Jos Buttler, England’s captain, believes his team is ready for the challenge of taking on Pakistan in the T20 World Cup final in Melbourne on Sunday after bouncing back from the adversity they faced in a faltering group-stage performance to crush India by ten wickets in their semi-final. Buttler himself sealed the performance at Adelaide Oval with a six off Mohammad Shami’s final ball of the 16th over, to finish…
Rohit Sharma: We just didn't turn up with the ball
India just didn’t turn up with the ball. This was Rohit Sharma‘s immediate diagnosis after their ten-wicket defeat in the T20 World Cup semi-final against England in Adelaide. Chasing 169, England romped home with 24 balls left to play, as Alex Hales and Jos Buttler dominated India’s bowlers from start to finish. “I thought we still batted pretty well at the back end to get to that score, but we…
T20 World Cup final: England vs Pakistan to be shown on Channel 4 in UK
The T20 World Cup final between England and Pakistan will be broadcast on free-to-air television in the UK, ESPNcricinfo understands. While Sky Sports are exclusive UK rights holders to the tournament, an agreement has been made to share Sunday’s showpiece event at the MCG with Channel 4, as they did in 2019 for the 50-over World Cup final. The agreement had been made in principle before England’s semi-final against India,…
Alex Hales and Jos Buttler carry England into final with 10-wicket mauling of India
England 170 for 0 (Hales 86*, Buttler 80*) beat India 168 for 6 (Hardik 63, Kohli 50, Jordan 3-43) by 10 wickets For all of England’s game-breaking talent, this win that takes them into the 2022 Men’s T20 World Cup final was all about doing the basics right. They protected the short square boundary in Adelaide, giving away only two sixes until the start of the death overs. They saw…
Moody: India were 'very conservative and lacked intent' in the first half of their innings
India did put up a decent total of 168 for 6 in their semi-final against England at Adelaide Oval after being put in to bat, but it was largely because of Hardik Pandya‘s 33-ball 63. At the halfway stage, they had only scored 62 for 2. “I thought it was an innings of two halves. First half was a very conservative approach from India that lacked intent,” Tom Moody said…
'All the skills are there' – Ashton Agar eyes Test recall for India tour
Eyeing Australia’s tour of India early next year, Ashton Agar has started his preparation towards a potential long-awaited Test recall, confident he can shift between formats “quickly”. Agar was a notable inclusion in the Prime Minister’s XI squad to play West Indies in Canberra in a four-day day-night first-class fixture starting on November 23. Back in Perth after Australia’s T20 World Cup exit, Agar hit the WACA nets in a…
South Africa to host India and West Indies in build-up to 2023 women's T20 World Cup
South Africa will host India and West Indies in East London for a triangular T20I series in January-February next year in the build-up to the women’s T20 World Cup 2023, which will be held in South Africa soon after, in February. The three teams will play each other twice in the round-robin stage, before the top two teams play the final on February 2, after which there will be a…
Steketee and Neser skittle Victoria for 63, their lowest score in 95 years
Queensland 6 for 130 (Neser 30*, Sutherland 2-28) lead Victoria 63 (Steketee 5-18, Neser 4-22) by 67 runs Mark Steketee and Michael Neser have helped reduce Victoria to a 95-year low before Neser chimed in with the bat to leave Queensland well on top in their Sheffield Shield clash at Allan Border Field. Victoria were skittled for 63, their lowest Shield total since 1927, as the Bulls pace duo Neser and wreaked…
Hamstring injury puts Keegan Petersen out of Australia tour
Keegan Petersen has been ruled out of South Africa’s three-Test tour of Australia because of a hamstring tear. Petersen sustained the injury at the weekend, during the CSA T20 Challenge final, and will need between six and eight weeks to recover. This is the second tour Petersen will miss since making his international debut in 2021; he contracted Covid-19 last year and was left out of the touring party to…
New Zealand 'challenged a little' with players lured by T20 franchises, says coach Stead
Coach Gary Stead expects New Zealand’s playing resources to be put under further pressure by the expanding franchise T20 scene, as the selectors get set to address the immediate future of Trent Boult now that he does not hold a central contract after stepping away from it in early August. Boult has deals in the BBL and ILT20 during December and January when New Zealand will be touring Pakistan. Boult’s…