Month: March 2016

Toss Ireland chose to bowl v BangladeshLive scorecard and ball-by-ball details George Dockrell returned to the Ireland XI in place of Craig Young © AFP Ireland captain William Porterfield chose to field in their 12-overs-a-side must-win game against Bangladesh in Dharamsala. Rain delayed the toss by nearly two hours, after continuous efforts by the groundsmen enabled the contest to go ahead. Ireland brought in left-arm spinner George Dockrell for seamer…

Mumbai – Newly appointed Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews said Wednesday the struggling islanders would benefit at the World Twenty20 from being free of the burden of expectation that usually surrounds the side. Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews addresses a press conference in Mumbai on March 9, 2016 © AFP Punit Paranjpe The defending champions have slumped to eighth in the T20 rankings and come into the World T20 in…

Dharamsala (India) – The Netherlands were knocked out of the World Twenty20 Friday after their match against Oman was abandoned due to rain in Dharamsala. Groundstaff cover the wicket as rain falls ahead of the World T20 qualifier between Oman and The Netherlands at The Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala, northern India on March 11, 2016 © AFP The Dutch, who shared a point with Oman in the…

Auckland – Cricketing greats honoured Martin Crowe at an emotional funeral for New Zealand’s greatest batsman Friday, with his cousin, Hollywood star Russell Crowe, acting as a pallbearer. Pallbearers including actor Russell Crowe (centre R) carry the casket of former New Zealand cricketer Martin Crowe during his funeral at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Auckland on March 11, 2016 © www.photosport.nz/AFP William Booth About 1,000 mourners packed Auckland’s Holy Trinity…

Alex Hales says England are ready to face a trial by spin when their ICC World Twenty20 campaign begins in India next week. Both the 2012 and 2014 tournaments were held on the subcontinent, in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, and on both occasions England’s problems against the turning ball contributed to their early exit. But Nottinghamshire opener Hales, who hit a century in Chittagong against a Sri Lanka attack comprising…

Match facts Saturday, March 12, 2016 Start time 1500 local (0930GMT) Mohammad Shahzad has been flying at the top of the order © Chris Whiteoak Big Picture A week hasn’t even passed yet in the World Twenty20, but a final is already in the offing. Well, a final of sorts. Zimbabwe and Afghanistan face each other in a shootout for a place in the main draw, after two wins each….

Match facts Saturday, March 12, 2016Start time 1930 local (1400 GMT) Scotland are yet to win a game in 20 matches at an ICC tournaments since their debut at the 1999 World Cup © AFP Big picture Scotland are out of the tournament, and so are Hong Kong. What is left to play for? The question simply would not arise if this were an old-fashioned world event with associates mingling…