Kingston College, through his work as a New York State Assemblyman, helped promote and sustain the growth of cricket in the USA during his illustrious career in that capacity.

The ambassador was gracious in acceptance of the recognition.

“I want to thank Ruby Harris-Singh, a neighbour and supporter in New York in my previous life as a politician and as a member of the New York State Assembly where I served for 30 years and honed a lot of public skills to support and work for the people, passing laws that impacted lives and with the intent to improve the quality of life but not forgetting that a part of the quality of life is the pleasure of being able to play sports you like,” he said, “and the game of cricket; I did everything I could to make sure that New York’s government recognized the importance of cricket to the Caribbean-American Diaspora and that we are given rights and privileges to use the public parks and public sites to play the game we love.”

He also thanked the Mayor of Kingston Delroy Williams and Melbourne Cricket Club President Mark Neita and Mike Chambers Executive Director of the Cricket Hall of Fame, and others who made the occasion possible.

“I am really honoured to be here and I want to thank the Cricket Hall of Fame for this recognition.”

Defending Caribbean Premier League champions St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots have now lost their first two games of the 2022 edition after suffering a 7-wicket defeat at the hands of the Barbados Royals at Warner Park on Thursday.

The Royals won the toss and elected to field first in the rain-shortened 17 overs-per-side fixture and restricted the Patriots to a respectable 149-8.

Opener Andre Fletcher was the star of the show for the hosts with a well-compiled 81 off 55 balls including 11 fours and a six. Jason Holder (2-21 from three overs) and Ramon Simmonds (2-28 from four overs) led with the ball for the Royals. Corbin Bosch was spectacular in the field with five catches, a CPL record.

The Royals then capitalized on a spectacular start from openers Rakheem Cornwall and Kyle Mayers to complete a relatively simple chase, reaching 150-3 off just 15.1 overs.

Cornwall compiled a brutal 25-ball 39 including three fours and three sixes while Mayers continued his scintillating form over the last few months with 73 from 46 balls including six fours and four sixes. Captain Dwayne Bravo took 2-33 from his four overs.

CPL action continues on Saturday with the Guyana Amazon Warriors playing the Jamaica Tallawahs before the Patriots tackle the Trinbago Knight Riders.

England will be without Jonny Bairstow for the Twenty20 World Cup after the batsman suffered a freak injury while playing golf.

Bairstow has been in stunning form for England in 2022 and was named in their T20 World Cup squad on Friday.

Yet he will now miss the series-deciding Test against South Africa and the tournament in Australia after sustaining what the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) described as a "lower limb injury".

England's statement confirmed Bairstow had suffered the injury while playing golf in Leeds on Friday, in what they labelled "a freak accident".

Bairstow will see a specialist next week but was immediately ruled out of action for the foreseeable future. 

Ben Duckett has been called up in his place for the Test match against South Africa, while England will name a replacement in their World Cup squad in due course.

Bairstow has been England's standout performer this year, scoring 1,344 runs across all formats, hitting five Test centuries in the process.

West Indies Women’s vice-captain Anisa Mohammed has decided to take a leave of absence from International Cricket for a period of six months.

Mohammed requested to take a break from the game with immediate effect, after a hectic year of cricket both home and away.

The 33-year old’s decision to take time away from cricket comes with the full support of Cricket West Indies (CWI). 

“Anisa has been a true stalwart of West Indies Women’s cricket for over a decade. We at CWI wish her well and will provide any support she may require during this period away from international cricket and look forward to welcoming her back in March,” said CWI’s Director of Cricket Jimmy Adams.

“Cricket has given me all that I have, and I still love it as much as the first day I started playing, therefore this decision was not an easy one for me, especially with the T20 World Cup five months away. However, I must listen to my body and my mind that I need to take time away from the game at this time. This is not a permanent goodbye but rather a see you soon. I wish the team all the best in all their forthcoming series, and I know Hayley will fulfil her role as captain, as I’ve seen her mature and grow as a person and cricketer,” said Mohammed.

Mohammed made her debut for the West Indies at the age of 13 at the Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifiers in Holland in 2003. She established herself as the premier spin bowler for the West Indies Women, going on to become the first cricketer, male or female, to take 100 T20I wickets and ultimately the leading wicket-taker in the format with 125 scalps.