Iconic names in Caribbean cricket Rohan Kanhai and Joseph ‘Reds’ Perreira are to receive honorary Doctorates from the University of Guyana (UG) in Berbice later this month.

Kanhai, the 87-year-old former world batting star and West Indies captain and Perreira, 84, will receive their awards at the UG Tain Campus on November 18.

Kanhai, who was part of the West Indian team that won the inaugural 1975 Cricket World Cup, scored 6,227 runs in Test cricket at an average of 47.53, with his highest score of 256 coming against India in a Test at Calcutta.

Perreira has over 50 years of service to sports broadcasting. He was on commentary for 151 Test matches and was also a popular voice on radio with Boxing, Football, Hockey, Table Tennis, Basketball, Netball and Motor Racing.

Perreira, also a former President of the Guyana Football and Basketball Associations, moved to St Lucia to establish and head the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) sports desk. He did the job for 12 years.

Dawid Malan knows that change is coming after England’s World Cup blowout and is realistic enough to accept that he could be swept away by the tide.

Malan has been one of the side’s strongest performers during a ragged title defence in India, scoring 373 runs at an average of 46.52, but at 36 years old looks vulnerable to a post-tournament cull.

A team loaded with thirty-somethings, including eight world champions from 2019, is likely to be broken up after one last outing against Pakistan at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens on Saturday, with the selectors set to look to the future.

Malan has more reason than most to resist. He spent years fighting for his opportunity and has put together an exceptional set of statistics in just 29 caps – only India’s Shubman Gill has ever scored more ODI runs with a better average and strike-rate – but is phlegmatic about his fate.

“Tomorrow could be my last game of cricket for England or it could still be the start of another journey. Who knows? We’ll only find out when the dust settles,” he said.

“I’m the second oldest in the squad…you’re quite realistic when you get to a certain stage. I don’t know what my future holds.

“Playing for England means everything for me. I’ve made no secret of that, I’ve always wanted to be part of this team for as long as I can but ultimately you get to a stage where you have to look a little bit further ahead and what’s best for the team. I guess there’s decisions to be made over the next couple of days and we’ll see where we end up.”

Malan last month signed a new one-year central contract which covers next summer’s T20 World Cup in the Caribbean and United States. But England’s desire for a fresh direction could prompt action in the shorter format too, and Malan hopes to get a clearer idea of his position from director of cricket Rob Key, who has just linked back up with the squad.

He is overseeing squad selection for the forthcoming tour of the West Indies and could also find himself in demand among players eager to find out where they stand.

“There could be a total overhaul for both (white-ball formats),” Malan said.

“I’ll probably have a chat with Rob in the next couple of days before I fly out, just to find out how he sees it and the direction he wants to go in. As long as people are honest, you can take that. And I’m pretty sure he will be. It’s been the hallmark of him since he’s taken over.”

When the fixtures were first released for the tournament, a final group game England versus Pakistan would have been highlighted as a contest with plenty of interest hanging on it ahead of the semi-finals.

Instead, it could prove a hollow excursion. England are only really playing for a place at the Champions Trophy in 18 months – which could be theirs even in defeat – while Pakistan need a historically ridiculous margin of victory to reach the knockouts.

“There’s massive regret from us all that we haven’t been able to perform as well as we would have liked,” Malan said of a campaign comprising six defeats and two wins.

“We’d have loved to be here at the business end, replicating what that fantastic team did in 2019 and what we did in the T20 World Cup in 2022, but it just hasn’t been like that and I think as a group reflecting on it, we’re extremely disappointed.”

England could hand Brydon Carse a first appearance of the tournament, with the Durham seamer one of those with a role to play in the rebuild, while Harry Brook should keep his place as a torch-bearer of the coming generation.

Malan is certain Brook is on course for a glittering future but urged against weighing his 24-year-old Yorkshire team-mate down with expectation.

“I feel like there’s been so much pressure put on Harry’s shoulders, almost as if he was the saviour of English cricket,” he said.

“The poor kid is still learning his way and he’s still trying to find his feet in international cricket and learn his game. Hopefully he learns from this as well and from all the pressure that’s been put on his shoulders, and he can find a way to keep getting better because I think he’s an exceptional talent.

“I can see him playing 100 games for England across all formats of the game and I hope he does. Harry is one of the quickest learners I’ve seen as a young player and hopefully he can keep learning and hit those heights that we all know he’s capable of achieving.”

West Indies captain Hayley Matthews has been rewarded for her superb recent form by being crowned the ICC Women's Player of the Month award for October 2023.

Matthews held off determined challenges from Bangladesh spinner Nahida Akter and New Zealand all-rounder Amelia Kerr to claim the award, after a dominant period of play against Australia during the month.

The 25-year-old smashed scores of 99*, 132 and 79 in a Player of the Series performance during the T20I component of the West Indies' tour of Australia

Matthews also chipped in with an excellent spell of 3-36 during the second match of that three-game series to help the Caribbean side to a memorable victory.

The all-rounder then backed up those efforts with strong contributions during the ODI leg of the Australia tour, with scores of 20 and 23 during the two completed 50-over contests to cap off a huge month for the West Indies star.

Matthews remained Down Under following the series to compete in the domestic WBBL competition and was thrilled to accept her award from Australia.

“I’m very grateful to have received the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award for October," Matthews said.

"I love pulling on the West Indies jersey. Every time I do wear that maroon and gold, it definitely adds an extra layer where you can go out there and perform well, not only for yourself and for the team, but in knowing how much cricket means to the people of the Caribbean and how much it can bring people together.

“It was pretty special going out there in Australia and being able to perform the way that I did, but knowing how many people’s faces I was able to put a smile on back home in the Caribbean, that’s what means the most to me.”

The Leeward Islands Hurricanes and the Trinidad & Tobago Red Force will contest the final of the 2023 CG United Super50 Cup after the Hurricanes booked their spot with a dominant 155-run win over the Barbados Pride at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy on Thursday.

The Hurricanes won the toss and chose to bat first, posting a formidable 290 all out off 49.4 overs thanks to half centuries from Jahmar Hamilton, Justin Greaves and Hayden Walsh Jr.

Hamilton top scored with a 61-ball 76, his third fifty of the competition, including six fours and four sixes while Greaves, the leading run-scorer in the tournament, got his fourth consecutive 50-plus score with 63 off 76 balls including five fours.

Walsh Jr, batting at number eight, got his second fifty of the tournament with a rapid 45-ball 57 including one four and five sixes to propel the Hurricanes to their massive total.

Off-spinner Kemar Smith, brother of former West Indies batsman Dwayne Smith, got his maiden five-wicket haul for the Pride with 5-43 off his 10 overs. Dominic Drakes and Raymon Reifer provided good support with two wickets, each.

The Pride reply got off to the worst possible start when Hurricanes skipper Alzarri Joseph bowled destructive opener Kyle Mayers off the second ball of the innings for four.

Barbados then quickly lost the wickets of Zachary McCaskie (6), Shai Hope (19), Shamarh Brooks (13) and Kraigg Brathwaite (11) to find themselves reeling at 61-5 in the 13^th over.

Roston Chase tried his best to restore some order to the innings with a fighting 36-ball 35 but it wasn’t enough as the Pride were eventually bowled out for 135 in just 30.2 overs.

Joseph was brilliant up from with the new ball for the Hurricanes with 3-30 from his five overs while left-arm spinner Daniel Doram continued his own good form with 3-33 from his 10 overs. Kofi James (2-36 from seven) and Hayden Walsh Jr (2-13 from 3.2) also bowled well to seal the win.

This is the Leeward Islands Hurricanes’ first trip to the final of the Super50 Cup since 2019 where they lost to the West Indies Emerging Players while this is the Red Force’s third straight trip to the final.

They won the title in 2021 against the Guyana Harpy Eagles before losing the final to the Jamaica Scorpions last year.

The final will take place at the same venue on Saturday.

The Hurricanes and the Red Force previously met in the fourth round of this year's tournament with the Red Force winning that game by three wickets.

The Hayley Matthews led Melbourne Renegades slumped to their sixth loss in a row and seventh in eight games in the 2023 Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) after a six-wicket defeat at the hands of the Adelaide Strikers at the Karen Rolton Oval on Wednesday.

Jess Duffin hit 54 and Harmanpreet Kaur 45 as the Renegades made 148-5 off their 20 overs after winning the toss and batting first.

Tammy Beaumont also contributed 26 at the top while skipper Matthews made a first ball duck, continuing a lean run of form so far this season with just one score over 30 in her eight innings.

The five wickets were shared among five different Strikers bowlers.

Katie Mack (24), Laura Woldvaart (28), Tahlia McGrath (26), Bridget Patterson (36) and Danielle Gibson (17) then all got starts to help the Strikers reach 149-4 off 19 overs.

Georgia Prestwidge took 2-19 from her four overs while Matthews took 1-24 from her three overs.

The Renegades will next take on the Perth Scorchers on Saturday.

Ben Stokes says he has “no idea” if England’s final World Cup outing will also be his farewell to one-day internationals.

Stokes retired from the 50-over format in 2022 citing an unsustainable workload, only to be tempted back to take part in England’s title defence.

Things have veered badly off script since he arrived in India, where he missed the first three matches with a hip injury and was unable to stop his side crashing out after six defeats from seven games.

But the man who did more than anyone to make England world champions at Lord’s four years ago offered a reminder of his talents with a match-winning century against the Netherlands on Wednesday.

England were grateful Stokes did not bring forward an upcoming knee operation once the semi-finals were out of reach – a notion he rejected out of hand with the mantra “never leave early, never take the easy way out, never leave your team-mates hanging” – but Saturday’s engagement with Pakistan will surely be his last stand.

With his primary focus on his role as Test captain, a T20 World Cup next summer and a period of post-surgery rehabilitation coming up, he is already being stretched thin.

But, asked directly if he was set for a second retirement, he kept his cards close to his chest.

“I’ve no idea,” he said.

“I’m sure there will be a conversation but I don’t know when that will be. I have used the time between games here to give myself a better opportunity after the surgery.

“All the work in the gym doesn’t compare to what you go through out there. I’m looking forward to getting it sorted and not having to worry like I have these past 18 months. From a physical point of view I’m better off than when I first got out here, but physical fitness and cricket fitness are two different things.”

Stokes had hoped to add another triumphant chapter to his World Cup story, adding to his starring roles in the 2019 final and the T20 success in Melbourne last autumn, but is now playing for a significantly lesser prize.

A 160-run win over the Dutch put England back on track to qualify for the 2025 Champions Trophy, with a top-eight finish needed to book their place at the competition.

Victory over semi-final hopefuls Pakistan should be enough to make it official and, even if that gets Stokes’ competitive juices flowing again, he will be leaving unfulfilled.

“If I’m there or not – who knows – I don’t think leaving here there’s any satisfaction for anyone to be honest, it’s been a very disappointing World Cup,” he said.

“We know we have performed nowhere near as well as we should have done at this World Cup. It was bittersweet to walk off with a victory because everything feels a lot better but we’re still very disappointed with how we’ve gone as a side.

“Unfortunately it’s not happened for us but we know how big this Pakistan game is. They are a quality team and we know the threat they pose to every team before a ball is bowled.

“There’s one massive game left for the future, with another tournament coming up. It’s not just a game to finish off a World Cup then go home, we’d love to leave with a winning feeling.”

West Indian batting great Viv Richards has heaped praise onto Indian superstar Virat Kohli after his stunning performances, so far, in this year’s ICC Cricket World Cup in India.

While highlighting a number of stars at the tournament so far, including the likes of Australia’s Glenn Maxwell, New Zealand’s Rachin Ravindra and South Africa’s Quinton De Kock and Aiden Markram, Richards singled out Kohli as his standout performer at the world’s greatest cricket showcase.

“There have been a whole host of talented individuals on show but to top them all, you cannot look past Virat Kohli,” Richards said.

“I am a huge fan of Virat, I have been for a long time, and he continues to show why he has to go down as one of the all-time greats, right up there with the likes of the great Sachin,” he added.

Kohli, who turned 35 during the tournament, is currently third on the leading run-scorers table behind Ravindra and De Kock with 543 runs from eight innings with two centuries and four fifties at an average of 108.60.

His last hundred, an unbeaten 101* against South Africa, saw him equal the great Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 49 ODI centuries.

It hasn’t been all smooth sailing for Kohli in recent times, however.

From December 2019 to December last year, Kohli only recorded one international hundred, 122* in a T20I in the Asia Cup against Afghanistan in Dubai in September 2022.

His form has since returned back to normal, with seven hundreds between December 2022 and now.

“Virat will have been through some tough times before this World Cup and some folks were even brave enough to call for his head,” Richards acknowledged.

“Credit must be given to the backroom staff and everyone who backed him. So much was said about his form but he is back on top of his game. It is phenomenal to see an individual who has had his low points bouncing back and playing like this. They say form is temporary – and he has certainly proven that class is permanent. I am so happy for him, he looks so focused and he is a credit to the game of cricket,” Richards added.

Richards then credited Kohli’s mental strength as what sets him apart from the rest, noting the many comparisons made between the two over the years.

“Virat is a go-getter and what sets him apart is his mental strength. He will have backed himself throughout, and on the occasions in the past in which I have chatted with him and we have discussed things, his mental strength has always been evident. That has been key to pushing him through to how he is playing now. Very few players, or people, are built like that,” he said.

“Many people have made comparisons between the two of us over the years, partly because of our shared intensity on the field. I love Virat’s enthusiasm – even if he is fielding at long-on or long-off, when one of his bowlers hits the pad, he is appealing. He is always in the game and I like individuals like that,” Richards added.

India are the form team in this year’s tournament and are currently unbeaten through eight games in the league phase and Richards believes that if they play the same way, there’s no stopping them in pursuit of their third World Cup title.

“In terms of this year’s competition, India have a mindset that they can go all the way playing like this. That absolutely should be their mindset and would be mine if I was in that dressing room – let’s go out with all guns blazing. That approach has worked so far and if that changes, things may go astray,” he said.

“I believe they can go all the way unbeaten, which is really something to strive for. There may be some fears of ‘we have played so well so far, there may be a bad game around the corner in the semi-final’. They have to try and nullify those and banish any negative thoughts,” Richards added.

Michael Vaughan has urged England’s World Cup squad to leave a farewell present for the next generation by securing a place at the Champions Trophy.

Major changes are expected at the end of the desperately-disappointing campaign for the reigning champions, with a host of big-name veterans likely to depart the ODI scene, but there is still one more job to do.

Victory over the Netherlands in Pune ended a five-game losing streak and put England back in the frame for the top-eight finish they need to book a spot at the format’s next global event in 2025.

Semi-final hopefuls Pakistan await in Kolkata on Saturday and former captain Vaughan believes England’s men in possession must do everything they can to pave the way for those who will take the team forward.

“This team needs to be reset. Younger players need to come into it and there’s many of old guys, the 2019 World Cup winners that will probably get moved on,” he told BBC Sport’s Test Match Special.

“It’s their duty as a set of players in this World Cup, they’ve got to give the next generation a Champions Trophy in 2025.

“That four-year cycle is so important. When you’re resetting and developing a team, you need that tournament mentality to test your skills, test players within it, test the different roles.

“It’s so important this team wins on Saturday, gets to six points and gets into the Champions Trophy. It’s pivotal.”

The renewal of the side will begin in haste, with a white-ball tour of the West Indies in December and a fresh roster of faces set to get the call.

Vaughan picked out a handful of names he expects to be in that group and wants England to keep them together for an extended period with a view to the next World Cup in 2027.

“We’re not going to see a complete overhaul but many players are going to come in, Ben Duckett, Rehan Ahmed, Jamie Smith, Will Jacks, Phil Salt….they deserve the chance that the team had in 2015.

“There was a four-year cycle where they stuck with a load of aggressive players and they played together for pretty much 80-odd games. They arrived in 2019 with fully defined roles and that’s what the next set needs.”

Last year’s beaten finalist Trinidad and Tobago Red Force will take their unbeaten record into the CG United Super50 Cup final, following a convincing six-wicket victory over Guyana Harpy Eagles in a lopsided semi-final encounter at Brian Lara Cricket Academy on Wednesday.

Darren Bravo won the toss and sent Harpy Eagles in to bat, a decision which proved fruitful, as Red Force restricted the opponents to a paltry 105 inside 35 overs, and the captain later added an unbeaten 53 to easily surpass the target at 107-4 well inside 30 overs.

Bravo’s patient 70-ball 53, included eight boundaries.

Scores: Guyana Harpy Eagles 105 all out (34.3 overs); Trinidad and Tobago Red Force 107-4 (27.4 overs)

Despite the many talents in Harpy Eagles’s batting line up, they have really failed to spark throughout the campaign, and this crucial semi-final encounter again served up a dismal display.

With the exception of Sherfane Rutherford (30) and Tagenarine Chanderpaul (22), no other batsman got into double figures, as Terrance Hinds ran through the top order, and they never recovered.

The 31-year-old right-arm medium pacer snared 4-15 in a mere four overs, while spinner Yannic Cariah had 2-14 in 2.3 overs.

With very little runs on the board, Red Force’s chase started steadily, but Harpy Eagles sensed a glimmer of hope when Veerasammy Permaul had Tion Webster (10) trapped in front with the score at 25-1.

Kjorn Ottley and Bravo added 58 for the second wicket to balance things out, before the former went leg-before-wicket to Gudakesh Motie. Ottley’s innings of 35 of 59 balls, included five boundaries.

Though Nicholas Pooran (three) and Jason Mohammed (zero) fell in quick succession to Motie leaving the score at 89-4, Bravo remained steady, and with Cariah, unbeaten on five, holding the other end, saw Red Force to a second-consecutive final.

Motie ended with 3-20 in seven overs.

The second semi-final between Leeward Island Hurricanes and Barbados Pride will be contested at the same venue on Thursday.

Jos Buttler is keen to stay on as captain and lead England’s ODI rebuild as he prepares for a World Cup post-mortem with director of cricket Rob Key.

Key has flown out to India for the second time, having been part of the touring party earlier in the tournament, and will begin the process of picking the bones out of a miserable title defence with Buttler and head coach Matthew Mott in the coming days.

A 160-run win over Netherlands in Pune on Wednesday gives them something positive to talk about after five successive defeats and put England back on track for Champions Trophy qualification in 2025 ahead of their final game against Pakistan.

There have been questions over the leadership of the side in India, which Key may wish to examine more closely, but Buttler has made it clear he wants to lead what will be a much-changed squad when it tours the West Indies next month.

Asked if he would be travelling as skipper, Buttler said: “Yeah, I’d like to. I know Rob Key arrives into India today. We can have some good conversations with him and the coach and make a plan for that tour. But, yes, I would like to.

“I’m competitive, I want to win any game I play, whether it’s a game of cards or a game of cricket. So I’m delighted with this win. It’s been a frustrating time, not winning games of cricket or playing as well as we’d like, I’m delighted with this win.”

Match-winner Ben Stokes, whose backs-against-the-wall 108 set England up for victory, will not be going to the Caribbean as he heads for a knee operation at the end of the tournament.

Some, including his friend and former team-mate Steve Harmison, felt Stokes should have been sent home for surgery as soon as the semi-finals were out of reach but his presence carried the side through a familiar batting wobble against the Dutch.

At one stage they had slipped from 133 for one to 192 for six and, without Stokes’ bullish knock, would have fallen far short of their winning mark of 339.

The man himself told the post-match presentation “I don’t leave anyone hanging” and Buttler said an early exit was never on the cards.

“No, we haven’t had any conversations like that. It’s not Ben’s style at all,” he said.

“He’s committed, he wants to play and he wants to put in performances like you saw here. Anytime you need someone to stand up when the team’s under pressure, he’s had a history of always doing that for whoever he’s playing for.

“We’re very lucky to have him in the team and I thought his innings today was exceptional.”

England head to Kolkata on Thursday, where they conclude their disappointing campaign against Pakistan at the weekend.

Their opponents still have a chance to reach the semi-finals, while Buttler’s men still need to tie down a top-eight finish to book a Champions Trophy place in 2025.

“It’s a huge game for us, vital,” he said.

“We haven’t performed the way we wanted to this whole trip, and we’d like to leave India putting in a proper performance.”

West Indies Women's A again came up short against their Pakistani counterparts, as they went down by eight wickets in the Twenty20 Tri Series final in Lahore on Wednesday.

Asked to bat first, West Indies posted a paltry 97-6 from their allotment and that was easily knocked off by Pakistan, who got to 99-2 with 25 balls to spare.

Scores: West Indies Women's A 97-6 (20 overs); Pakistan Women's A 99-2 (15.5 overs)

West Indies suffered and early setback as opener Shabika Gajnabi retired hurt with just eight runs on the board.

That brough captain Rashada Williams to the middle earlier than she would have hoped, but together with Qiana Joseph, added 51 to the board. Joseph, who topscored with a 39-ball 35, which included five fours, fell soon after with the Caribbean side at 59-1 in the 11th over.

Gajnabi returned but added only two runs to the board before she was bowled by Saima Malik for 10.

Williams (18) followed shortly after, and from there it was a downward spiral, as they lost wickets at regular intervals, with Zaida James (12), the only other batter to get into double figures.

Rameen Shamim and Omaima Sohail, both ended with identical figures of 2-17 from four overs to lead Pakistan's bowling.

Much like West Indies, Pakistan's run chase started shakily, as Cherry-Ann Fraser combined with Williams behind the stumps to remove Eyman Fatima (5) with the score at 10-1.

However, Shawaal Zulfiqar and Gull Feroza, steadied the innings with a 43-run second wicket stand that pushed the host closer to their target. 

So, even when Feroza went leg-before-wicket to Joseph for a run-a-ball 23, which included three boundaries, Pakistan were in no real danger at 53-2 in the ninth over.

From there, it was left for Zulfiqar, with an unbeaten 39 off 38 balls, and Sohail, with an unbeaten 23-ball 20, to see off the remaining runs. Zulfiqar's knock had four boundaries, while Sohail had a solitary four in her innings.

Ben Stokes smashed his first World Cup century as England picked up a consolation win over Netherlands and raised their prospects of salvaging a place at the Champions Trophy.

The 2019 champions arrived in Pune for a bottom-of-the-table clash with a five-match losing streak behind them and the knowledge that another slip up would see them miss out on ODI cricket’s next global event in 2025.

But despite wobbling once again with the bat – going from 133 for one to 192 for six – Stokes had the will and skill to carry his side to a 160-run victory.

He struck 108 from 84 balls, grafting hard to begin with then accelerating sharply, to lift England to an imposing 339 for nine.

That was always going to be too many for a Dutch side who lacked the firepower to match Stokes and they wilted for 179 all out.

With two points and a healthy boost to their net run-rate England climbed from 10th to seventh in one jump, overtaking their opponents, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

 Cricket commentator and SportsMax analyst Nikhil Uttamchandani believes the innovation of the bonus-points system implemented in this year’s CG United Insurance Super 50 Cup competition, has been a positive one.

Speaking on a recent edition of the Sportsmax Zone, Uttamchandani, while reviewing the group stages of the tournament stated, “I credit CWI, Miles Bascombe and his team for the innovation. There was no point coming into this tournament doing the same things over and over again. It is about now building towards the 2027 World Cup.” 

Commenting on specific improvements seen during the group stage, Uttamchandani highlighted two key areas.

“Coming into this, I looked closely to see where the West Indies have fallen behind in ODIs in the last few years, and it’s in the middle overs. It is no secret that we have struggled.” 

Since the 2019 ODI World Cup, the West Indies have ranked 12th  of the 19 teams in the world between overs 11 and 40, only scoring at 4.69 runs per over. “It was refreshing to see the two youngest teams being the only two teams above five runs per over in overs 11-40 during the group stages. It shows that while the bowling will not be the same at the international level, there is added impetus being shown in the middle overs.” 

The Combined Campuses and Colleges team was the best middle-over team of the preliminary stages, scoring at 5.58 runs per over, while the West Indies Academy was second best at 5.04. He also accentuated the increased intensity in the first 10 overs of the innings, where five teams had scored better than five runs per over in this year’s competition, a significant improvement over last season. 

From a bowling perspective, Uttamchandani revealed that he was impressed by new Leeward Islands sensation Daniel Doram, the tall left-arm spinner who took 13 wickets in six matches, including a 7-29 against Jamaica.  However, while he was impressed with his uniqueness, Uttamchandani wants to see Doram perform well in two to three more tournaments before being considered for play internationally. 

“He is different to Motie and Hosein. He has been impressive, but if he can go into the four-day championship, CPL, if selected, or even the next Super 50 and put out good performances, it will create a better environment for West Indies cricket and offer more for the selectors to choose from. In bouncy conditions, Doram provides an alternative option. I’m excited for the future of his career.” 

The analyst believes the impact of the bonus points system and this year’s Super 50 Cup will be further reflected in the England and Australia series bowling off in the next few months. 

Ben Stokes blasted 108 as England posted 339 for nine to take control of their bottom-of-the-table World Cup clash against the Netherlands in Pune.

With their semi-final chances a distant memory, both sides still had plenty to play for, with a place at the 2025 Champions Trophy the prize for a top-eight finish, and England had Stokes to thank for their putting them in the box seat.

At 192 for six they were making life extremely difficult for themselves, but Stokes raced through the gears to do the hard work his side so badly needed.

Having ground out a hard-working fifty in 58 deliveries, he exploded into life and took just 20 more to reach his fifth ODI century in a display of power-hitting that helped bring 114 runs in the last 10 overs.

Despite not hitting any boundaries as he dug in between the 29th and the 43rd, he finished with six sixes and six fours before holing out with two balls left.

Coming off the back of five demoralising defeats in a row, Stokes produced a show of skill and character that reinforced his status as his team’s “spiritual leader” – a title first uttered by under-pressure head coach Matthew Mott during his spell on the injured list at the start of the tournament.

Former England seamer Steve Harmison, Stokes’ close friend and former Durham team-mate, called on England to send the 32-year-old home ahead of this match to accelerate his forthcoming knee surgery, but it is hard to see who could have provided the impetus had they done so.

Chris Woakes provided good support as he made 51 in a seventh-wicket of stand of 129 with Stokes, while Dawid Malan (87) was on course for a ton of his own until a silly run out cost him.

England had bossed the opening exchanges, Malan pounding out 10 boundaries in a 36-ball fifty in the powerplay, and even papered over Jonny Bairstow’s sloppy dismissal for 15 via a top edge.

The score was 133 for one when Joe Root attempted, for the second time, one of his trademark reverse scoops over the wicketkeeper. The first one had raced away for four, but this time he got his timings all wrong and was clean bowled through his own legs without even committing a full swing of the bat.

Root has struggled for runs for much of the last month, but falling to a Logan van Beek nutmeg was a new one on his bingo card.

Malan, who had driven expertly and swept two big sixes off Roelof van der Merwe, then fell on his sword in the very next over.

Setting off for a single despite tapping straight to cover, he was sent back by Stokes and caught an inch out of his ground by some smart work in the field.

Suddenly England looked vulnerable again, with the recalled Harry Brook (11) pulling Bas de Leede tamely into the leg-side to fluff his opportunity back in the XI.

Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali followed for single figures, the off-form skipper picking out mid-off and his deputy arcing the softest possible catch to long-off.

Stokes grafted hard to keep the innings alive, getting his eye in before finally indulging himself at the back end.

Aryan Dutt’s last over went for 24, De Leede’s final two shipped 34 and Paul van Meekeren delivered a steady stream of wides as the pressure told.

Stokes reached his hundred with a reverse sweep and finally departed in the closing moments looking for one last blow.

Glenn Maxwell rewrote the World Cup record books as he single-handedly batted Australia to a remarkable win over Afghanistan.

Maxwell defied “horrific” back spasms to hit an unbeaten 201 and power his side from 91 for seven to 293 and a three-wicket win.

It was Australia’s first one-day international double century and here the PA news agency looks at the records set by Maxwell and his eighth-wicket partner Pat Cummins.

Double delight

The highest ODI score by an Australia batter stood at 185 not out, by Shane Watson against Bangladesh in 2011, until Maxwell’s astonishing effort in Mumbai.

It is only the third double century at a World Cup, with West Indies star Chris Gayle setting a record of 215 against Zimbabwe in 2015 but then watching New Zealand’s Martin Guptill top it with 237 not out against his side later in the same tournament.

He is only the ninth man to make an ODI double hundred, with 11 such scores in total, including three for India’s Rohit Sharma. Maxwell made Australia only the fifth nation represented on that list – India with seven from Sharma, Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Ishan Kishan and Shubman Gill, while Fakhar Zaman hit 210 not out for Pakistan against Zimbabwe in 2018.

In 128 balls, Maxwell’s is also the fastest World Cup double – Gayle took 138 balls to reach the landmark and Guptill 152. Kishan narrowly held on to the fastest ODI double, in 126 balls against Bangladesh last year.

The inning was completed fittingly with the winning six, Maxwell’s 10th to go with 21 fours – only Guptill, with 24 fours and 11 sixes in his 237, has scored more runs in boundaries in a World Cup innings.

Perfect partner

“Just ridiculous!” Cummins told Sky Sports with a smile, adding: “It’s got to be the greatest ODI innings that’s ever happened, it’s one of those days where you just go, ‘When that happened, I was here in the stadium’.”

The Australia captain was far more than a mere spectator, though, defying Afghanistan for 68 balls in a two-hour stay at the crease.

He contributed 12 runs to a lop-sided partnership of 202, which destroyed the ODI record for the eighth wicket – an unbroken 138 between South Africa’s Justin Kemp and Andrew Hall against India in 2006 – and the Australian best of 119 between Paul Reiffel and Shane Warne against the Proteas in 1994.

It was also the first 200 stand for any wicket from the seventh downwards – the previous record being Jos Buttler and Adil Rashid’s 177 for England’s seventh wicket against New Zealand in 2015.

Mitchell Marsh’s 24 was the second-highest score as Maxwell racked up 68.6 per cent of Australia’s runs in the innings – only West Indies great Sir Viv Richards has ever scored a greater share of his team’s runs in a completed ODI innings, 189no in a total of 272 for nine against England in 1984 (69.5 per cent).

Afghanistan contributed valiantly to a thrilling match and, while it will be relegated to a footnote after Maxwell’s heroics, opener Ibrahim Zadran carried his bat for 129no to record their first World Cup century.