West Indian batsman Sherfane Rutherford’s Peshawar Zalmi got their second win in the 2022 Pakistan Super League (PSL) with a nine-run victory over the Karachi Kings in Karachi Friday.

The Kings, led by the number-one-ranked T20 batsman in the world Babar Azam, won the toss and chose to field.

Peshawar posted 173-4 off their 20 overs thanks to a top score of 52 not out off 28 balls from Captain Shoaib Malik that included five fours and two sixes.

Afghanistan power hitter Hazratullah Zazai contributed a 27-ball 41 at the top of the innings while Rutherford ended not out on nine from four balls with one six.

Umaid Asif was the best bowler for the Kings with 3-36 from four overs.

Despite a well-compiled 90 not out off 63 balls from Azam, the Kings ended agonizingly short of their target finishing 164-6 off their 20 overs.

Babar’s knock included 12 fours and one six while Englishman Ian Cockbain was the next best contributor with 31 from 19 balls.

Mohammad Umar was the pick of the Zalmi bowlers with 3-22 from his four overs.

Peshawar Zalmi are now fourth in the points table with four points while the Karachi Kings have yet to register a point after registering their fourth loss in as many games.

Joe Root will continue as England's Test captain at least for the upcoming tour of the West Indies, interim managing director Andrew Strauss has confirmed.

Root's position as skipper was thought to be under threat in the wake of England's crushing 4-0 Ashes series defeat to Australia.

That embarrassment proved the final straw for much-maligned head coach Chris Silverwood and managing director Ashley Giles, who were both dismissed this week.

There have been plenty of calls from fans and pundits alike for Root to also be removed from his position, though it would appear he is safe for the time being.

In his first news conference since temporarily taking over from Giles, Strauss said: "Having spoken to [Root], it is absolutely clear the extent of his commitment to taking this England cricket team forward. He has got incredible motivation and energy to do that.

"He is bruised, hugely disappointed by what went on in the Ashes – that goes without saying and many others are in the same boat – but he has the respect of the players, they all play for him and obviously he sets a magnificent example both on and off the field.

"I'm very happy to give him my support, and make sure that we've got the right sort of structure around him to take the pressure off him and allow him to do his job on the pitch."

Graham Thorpe, who operated as Silverwood's assistant, has not been so fortunate.

A statement confirmed the former England batsman "has left his position" with immediate effect.

Strauss said: "I'd like to thank Graham for his work over many years on the England coaching staff and wish him the best for the future."

England are due to begin their three-Test tour of West Indies on March 8.

Chris Silverwood has been sacked as England's head coach following their dismal Ashes campaign, it has been confirmed.

An interim replacement will be appointed for the upcoming Test tour of the West Indies, which gets under way in Antigua on March 8. 

Silverwood's exit came a day after managing director of England men's cricket Ashley Giles left his post, with the decisions taken following an ECB review of performances in Australia. 

England succumbed to a 4-0 defeat to their Ashes rivals, with significant questions asked of their selections and batting. 

"During his time in the role, Chris has given absolutely everything to make a success of it. He is a man of great integrity, who players and staff alike have enjoyed working with," said ECB chief executive Tom Harrison. 

"Under Chris, England men's white ball teams have been ranked first and second in the world while he also led the Test team to a number of series wins including away in South Africa and Sri Lanka. 

"He has led the England men's team with great resilience and empathy through an incredibly challenging period for English cricket, and he deserves our sincere thanks and gratitude. 

"In the coming days Andrew Strauss will appoint a caretaker coach for the tour of the West Indies and will then consider the appropriate coaching structures to help England move forwards." 

Silverwood said: "It's been an absolute honour to be England head coach, and I'm extremely proud to have worked alongside our players and staff. I want to thank them all for the hard work and commitment they have given during my time in the role and I wish them all the very best moving forward. 

"The last two years have been very demanding but I have really enjoyed my time with the team and working with Rooty [Joe Root, Test captain] and Morgs [Eoin Morgan, white-ball captain], and I am very proud of this group considering the challenges. 

"I leave with fond memories and I am now looking forward to spending some quality time at home with my family and embracing the next chapter."

Silverwood had been in the role since October 2019, having replaced Cricket World Cup-winning coach Trevor Bayliss.

Chris Silverwood has been sacked as England's head coach following their dismal Ashes campaign, it has been confirmed.

South Africa have levelled their Women’s One-Day International series with the West Indies at 1-1 after securing a 96-run win in the third ODI at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg Thursday.

After winning the toss and batting first, South Africa put the West Indian bowlers to the sword to post their best total of the series, 299-8 off their 50 overs.

Opener Laura Wolvaardt dazzled with 117 off 123 balls including 11 fours and a six and captain Sune Luus contributed 56 off 93 balls.

Chloe Tryon provided some big hitting late in the innings with 42 from 24 balls including two fours and three sixes.

Shamilia Connell was the only bowler to have a good day for the West Indies with 4-54 off her 10 overs.

West Indies had to attempt their chase one batsman short as Chedean Nation, who got 35 in the second ODI, was unable to bat after picking up an injury in the field.

The batting was further handicapped when Captain Stafanie Taylor had to retire hurt for the second time in three games after being struck on the helmet by South Africa’s Nadine de Klerk early in the innings.

Eventually, despite a career-best 69 from 94 balls from Kycia Knight, the West Indies fell comfortably short of their target, finishing 203-9 off 43.5 overs.

Shabnim Ismail was the pick of the South African bowlers with 4-37 from 8.4 overs while Ayabonga Khaka took 2-27 off nine.

The decisive fourth ODI will take place on Sunday.

Left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein and allrounder Jason Holder have achieved career-best rankings in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings after helping the West Indies to a series-deciding 17-run victory in the fifth Betway T20 International against England at Kensington Oval last Sunday.

In the latest weekly update to the men’s rankings, which considers performances in the last three matches of the series, Hosein moved up 15 places to 18th position after a haul of 4-30 that helped him finish with six wickets in three matches.

“It’s not something I pay close attention to. However, when I play or train, it’s always about aiming to become the best,” Hosein said while speaking with CWI Media.

“It’s about having that mindset of wanting to improve and wanting to be at the top, so definitely it is an aspiration of mine to be the number one bowler in the world someday. Therefore, this move means a lot to me. It shows that my hard work is paying off and that I will be rewarded if I perform well. It’s definitely a good feeling.”

Holder was the star performer with the unique feat of grabbing four wickets in four balls in front of his home crowd. He finished with figures of 5-27 – the best in a T20I at the historic venue. This took his tally to nine wickets in those three matches, as he advanced three places to 23rd with a massive gain of 20 rating points. Overall, he took 15 wickets in the five matches, a new record for the most in a bilateral series, and was named the Player-of-the-Series.

Left-arm pacer Sheldon Cottrell (up 10 places to 31st) is another West Indies bowler to move up in Wednesday’s update while England spinner Moeen Ali (up three places to 32nd) and Liam Livingston (up 33 places to 68th) have also advanced.

In the ranking for batters, Nicholas Pooran is up eight places to 18th after scoring 113 runs in the three matches including a knock of 70, while opener Brandon King (up 25 places to 58th) and West Indies captain Kieron Pollard (up 15 places to 60th) have also advanced. King made a stylish 52 not out in the first match as West Indies won easily, while Pollard had a crucial 41 not out off 25 balls in the final match.

“This definitely means a lot to me, because I put a lot of work into my craft. I work day in and day out, so moving up the rankings is important. The ultimate goal is to be the best. I do pay attention to it (the rankings) because it is a good way to track your growth,” Pooran said.

Rovman Powell made the most of his return to the team with a brilliant 107 in the third matchmaking him the third West Indian to record a century in this format. He followed up with 35 not out off 17 balls in the last game.

Speaking at the end of the enthralling series, West Indies assistant coach Roddy Estwick said the improvement shown was extremely pleasing.

“After the last couple of months that we’ve had, it’s really pleasing that we’ve won a series. Improvement for me is actually more important than winning the series because you’ve got to focus on getting to the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 and doing a lot better than we did in the last one,” he said.

“The crowds coming back to the stadium is very important. The players were a lot freer this time around. The bubble was still there but a lot more relaxed and you could see the players responding to it so credit to the medical staff of the Cricket West Indies.

“Akeal Hosein was really brilliant for us when the chips were down along with Fabian Allen. They turned the tide, put England under pressure, continued to get wickets and that’s all we can ask, that people put their hands up when they need to and lead and fight and battle.”

India secured a comprehensive 96-run win over Australia at the Coolidge Cricket Ground on Wednesday to set up an encounter with England in the final of the ICC Men’s Under-19 Cricket World Cup on Saturday.

After winning the toss and batting first on a batting-friendly pitch, the Indians made good use of their opportunity to post 290-5 off their 50 overs.

Captain Yash Dhull was the star with a stroke-filled 110 off 110 balls with 10 fours and a six while Shaik Rasheed supported his skipper well with a well-made 94 off 108 balls with eight fours and a six.

Australia’s bowling unit didn’t have much success with Jack Nisbet and William Salzmann being the only wicket-takers with 2-41 from nine overs and 2-57 from 10 overs, respectively.

Lachlan Shaw was Australia’s main run-scorer in a futile chase with 51 while Corey Miller got 38.

Campbell Kellaway was the only other Australian batsman to get to 30 as the Aussies were routed for 194 in just 41.2 overs.

Vicky Ostwal was the pick of the Indian bowlers with 3-42 from his 10 overs while Nishant Sandhi and Ravi Kumar took two wickets each.

The final between India and England will take place at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Saturday while Afghanistan and Australia will contest the 3^rd place playoff on Friday at the Coolidge Cricket Ground.

India are four-time winners of the event (2000, 2008, 2012, 2018) while England’s only title came in 1998.

Ashley Giles has left his position as the managing director of England men's cricket following a shambolic Ashes showing from the Test team. 

England's Ashes campaign was effectively over after just 12 days of cricket in Australia, with some woeful batting and questionable selections coming amid a 4-0 loss. 

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) met this week to review England's performances and Giles, who spent three years in his position, has been dispensed with. 

Head coach Chris Silverwood and batting coach Graeme Thorpe are also under pressure, with ECB chief executive Tom Harrison suggesting that large scale change is needed. 

"I'm extremely grateful to Ashley for his commitment and contribution to England men's cricket over the last three years," Harrison said in a statement. 

"Under his leadership the teams have scored some notable results, most memorably the dramatic victory in the 2019 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup, while dealing with some of the most challenging times English cricket has ever been through. 

"He's highly respected throughout the game and has made a huge contribution to the ECB and England men's cricket. 

"Off the back of a disappointing men's Ashes this winter we must ensure we put in place the conditions across our game to enable our Test team to succeed." 

Giles said: "I'd like to thank everyone for the support they've given me, particularly all the staff and the players, as well as the board for giving me this opportunity. 

"The past couple of years have been incredibly challenging and I'm proud of what we've been able to deliver in the toughest of circumstances. This has undoubtedly protected the future of the game in England and Wales. 

"Despite these challenges, over the past three years, we have become 50-over world champions, the top ranked T20I side in the world, we remain the fourth-ranked Test team and our Under-19s have just reached the World Cup final for the first time in 24 years. I wish all our players and staff great success for the future. 

"I'm now looking forward to spending some time with my family before looking at the next challenge." 

Cricket West Indies (CWI) has paid tribute to Easton McMorris, who passed away on Tuesday. The former Jamaica captain and West Indies batsman was 86.

 McMorris made his Test debut for West Indies against Pakistan at Queen's Park Oval in 1958 in a team alongside Sir Everton Weekes, Sir Garry Sobers and Sir Conrad Hunte. He played 13 Test matches and scored one century – 125 against India at Sabina Park in 1962.

“I had the privilege to engage with Mr McMorris on a few occasions over the years. I found him to be an encouraging and selfless gentleman. On behalf of CWI, I want to send condolences to his family and the entire cricket fraternity in Jamaica,” said CWI President Ricky Skerritt.

“Easton was a true stalwart of the game and contributed significantly at all levels, on and off the field. He was a leader at the Lucas Cricket Club, carrying on the legacy established by the great George Headley. After retirement from playing, he gave yeoman service as a board member of the Jamaica Cricket Association and manager of the Jamaica cricket team.”

McMorris was an outstanding captain for Jamaica, including winning the much-coveted Shell Shield, and he was a steady performer for West Indies in Test cricket. As a captain, McMorris led from the front. He was an astute thinker of the game, a shrewd tactician and was respected by his teammates and opponents. He was a very determined batsman, who valued his wicket. The region has lost a true and life-long servant of the game.

-

The West Indies will head back to the silence of an empty stadium for part of its tour of India following the announcement that the upcoming One Day International series will be played behind closed doors.

In addition to the cricket, the West Indies most recently concluded series against England looked like a rollicking good time.  Vaccinated spectators were allowed to enter the Kensington Oval and added plenty to the atmosphere.

The team’s tour of India will begin with three One Day International’s at the Narendra Modi Stadium, scheduled between February 6 to 11.  The Gujarat Cricket Association, however, confirmed that due to the current situation with the Covid-19 pandemic the match will be played behind closed doors.

“We are all set to host West Indies Tour of India ODI Series 2022. 1st ODI on 6th of Feb will be a very special and historic match as India will be playing it’s 1000th ODI. The Indian team will be the first cricket team in the world to achieve this feat. @BCCI #INDvsWI #teamindia,” the GCA said via its official Twitter account.

“Considering the current situation, all the matches will be played behind the closed doors,” the state cricket body said in another tweet.

Following the ODI series, the teams will play a three-match T20 International series in Kolkata, for which the West Bengal government has allowed 75 percent crowd attendance.

England advanced to the final of the ICC Men’s Under-19 Cricket World Cup with a nail-biting 15-run win over Afghanistan in their Super League semi-final at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Grounds in Antigua today.

In the rain-affected 47-overs per side encounter, England set a score of 231-6 off their 47 overs.

George Bell with 56 not out off 67 balls and Alex Horton with 53 not out off 36 balls were the main contributors for the English.

Opener George Thomas also got a half-century for England, 50 off 69 balls.

Naveed Zadran and Noor Ahmad took two wickets each for Afghanistan.

Afghanistan looked comfortable for the majority of their chase, reaching 94-2 in the 24th over before a flurry of wickets put them in a spot of bother.

The Asian outfit continued to battle and found themselves needing 18 off two overs with four wickets in hand before England leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed took three wickets in the penultimate and 46th over to pretty much end all hopes for the Afghans.

Eventually, Afghanistan ended 215-9 off their 47 overs.

Allah Noor with 60 and Mohammad Ishaq with 43 were the top scorers for Afghanistan against Ahmed’s 4-41 off six overs.

England will now face the winners of tomorrow’s second semi-final between Australia and India in the final to be played on February 5th.

Windies skipper Kieron Pollard had plenty of reasons to strike an unmistakably defiant tone after a hard-fought series win over England at the Kensington Oval on Sunday.

The victory will have gone some way in easing the pressure faced by both the captain and the team itself following an anemic performance at the T20 World Cup and a shock loss to Ireland in its most recent One Day International series.

During the England series, the West Indies were once again put in a negative spotlight as rumours of player victimization, pertaining to fast bowler Odean Smith came to the surface.

A performance against world number one England, albeit an understrength unit, and particularly one where so many players put in exceptional performances, was timely.  The fact did not escape Pollard.

“Every single one in the dressing room, we rallied together through everything.  Every time we won a game there was something negative against us, but we came out and the guys really won it,” Pollard said after briefly opening with his own rendition of a verse from the popular Jamaica dancehall artist.

“Empty vessels make the most noise.  The guys have worked tirelessly, when we came back from Jamaica our heads were down.  We had conversations in the dressing room regarding how we wanted to play the cricket and I think the guys bounced back pretty well,” he added.

“It’s one series but we have been on the losing end of a lot of series and a lot of games and you have to take this one.  The guys needed an opportunity to just free up themselves and enjoy themselves for a couple of games.”

Particularly pleasing for the team would have been the performance of former captain Jason Holder who claimed man of the series following a virtuoso performance just months after being controversially left out of the 15-man T20 World Cup starting team.

West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell took three wickets to help Minister Group Dhaka defeat Comilla Victorians in the Bangladesh Premier League today in Chattogram.

After Comilla won the toss and elected to field first, a half-century from Dhaka captain Mahmudullah, as well as 46 from Tamim Iqbal, helped Minister Group Dhaka put up a score of 181-6 off their 20 overs.

Russell contributed 11 off seven balls late in the innings.

In Comilla Victorians chase, Mahudul Hasan Joy (46) and captain Imrul Kayes (28) tried to make a fight of it. However, Russell’s 3-17, from 2.3 overs, alongside two wickets each from Qais Ahmed and Ebadot Hossain meant that the Victorians would be bowled out for just 131, losing the match by 50 runs.

Comilla Victorians and Minister Group Dhaka are now second and third in the table, respectively, with six points each.

West Indies Under-19s secured an eight-wicket win over Zimbabwe Under-19s to finish 11^th in the ICC Men’s Under-19 Cricket World Cup on Monday.

In the match played at the Diego Martin Sports Complex in Trinidad and Tobago, Zimbabwe Under-19s won the toss and elected to bat first.

This proved to be a good decision as they batted well to amass 256-4 off their 50 overs thanks to half-centuries from David Bennett who made 77 not out off 105 balls and Brian Bennett, who made 62 off 84 balls. Connor Mitchell provided the Zimbabweans with an important late innings push with 42 not out off 26 balls.

Johann Layne took 2-44 off seven overs for the West Indies.

A pair of stunning innings from Kevin Wickham and Teddy Bishop ensured the West Indies chased their target without much trouble.

Wickham scored a well-played 104 off 116 balls with 17 fours.

The 18-year-old Barbadian, who was originally one of the reserves for the squad, got his third score of 50 or more in four matches in the tournament after getting 56 against Sri Lanka and 61 against Papua New Guinea.

Bishop got the second hundred of the innings and third for the West Indies in the tournament with a brilliant 112 not out off 121 balls with 11 fours and one six.

Rivaldo Clarke got 28 not out and was at the crease with Bishop when the young Windies eventually got to 262-2 off 49.2 overs to seal the win.

Wickham, with 243 runs in four innings including one hundred and two fifties, was the West Indies leading runs scorer while pace bowler Shiva Sankar was the team’s leading wicket-taker with nine scalps in six matches.

West Indies Women secured a nine-run super over win over South Africa Women in the second ODI at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg Monday.

The tourists lead the four-match series 1-0 after the first ODI ended in a no result.

On Monday, the match was reduced to 41 overs per side after a rain delay.

After winning the toss and electing to field, West Indies women had a solid outing with the ball to restrict the hosts to 160 all out in 40.4 overs.

South African captain Sune Luus top-scored with 46 while openers Laura Volvaardt and Tazmin Brits got 25 each.

All five bowlers used by the West Indies got two wickets each with Hayley Matthews being the most economical with 2-21 from 7.4 overs.

In a chase that should have been simple, the West Indies made it complicated by losing wickets in bunches.

Deandra Dottin followed up her magnificent 150 not out in the first ODI with a top-score of 37 while Chadean Nation contributed 35.

Chinelle Henry (26) and captain Stafanie Taylor (21) were the other key contributors with the bat.

The Windies had a chance to win the match before the super over when Nation and Shakera Selman were at the crease in the 37^th over needing just three runs to win.

Nation was then dismissed leaving Selman and new batter Karishma Ramharack needing three runs to win.

Ramharack and Selman each then got singles to leave just one run to win before Selman was trapped in front by pacer Shabnim Ismail for 11 to leave the Windies 160 all out from 37.4 overs.

Ayabonga Khaka was the pick of the South African bowlers with an excellent 5-26 from her eight overs while captain Luus supported well with 2-15 from seven overs.

West Indies batted first in the super over with Dottin and Matthews striding to the crease to face Ismail.

Some clean hitting from the pair meant the West Indies produced an intimidating 25 off their super over, leaving the hosts needing 26 to win.

Matthews then bowled the super over for the tourists and restricted the South African pair of Chloe Tryon and Tazmin Brits to 17 to secure a 9-run win and a 1-0 series lead.

The third ODI will take place on Thursday.