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Bismah Maroof helped Pakistan bowl out Sri Lanka for 181 with figures of 3 for 17, completing a 69-run win in Dambulla

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Mar-2018
ScorecardJaveria Khan celebrates her century•Getty Images

Batsman Javeria Khan struck her second ODI century to help Pakistan go 1-0 up in their three-match series, part of the ICC Women’s Championship, against Sri Lanka in Dambulla.Javeria helped Pakistan recover from the early loss of the openers, and then rallied with the middle order to haul them to 250 for 6. In reply, Sri Lanka crumbled to 181 all out, with Pakistan captain Bismah Maroof ripping through the middle order with three wickets in five overs.Maroof had also partnered Javeria in a third-wicket stand of 49 that stabilised Pakistan after they had slipped to 19 for 2. Then, Nida Dar (34), Sana Mir (27) and Natalia Pervaiz (21 not out) played handy cameos to lift Pakistan to a decent score. Shashikala Siriwardene, the offspinning allrounder, was Sri Lanka’s most successful bowler with 2 for 40 in 10 overs.Siriwardene was also handy with the bat, one of only two noteworthy Sri Lankan performances in the chase. Chamari Atapattu was the other, dominating the scoring early with a 57-ball 46. Siriwardene struck a fighting 44 lower down, before becoming the last batsman dismissed.Six of the seven bowlers used by Pakistan picked up at least a wicket each. While Maroof led the column with three, Sana Mir took two wickets, and Diana Baig, Pervaiz, Nashra Sandhu and Nida Dar took one each.

A look back at the week that was in the WBBL, ahead of the week that will be the final leg of the tournament

Geoff Lemon and Adam Collins19-Jan-2017Yes, ties, plural. We’re misquoting on purpose here. Each season has one game more memorable than the rest, and January 14 was probably it. The two Sydney sides make you think of close matches, after last year’s thrilling final, but it doesn’t get any closer than two ties in the same match. Once in regulation play, again after the Super Over.And how the pendulum swung throughout. First the Sixers lost their powerful openers cheaply, then surged back through Ash Gardner’s hitting with Sarah McGlashan in support. Thunder’s experienced heads kept being influential, Rene Farrell and Stafanie Taylor with the early wickets, Erin Osborne getting McGlashan, then captain Alex Blackwell proving she can do anything, stumping Gardner off Taylor as a makeshift wicketkeeper.Twenty-three off the last three overs was below-par given the platform, and Thunder should have chased it easily thanks to Taylor’s 68 from 51 balls. She was out in the second-last over leaving 11 required from ten balls, but Osborne and Naomi Stalenberg couldn’t find the boundary, a succession of singles bringing them level.Enter Kim Garth, the Irish seamer occupying the Sixers’ international rookie spot. She hadn’t been near the playing XI until the previous day, but with Marizanne Kapp absent due to South Africa duties, the 20-year-old was being thrown the ball by Ellyse Perry for the highest-pressure job.She did it with distinction – four singles and a couple of twos. And when Alyssa Healy charged Farrell first ball for a lofted four, that should have been it. But her calamitous running undid that work. Healy drove straight to the bowler and ran blindly; Perry was hesitant, and then, expecting the gathered deflection to be thrown to the struggling Perry’s end, Healy didn’t bother to extend her bat into the non-striker’s ground and was instead run-out herself at point-blank range.Perry carved two through cover to reduce the target to three, then holed out next ball to long-on. Why the cool head of McGlashan wasn’t employed is a mystery, but Angela Reakes skewed a single and was run-out reneging on an impossible second. With one ball to face and two runs needed, Gardner could only slam a single to cover, Farrell standing over the stumps with ball in hand to render the second impossible. Fourteen boundaries to 16 was the countback – thanks largely to Taylor’s nine – and Thunder won on that technicality.The ties that defineThe thrill for the Thunder only lasted two days, before they stumbled against Hobart Hurricanes and again undermined their bid for the top four. And so it is down to the frenetic final weekend, a format we have become accustomed to in WBBL.Eight of 55 games remain in the regular season, and teams pair off to play the same opponent twice over consecutive days on Friday and Saturday. There are four likely candidates to make the finals, though other sides could yet force their way in.The Sixers are guaranteed a spot even with two losses. Brisbane Heat sit fifth, but can force their way well into considerations with two home games against the bottom-placed Adelaide Strikers.Perth’s Scorchers will finish top-two if they win twice against the inconsistent Thunder, but could be jumped if they lose once and Hobart Hurricanes win twice.Hobart is indeed where the main action will be, given the Hurricanes and Melbourne Stars are currently third and fourth, and their mid-table clash will dictate fate for so many teams beyond their own.Hobart is where the action will be heading for the final round•Cricket Australia/Getty Images

The sides that are boundEarthbound, that is. Those who have struggled to lift off, and now look to snatch the trailing rope of a rising hot-air balloon for a last miracle ascent – Thunder and Renegades.In short, if the Stars and Hurricanes split their contest one game each, neither of those two sides can pass them. But if either loses twice, and Brisbane loses once, the Thunder can still sneak in by beating Perth twice.The Renegades would need to beat the Sixers twice while relying on the Thunder to lose one, Brisbane to lose both, and one of the Stars-Hurricanes double to lose both. Tough gig.Adelaide Strikers cannot make the finals, and are left to work out what went wrong this season and address it for next time.The side left behindAs for the Melbourne Stars, it’s all a bit too familiar. Still in the top four, but after a torrid run of form since Christmas, they’re back in the same position as last season: a sudden death last round to qualify for the finals, with no momentum behind them. Last year it didn’t end well.In the penultimate weekend of group games they finished off the Strikers for the second time in a week, Jess Cameron’s 42 pushing the required chase above six an over before Adelaide again collapsed.But the fixture that mattered came later against Perth. It started well – they knocked over the international trio of Elyse Villani, Nicole Bolton and Suzie Bates inside six overs. Then the cavalry came in the form of Lauren Ebsary, unbeaten on 45, and Katherine Brunt’s fast 32.Sure enough, after Meg Lanning was removed early by Brunt, the Stars couldn’t rally and were held to a meek 97 in 20 overs. That made four losses in six starts. Melbourne’s early-season wins mean their destiny remains in their own hands. Just.The Stars’ destiny remains in their own hands•Getty Images

The sides that flyLast year the Scorchers underperformed relative to their strength on paper. Second time up they’ve earned their progress. The Stars limping run chase was in no small part due to Brunt and her England partner Anya Shrubsole pairing off with the new ball for Perth. Duos don’t come more frugal or effective.Perth didn’t miss out on more points against the Strikers either, led by impressive 20-year-old Heather Graham, a consistent contributor with bat and ball throughout WBBL02. Her 39 not out in 30 balls steered her side home.Brisbane’s Heat have found form at the right time, coinciding with Beth Mooney doing likewise at the top of the list. Her 45 was enough for an easy win over the Renegades, combining for another half-century stand with Kirby Short.They lost the reverse fixture due to a Duckworth-Lewis chase, but that wouldn’t have cost them much sleep. What will is that Indian signing Smriti Mandhana has torn an ACL, ends her WBBL and potentially a lot more cricket in 2017. A blow for a talented young player.Meanwhile, the Hurricanes keep on doing what they do best – finding new ways to win. After the Sixers knocked them off to begin the weekend, courtesy of Perry clocking yet another match-winning innings, the pressure was on when they returned home to face Thunder.Julie Hunter got superstar Staf Taylor for zero, before Kiwi international Amy Satterthwaite reinforced why she is one of the form players on the planet with 5 for 17. The Canes’ chase of 116 was never in doubt, and the team is never to be underestimated.

Nathan Coulter-Nile’s place in the Boxing Day Test squad is in jeopardy after he dislocated his shoulder while playing for the Perth Scorchers against the Adelaide Strikers on Monday

Tristan Lavalette21-Dec-2015Perth Scorchers not only failed to break their opening-game hoodoo in the Big Bash League, losing to Adelaide Strikers, but to add to their woes, Nathan Coulter-Nile suffered a nasty dislocation on his shoulder. Coulter-Nile slipped after a misfire at backward point, and fell awkwardly on his right shoulder. He was substituted off the ground in the 12th over, and did not reappear.It is a bitter pill for Coulter-Nile to swallow after surprisingly emerging into Test calculations ahead of the West Indies series. Coulter-Nile was in the frame to make his Test debut on Boxing Day, but now those dreams are in serious jeopardy. Victoria pacer Scott Boland – who was on standby for the first Test – is most likely to replace Coulter-Nile in the squad, if necessary.Coulter-Nile had enjoyed a fine all-round performance starting with a blistering cameo of 18 off 8 balls, including two towering sixes to help the Scorchers reach a competitive total of 6 for 151. He then performed with the ball to snare the wicket of Strikers opener Craig Simmons and was boasting figures of 3-0-18-1 before injury struck.After the match, the Scorchers captain Adam Voges said Coulter-Nile would have scans on Tuesday. “His shoulder is back in place, fingers crossed,” he said.The dislocation is the latest injury in a horror-run for Coulter-Nile, who has suffered numerous knocks this year. He picked up a calf strain during Australia’s limited-overs tour of England in September, and suffered a left shoulder injury after landing awkwardly in a training mishap during the Matador BBQ One-Day Cup in October.Having endured his own string of injury problems over the years, Scorchers allrounder Mitchell Marsh was sympathetic of his team-mate’s plight. “Nathan has had a tough time of it with injuries. We just want him back,” Mitchell told ESPNcricinfo.While his Test team-mates Voges and brother Shaun performed solidly, Mitchell had a poor game, making just one run and going wicketless. He failed to make contact with a flighted Adil Rashid delivery after lazily charging the pitch and was bowled off just the second delivery he faced. Mitchell’s dismissal stifled the Scorchers’ momentum, and they were unable to recover fully.Mitchell said he was disappointed with his performance, but believed he was in good shape ahead of his Boxing Day Test debut. “It was disappointing to miss a full toss, it was unfortunate but it happens,” he said. “I feel really good right now and I’m looking forward to Melbourne after missing last year’s Test due to injury. The MCG Test is a special week.”Mitchell said he hoped to play the Boxing Day Test with his brother Shaun, who dazzled early in the Scorchers’ innings with a 35-ball 47. Shaun is in a battle with Usman Khawaja and Joe Burns to retain his Test spot.”[Shaun’s] in very good form, and has been for the last 12 months,” Mitchell said. “That decision is above my pay grade but hopefully he gets picked. It would be extra special to play with Shaun during Boxing Day and enjoy the occasion with family.”After losing their opening game for the fifth straight year, Mitchell was at a loss for the Scorchers’ perennial slow starts to the BBL campaign.”I can’t put my finger on it because it is very important to start these tournaments well. Maybe we tried too hard,” he said. “For the team we had, we didn’t put enough runs on the board. It was a beautiful wicket, 180 would have been a good total.”

Full text of the media release issued by the BCCI in response to Pune Warriors’ withdrawal from the IPL

ESPNcricinfo staff22-May-2013The BCCI has read in media reports that Sahara has purported to terminate its franchise agreement and to pull out of IPL, the 2014 season onwards. The BCCI has had no direct communication from its franchisee, Sahara Adventure Sports Limited, in this regard.The BCCI can however confirm that, in order to satisfy the balance of the 2013 franchise fee of Rs. 120 crore, which was overdue and owing to BCCI since 3 April 2013, it has encashed part of the bank guarantee put in place by Sahara Adventure Sports Limited.The IPL Governing Council met with representatives of the franchisee on 21 February 2013 and received assurances that the franchisee would settle all obligations as they fell due. Once the 3 April 2013 due date had passed, the Governing Council had two letters sent to Sahara Adventure Sports Limited – one on 12 April 2013 and the second on 24 April 2013 – requesting settlement of the overdue amount. No payment was made and no response was received to the second letter and so, in order to protect its interests, the BCCI was forced to encash the guarantee.While it is true that the arbitration has not progressed, the BCCI cannot be held responsible since every one of the eminent retired judges suggested by the BCCI was not found acceptable by the franchisee. In order to break this impasse, a letter was sent to Sahara Adventure Sports Limited, proposing that as the claimant to the arbitration, it should approach the court to appoint an arbitrator so that the process could move forward. Again, no response was received to this suggestion.The BCCI has at all times acted in accordance with its franchise agreement with Sahara Adventure Sports Limited, and is not able to enter into a private negotiation on the quantum of the franchise fee which was offered by Sahara Adventure Sports Limited in its response to the Invitation to Tender floated by the BCCI in March 2010.Sanjay Jagdale
Hony. Secretary
BCCI

Former Sri Lanka coach Geoff Marsh has sent a letter of demand to Sri Lanka Cricket after he was sacked just three months into his two-year contract

Sa'adi Thawfeeq23-May-2012Former Sri Lanka coach Geoff Marsh has sent a letter of demand to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) after he was sacked just three months into his two-year contract. Sri Lanka Cricket, reacting to Marsh’s letter, said it had taken the appropriate steps prior to terminating his services.Confirming it had received Marsh’s letter, Sri Lanka Cricket president Upali Dharmadasa stated, “We terminated his services and paid him whatever that was due to him.”It is now a legal matter and we have referred it to our legal department to check it and deal with it.”Marsh was appointed coach in September last year and his contract was terminated after the tour to South Africa where Sri Lanka recorded their maiden Test win. But they lost the three-Test series 2-1.Marsh’s sacking was criticised, with former Sri Lanka captain Arjuna Ranatunga calling the move “disgraceful” and “unprofessional”.Marsh was replaced by South African Graham Ford, who became Sri Lanka’s fourth coach since Trevor Bayliss quit after the World Cup final in April 2011.

A brilliant, belligerent century by Paul Stirling wasn’t enough to take Ireland to victory over Pakistan in the second ODI

The Bulletin by Gerard Siggins30-May-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details Paul Stirling’s ton came off 94 balls•Associated Press

A brilliant, belligerent century by Paul Stirling wasn’t enough to take Ireland to victory over Pakistan in the second ODI. A solid innings of 64 by Younis Khan ensured the visitors were not embarrassed and took the two match RSA Series in Belfast 2-0.Stirling played an innings that alternated between control and raw aggression as he racked up his third ODI century, his first against a Full Member. It helped set Pakistan a target of 239, which they achieved with eight balls to spare, but not before their most experienced batsmen rescued them from a tricky situation as Ireland’s celebrated fielders tightened the screws.Stirling’s innings showed great maturity for a man who has his critics in Irish cricket. He has too often been a player who raced to thrilling thirties and forites, but rarely went on. His previous highest score against a Full Member was just 52.But an Irish record one-day score of 177 against Canada in September showed what could be achieved and he round off the recent World Cup with a blistering ton against Netherlands. That innings was the third-fastest century in the competition’s history, behind only Kevin O’Brien and Matthew Hayden.He thrashed three sixes and seven fours in his innings of 109, which backboned Ireland’s total of 238 for eight.On the pitch used for Saturday’s rain affected game – and after a day of warm sun in between – William Porterfield opted to take first use.Ireland persevered with their decision to promote Ed Joyce to open, although the Sussex batsman was rarely fluent as Junaid Khan and Umar Gul made use of the overcast conditions.Stirling, meanwhile, played in his usual manner and was 38 when Ireland passed fifty.
Misbah turned to the spin of Saeed Ajmal and Mohammed Hafeez to slow things down, and was immediately rewarded with the wicket of Joyce. Ajmal extracted some extra bounce and Joyce edged to Mohammed Salman with the total on 65.Porterfield joined Stirling and was at the other end as he reached his fifty off 43 balls. The pair hoisted the hundred in the 22nd over when Stirling hoicked the ball over wide mid-on for six.Pakistan preferred Hammad Azam to Tanvir Ahmed and the Rawalpindi bowler’s gentle medium proved useful in the conditions. But it was Mohammed Hafeez who dismissed Porterfield, bowled for 15.Stirling was watchful to the spinners and the rate slowed as Ajmal extracted turn on his way to 4 for 35. Stirling raced into the nineties with a sumptuous cover drive but took six more overs to reach 100, which he did with a straight drive past the bowler Azam. He passed the century mark in 94 balls.Rain – which threatened several times – eventually forced the players off for 15 minutes, but no overs were lost.Alex Cusack played a typical innings as second foil to a more aggressive batsman, and took the total to 174 before he fell charging Ajmal. He fell in the second over of the Powerplay, which Ireland struggled to exploit.Stirling was dropped by Junaid who made an awful hash of a gentle hook to fine leg off Saeed. But Junaid made amends next ball when he bowled Stirling for 109. Gary Wilson came out to cheers in his 100th appearance for Ireland, but although he hit the last two balls of the Powerplay for four, the five-over period yielded a miserable 23 for 2.Wilson hit a breezy 33 off 25 balls, but Ireland’s total was probably 30-40 short of expectations as Pakistan prevented them accelerating at the death.Mohammed Hafeez fell in the second over as he mistimed a drive off Trent Johnston, but ODI debutant Azhar Ali and Taufeeq Umar steadied the ship in the face of accurate bowling from Boyd Rankin. The big Warwickshire man extracted bounce and pace in his nine overs, claiming Azhar to a sharp slip catch.At 80 for 3 Pakistan needed steady hands and were able to turn to Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq. The pair have played 300 ODIs between them – more than the whole Irish team – and were able to dictate the pace from there.The partnership consolidated, scoring one boundary and 30 runs off the first ten overs, but as the clouds loomed they put in a mini-charge to ensure they went ahead of the Duckworth-Lewis calculation.With the score on 148 John Mooney induced the thinnest of nicks off Misbah, who seemed reluctant to depart, but his wicket gave Ireland renewed hope. The feisty Umar Akmal came in and took the game by the scruff though, smashing three sixes in an innings of 60 off 48 balls.All the while Younis Khan was accumulating while Ireland fought for every run. Porterfield at cover saved a dozen runs as Stirling, Joyce and Mooney ensured the ring was hard to pierce.Having hit just two boundaries getting to 48, Younis dragged the ball into the crowd at midwicket to complete his fifty. He perished chipping to Kevin O’Brien off Cusack trying to hit the winning runs.Stirling was named as Man of the Match, but it was Pakistan’s day.