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Victoria’s Sheffield Shield dominance is continuing, taking a stranglehold of their clash with Western Australia at the MCG.Holding a 61-run first-innings lead after making 255 in reply to WA’s 194, Victoria delivered another blow just before stumps on day two on Friday.Mitchell Perry trapped former Australia opener Cameron Bancroft on the final ball of the third over to leave WA reeling at 4 for 1. Instead of Australia’s white-ball star Mitch Marsh arriving at the crease, spinner Corey Rocchiccioli was sent in as a nightwatcher.Rocchiccioli survived five overs with captain Sam Whiteman to get WA to stumps at 5 for 1, still trailing Victoria by 56 runs. Whiteman made just two from 24 balls, but did his job by getting to the end of the day without falling to the charging Victorian attack.On a tricky wicket, opener Blake Macdonald thrived for Victoria with 79, while Matthew Short compiled 62.Victoria took their time building a lead, going at a run-rate of just 2.68 and batting for 96 overs. WA veteran Cameron Gannon bowled tirelessly, sending down 23 overs for figures of 5 for 47.Rocchiccioli ended Victoria’s innings with his second wicket, finishing with 2 for 61.Despite struggling in the One-Day Cup and suffering a heavy loss to WA on Tuesday, Victoria have been dominating the Shield this season. Another win here would take them into the Big Bash League break with five wins from six matches, putting them in the box seat to host this season’s final. WA are on the bottom of the Shield table, having secured just one win this campaign.

Pakistan are effectively 23 for 4 after South Africa’s lower-order flipped the script and gave them a 71-run first innings lead in Rawalpindi. Senuran Muthusamy and Kagiso Rabada both walked away with batting career-bests – and Rabada with the first fifty of his Test career, off just 38 balls, – as Pakistan ran out of answers against the tail. For the first time in the series, the hosts find themselves chasing the game.Muthusamy will get fewer plaudits than Rabada, whose innings was studded with sexy hits straight down the ground but deserves all the praise. He held South Africa together after they lost 4 for 50 in the morning session and looked certain to take a deficit into the second innings.Muthusamy shared a 71-run stand with fellow left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj and a 98-run partnership with Rabada and on a deteriorating pitch, has given South Africa a big advantage. It is only the second time both the ninth and tenth wicket put up stands of more than fifty and first since the Adelaide Test in 1998.Pakistan were clearly stunned by the late assault as their spinners were blunted, Shaheen Shah Afridi was targeted and Shan Masood could not plug gaps in the field. They slumped to 16 for 3 in response but have since recovered to 94 for 4 thanks largely to Babar Azam’s best in the series so far. He stayed calm against a fiery South African side and delighted an appreciative crowd with well timed drives and one powerful pull. He is one run away from a 30th Test fifty and first at home since his century against New Zealand in December 2022. Alongside him is Mohammad Rizwan, unbeaten on 16, with Salman Agha the last recognised batter to come.All that may overshadow the 38 reasons Pakistan had to celebrate when Asif Afridi, on debut, became the oldest man to take a Test five-for in his first match. Asif’s fifth wicket was that of Simon Harmer, when South Africa were 210 for 7. That South Africa added another 194 runs will be difficult for him to believe, especially after the way the day started.Asif Afridi performs the sajda after claiming his maiden five-wicket haul•Associated Press

Asif struck in the first over of the day when Kyle Verreynne pushed at his fourth ball and got a thin edge, which Mohammad Rizwan gleefully pouched. Stubbs, who was on 68 overnight, was back in his defensive shell and added just eight runs to his score before being trapped in the crease by a quicker Asif ball that hit him on the pad. Asif struck again in his next over, when Harmer missed a reverse sweep and was pinned in front of middle stump.Muthusamy, who had been at the crease from the first over of the morning, looked fairly comfortable and with all the main batters out, gave himself permission to play his shots. He swept particularly well and was perplexed when he was given out lbw to Sajid Khan and reviewed immediately. Ultra Edge confirmed an inside-edge.Pakistan took the second new ball as soon as it became available and Asif shared it with Shaheen. It was only once Shaheen was replaced by Noman Ali that it brought rewards when Noman had Marco Jansen out lbw.Maharaj joined Muthusamy and batted proactively but offered plenty of chances. He was dropped by Imam-ul-Haq at silly mid-off in what was a tough chance akin to Tony de Zorzi which dismissed Babar on day two, then could have been stumped off Asif as he charged down but Rizwan was unsighted and could not react in time and then offered Asif a return chance that he could not hold on to. Muthusamy decided to live dangerously too and swung across the line to hit Sajid high over the keeper. Salman ran back but could not get to the ball in time.South Africa went to lunch 48 runs behind and most likely with a view to cutting the deficit to as little as possible but ended up doing much more. Three overs into the second session, Muthusamy got to his second Test fifty, off 88 balls, and three overs after that lost Maharaj. Encouraged by his ability to charge down, Maharaj did it one too many times as Noman flighted the ball and was stumped. At that stage, South Africa were still 27 runs behind.Kagiso Rabada played aggressively as he notched his highest Test score of 71•AFP/Getty Images

Muthusamy reverse-swept Sajid in a shot that suggested he was going to accelerate in anticipation of the end. But Rabada had no intention of going anywhere quickly. He swung hard and sent Noman over his head for his first four and the fun began. He slog-swept Sajid for six and then hit Shaheen over long-on and just short of long-off for back-to-back boundaries before taking six more off Sajid.His fifty came with a touch of class as he guided Sajid through point and then he tonked Agha over his head for another six. While Rabada went crazy, Muthusamy quietly collected runs to move into the 80s and soon the race was on to see whether they could both get to three figures. Neither did, as Rabada played one big shot too many and was caught at long-on to give Asif a six-for and South Africa a precious foot in front.On a high from their batting effort, South Africa were quickly brought down to earth when Rabada started with a no-ball in an over that cost nine but they pulled things back quickly. Harmer shared the new ball and spun it past Imam’s inside edge onto his front pad. He was given out and reviewed but remained out on umpire’s call. In his next over, Harmer had Shan Masood stuck on the back foot as he tried to drive through mid-on and was also given out lbw. Masood reviewed too, and lost the review as he was confirmed out. It was two wickets in two balls for South Africa as Rabada got Abdullah Shafique for the second time in the series after he was dropped off several edges. This time, loose defence took the edge and Jansen at third slip took the catch.Pakistan were effectively -55 for 3, with two batters yet to score at the crease and South Africa tried to close in. They burned two reviews hoping to get Babar lbw, and both times he had inside-edged onto his pad, which only underlines the danger South Africa knew he poses. Babar showed glimpses of his classy best, timing Rabada through point, cutting Harmer over cover point and then advancing on Maharaj. He dominated a 44-run stand with Saud Shakeel, who laboured his way to 11 off 43 before edging Harmer to Markram at slip. Still, Pakistan were behind.They took the lead when Rizwan swept Muthusamy through backward square leg for his boundary and the game really began. Babar and Rizwan saw out the day without further drama until Rizwan knocked the bails off on the last balls and South Africa appealed for hit wicket. The umpires called it dead ball to end an action-packed day.

A wicketless powerplay at a shade under 10 an over allied with a Tanzid Hasan fifty gave Bangladesh the ideal platform, but Afghanistan’s death overs mastery restricted Bangladesh to 154 for 5 in Abu Dhabi.The spin twins of Noor Ahmad and Rashid Khan were exemplary once again, the pair sharing four wickets between them, while going for just 49 runs in their combined eight overs.Related

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Their impact meant Bangladesh struggled to effectively utilise the platform afforded them by a strong opening stand worth 63. Saif Hassan, drafted in for this game struck 30 off 28 balls, but it was Tanzid who really propelled the early stages.Of his first 12 deliveries, half went to the boundary or cleared it. He brought up his seventh T20I fifty off just 28 deliveries. At the halfway stage of the innings, Bangladesh were well set on 87 for 1. But the middle overs proved to be their downfall as the Afghanistan spinners took control of proceedings.Four wickets were lost for 65 runs through the middle overs period, while just 30 runs were mustered at the death.

Big picture: SL move from wet Colombo to dry Navi Mumbai

Bangladesh and Sri Lanka head into their clash with two points each, yet their campaigns couldn’t have been more different. For Sri Lanka, those two points came courtesy washed-out games in Colombo. They have now moved to hot and humid Navi Mumbai, where they will begin their final leg with an outside chance to make the top four.Bangladesh had started brightly with a win over Pakistan, but have struggled since. They have run top sides close, but have fallen short at crucial junctures. Though Bangladesh are yet to beat Sri Lanka in ODIs, they will fancy their chances, given their spin attack has troubled established batting line-ups. The loser of Monday’s fixture will be knocked out of contention for the semi-finals.The two sides have met each other four times in ODIs, with Sri Lanka winning two and the other two being washed out. It will be a long shot for Bangladesh to make the semi-finals, but they can get there if they win their next two games and hope other results go their way. Even a top-five finish will be significant for Bangladesh, their senior spinner Fahima Khatun said on the eve of the match, in what is only their second appearance at an ODI World Cup.While Bangladesh’s batting remains a concern, their bowling, led by spinners, has been their strength. But it was a different story against Australia, who razed down their target of 199 with ten wickets to spare.Sri Lanka have had similar issues. While their batters have often made promising starts, they’ve lost wickets in clusters. But the washed-out match against New Zealand, where they posted 258 before rain had the final say, showed a glimpse of what they can do. In this match, it will come down to how well they operate against Bangladesh’s spinners, while Bangladesh will want to show some of their batting capabilities in their quest for a first win against Sri Lanka in ODIs.

Form guide

Bangladesh LLLLW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Sri Lanka LLLLL

In the spotlight: Harshitha Samarawickrama and Sobhana Mostary

Harshitha Samarawickrama has quickly risen through the ranks for Sri Lanka to become one of their batting mainstays. Since her 53 against India in the tri-series earlier this year, she has not scored a half-century in six innings though she’s got starts. Against England, she looked well set in the chase of 254 with a 58-run stand with Hasini Perera but lost her wicket to Sophie Ecclestone, which triggered a Sri Lanka collapse. Sri Lanka will be expecting more runs from their No. 4 as they look to finish their campaign on a high.Sobhana Mostary has been the most impressive Bangladesh batter in the tournament so far. She has two fifties, both coming against top oppositions in Australia and England. In a tournament where most other Bangladesh batters have struggled, the 23-year-old has stood out at No.5. She is adept at rotating the strike and finding the gaps. Against Australia, she was circumspect against Alana King but took on Annabel Sutherland and Darcie Brown, her 66 not out taking Bangladesh to a respectable 198.1:24

Fahima Khatun: We’ve lost games, but gained a lot of positives

Team news: Marufa Akter set to return

Fast bowler Marufa Akter, who was rested for Bangladesh’s previous match against Australia, is expected to return to the side. “Marufa is better now, she has been training hard the last couple of days and I think we will have her fully fit for the next match,” Khatun said at her press conference.Bangladesh (probable): 1 Rubya Haider, 2 Fargana Hoque, 3 Sharmin Akhter, 4 Nigar Sultana (capt & wk), 5 Sobhana Mostary, 6 Shorna Akter, 7 Fahima Khatun, 8 Rabeya Khan, 9 Ritu Moni, 10 Nishita Akter Nishi, 11 Marufa AkterVishmi Gunaratne was on 12 when she was stretchered off the field against South Africa, after being struck by the ball on her left knee while completing a run. She, however, returned to bat and finished with 34 off 33 balls. Sri Lanka head coach Rumesh Ratnayake said she was “okay for selection” against Bangladesh.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Chamari Athapaththu (capt), 2 Hasini Perera, 3 Vishmi Gunaratne, 4 Harshita Samarawickrama, 5 Kavisha Dilhari, 6 Nilakshika Silva, 7 Anushka Sanjeewani (wk), 8 Piumi Wathsala, 9 Sugandika Kumari, 10 Malki Madara, 11 Inoka RanaweeraChamari Athapaththu is one away from 4000 ODI runs•Getty Images

Pitch and conditions: DY Patil Stadium gears up to host its first ODI

This will be the first-ever ODI at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. The stadium has hosted 14 Vijay Hazare (List A) games in the last three years. The average first-innings score has been 252 with teams chasing winning nine games. Dew is expected to play a role at the ground.The forecast is clear for the entire day, with temperatures set to hit a high of 36 degrees. On the eve of the match, Bangladesh’s Khatun said she expects it to be a “sporting wicket with batters and bowlers expected to benefit from it”. Sri Lanka coach Ratnayake echoed her views.

Stats and trivia

• Chamari Athapaththu is one run away from 4000 ODI runs and four wickets away from 50 ODI wickets
• Fargana Hoque is 79 runs away from 2000 ODI runs
• Sri Lanka wicketkeeper Anushka Sanjeewani will play her 50th ODI match on Monday.