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England’s first bilateral ODI win since 2023 gives McCullum’s white-ball reign some traction at last

Alan Gardner02-Jun-2025

Big picture: Series secured, ranking points on the line

One crushing victory, one challenging chase, and a couple of boxes ticked for the Harry Brook regime. Joe Root’s ODI magnum opus in Cardiff tied a bow on the series – England’s first bilateral success since beating Ireland 1-0 ahead of the 2023 World Cup – and means the new-look white-ball set-up finally has some traction after an insipid start under all-formats supremo Brendon McCullum.The fact England still got over the line despite a far-from-perfect performance in the second game may be cause for greater satisfaction. At Edgbaston, West Indies simply failed to turn up. But after regrouping, they took advantage of some sloppiness in the field to put England under pressure at Sophia Gardens, initially via Keacy Carty’s third hundred in his last four ODIs and then the incision of Alzarri Joseph with the ball.England’s chase was in peril from the outset at 2 for 2 and they really ought not to have found a way back from 133 for 5 chasing 309. However, Root, benefiting from a pair of missed run-out opportunities and some luck with the DRS, gradually unfurled an innings of fitting greatness as he put himself top of the pile for England in one-day cricket, his unbeaten 166 shutting the door on West Indies – as well as assuaging some of his “guilt” about how things slid under Brook’s predecessor, Jos Buttler.Brook probably didn’t need a reminder of Root’s qualities, but a renewed demonstration of his hunger for the format as England begin to build towards the 2027 World Cup can be no bad thing.And it is with the World Cup in mind that both teams will approach the third game in the series – even with the forecast for a summer deluge in south London on Tuesday. England, currently eighth in the ICC rankings, held a slender three-point advantage over ninth-placed West Indies a few days ago, but that has now grown to nine. A 3-0 defeat for Daren Sammy’s side, having previously been held to 1-1 by Ireland, would leave them uncomfortably placed alongside Bangladesh in the race for automatic World Cup qualification.Sammy said before the series that “every ODI game from now until the deadline for qualification is important”, emphasising the added incentive after West Indies missed out on the last two ICC 50-over tournaments. Weather permitting, it would be a timely moment for them to secure a first ODI win over England in England since 2007.Joe Root and Adil Rashid steered England home with a 24-run eighth-wicket stand•PA Photos/Getty Images

Form guide

England WWLLL
West Indies LLWLW

In the spotlight: Saqib Mahmood and Shai Hope

Various members of England’s top order have taken centre stage over the first two games – notably Root and Jacob Bethell – but it’s worth noting the importance of Saqib Mahmood to their bowling effort. In the first game Mahmood undermined West Indies with the new ball, in the second he limited them at the death, leaving him as the joint-leading wicket-taker with six at 11.50, and an economy of 4.14. It continues an impressive run of white-ball form for England, going back to his prolific T20I showing in the Caribbean before Christmas, and means Jofra Archer has not been missed.Shai Hope has set high standards since taking over as West Indies ODI captain (he averages 52.46 in charge of the team alongside a career mark of 49.75) and demonstrated how important he is to his side’s fortunes with 78 off 66 balls in Cardiff. The worry is that this tour, which included defeat to Ireland, has seen West Indies take a step back after the improvements of 2024 – albeit selection was hampered by IPL rescheduling. It comes just at the point when Hope’s workload is only going to increase, having recently been made T20I captain as well.

Team news: Rutherford available for WI

England will likely want to stick with a winning formula, but could bring in Luke Wood for his first ODI appearance in two years if they want to manage the workload of their fast bowlers.England: 1 Jamie Smith, Ben Duckett, 3 Joe Root, 4 Harry Brook (capt), 5 Jos Buttler (wk), 6 Jacob Bethell, 7 Will Jacks, 8 Brydon Carse, 9 Adil Rashid, 10 Matthew Potts, 11 Saqib MahmoodSherfane Rutherford has been added to the squad after making the trek from India in the wake of Gujarat Titans’ elimination from the IPL playoffs and could come straight into the middle order. West Indies did not train on Monday and it remains to be seen whether Evin Lewis is fit to return at opener after being hit on the groin before the first ODI.West Indies: (possible) 1 Brandon King, 2 Evin Lewis/Jewel Andrew, 3 Keacy Carty, 4 Shai Hope (capt & wk), 5 Shimron Hetmyer/Sherfane Rutherford, 6 Justin Greaves, 7 Roston Chase, 8 Matthew Forde, 9 Alzarri Joseph, 10 Gudakesh Motie, 11 Jayden Seales

Pitch and conditions: Raining sixes, or just raining?

Another excellent batting surface should be in prospect at the Kia Oval, although it might count for little if the weather forecast doesn’t improve. A strong chance of rain during the morning and afternoon may mean a reduced-overs contest is the best we can hope for.

Stats and trivia

• West Indies have won two of their five ODIs against England at The Oval, most recently in the 2004 Champions Trophy final.
• Root became the first Englishman to 7000 ODI runs during his 166 not out in Cardiff.
• Roston Chase needs 47 runs to reach 1000 in ODIs.

Quotes

“I think watching 50-over cricket and thinking about it over the last year or two, we all realise there’s so much time. Coming from T20, that’s not something you always have the luxury of.”
It’s been a learning curve for England’s ODI novices, but Will Jacks believes he’s getting used to the rhythms.

Each of SRH’s remaining games is a must-win affair, but still no guarantee to take them to playoffs

Sidharth Monga02-May-20253:31

‘Gill is conventional and measured, but not conservative’

Another Gujarat Titans (GT) match, and we are again left wondering how they will go if their top three fall early with Rashid Khan at No. 7. Once again, Shubman Gill, Jos Buttler and B Sai Sudharsan dominated a bowling attack, albeit the listless Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) one, to post 224 on a black-soil pitch that was slow to begin with. All three of them are now among the top four run-getters in IPL 2025, with Sai Sudharsan reclaiming the Orange Cap with his 48 off 23 balls.GT failed to defend 209 in the last game, which did raise questions, but that was a par score. Here, SRH’s ordinary start with the ball – arguably the worst all year – set GT the platform for a clearly above-par total. In the run chase, the GT bowlers then bashed the hard lengths to stifle the SRH batters despite a 74 for Abhishek Sharma. Prasidh Krishna bowled four overs for just 19 runs and two wickets to bring the Purple Cap to GT as well.GT are now second with 14 points, the same as table-toppers Mumbai Indians (MI), but with a game in hand. SRH were left on the brink, each of their remaining games a must-win affair but still no guarantee to take them through to the playoffs.

Sai Sudharsan, Gill cash in their gift cards

The GT template has been to be measured for the first three overs in order to assess the conditions. However, that doesn’t mean they will look a gift horse in the mouth. Mohammed Shami, a former GT player, looked sluggish and kept missing his line. Gill got a pick-up six in the first over, and Sai Sudharsan cut and pulled five fours in the third.On top of that, Pat Cummins dished out three half-volleys in his first over to let Gill catch up with Sai Sudharsan. The result was GT’s best-ever powerplay at 82 for 0, but also another undesirable statistic for SRH. GT scored 79 of those 82 runs with shots they were in control of, the third-highest of the season; three of the top four, including the top, have come against SRH bowlers.1:59

A tale of two opening duos: how SRH and GT are so different

Gill, Buttler continue to flourish

By the time the SRH bowlers got a hang of things, they needed nothing short of a collapse to make a comeback into the contest. All they managed was one wicket, that of Sai Sudharsan, on a late cut off a Zeeshan Ansari wrong’un. Two quiet overs followed, but then Gill started to pierce gaps with surgical precision. He didn’t need any gifts anymore. In fact, he offered SRH one when he slowed down in an attempt to take what is now regarded a regulation single to short fine leg.The resultant run-out gave SRH their best period in the field. Cummins began to use the middle of the pitch, Jaydev Unadkat followed suit, and 17 balls went without a boundary. Buttler, who looked like the extreme heat – it was 41 degrees at the start of the match – was getting to him, then took a few risks and brought the innings back on track. Of GT’s top three batters, he faced the toughest conditions and bowling, which showed in his slower strike rate. But his 64 off 37 balls was key to GT getting the above-par score they had threatened all along.

Abhishek, Head start quickly; but is it quick enough?

Abhishek danced down at Mohammed Siraj off the first ball he faced, and lofted him over wide long-off. Travis Head crashed his second ball through the covers for four. They punished the new ball the best they could, but still, at 45 for 0 in four overs, they were barely keeping up with the asking rate.1:58

Shubman Gill’s runout – the Time Out verdict

Then came Prasidh

Prasidh has been using hard lengths and changes of pace all IPL to be among the top wicket-takers, but on a pitch with low bounce, he decided to do away with slower balls. He just kept banging the middle of the pitch from his high release to trouble the batters. Well, Prasidh did try one yorker early, which Head managed to squeeze out for a four in what would be the only boundary off Prasidh.The next ball got big on Head as he attempted a pull, and ended up in a sensational catch for Rashid Khan, who ran 32 metres to his right from deep square-leg, and still had to put in a dive. The tall bowlers then completely blocked boundaries from one end, which left Abhishek as the one fighting. They don’t last when you are chasing such big totals.The asking rate reached 12 at the end of the powerplay, 13 at the end of the ninth over, 14 with ten overs to go, and jumped from 14.57 to 16.33 in one Prasidh over, the 14th. Eventually, the wickets started to fall, and only an off night for Rashid the bowler – he went for 50 runs in three overs, his worst economy in a match – reduced the net-run-rate bonus for GT.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

As quoted by The Manchester Evening News, Dimitar Berbatov has urged Manchester United to make a move for Juventus forward Mario Mandzukic.

What did he say?

The Croatia international had been linked with a move to Old Trafford in the summer transfer window, but a move failed to materialise by the end of the transfer deadline.

Now, Berbatov has thrown his backing behind a potential swoop for Mandzukic, and insisted he could have a similar impact to a former Old Trafford hero.

The indoor football skills in the video below have to be seen to be believed…

He said: “They have the talent in the young players but at the same time you need someone like Mandzukic. I think he is a really good football player and he hasn’t played before in England but I hope if he comes he can straight away get into the rhythm of the Premier League.

Watch Manchester United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

“Zlatan Ibrahimovic was 34-years-old when he signed for United and he didn’t have any problems. Mandzukic is a similar age and hope he could have the same impact if he signs. I think his age is a good thing, Martial, Rashford and Greenwood are all young players so they need that time and assurance that they don’t need to worry and they can learn from the experience of Mandzukic.”

Experience

Whilst the Juventus man doesn’t have the same kind of goal-scoring pedigree as his Swedish counterpart, there’s no doubting the kind of experience Mandzukic would bring to United would be similarly influential. The Red Devils are a predominantly young team, and have a strike-force including the likes of Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood – all of whom are under the age of 23.

As Berbatov alludes to, Ibrahimovic hit the ground running at United despite arriving in the twilight years of his career, scoring a total of 29 goals in 53 games for the club. Mandzukic’s renowned physical presence would no doubt help him adapt to the rigours of English football, and he could be the perfect stop gap option for Solskjaer’s side.

Shreyas Iyer “has dispelled that notion of taking the game deep,” Daren Ganga says

ESPNcricinfo staff01-May-20252:04

Jaffer: Shreyas is currently India’s best six-hitter

Shreyas Iyer is “probably the best six-hitter” among current Indian batters. This was Wasim Jaffer’s assessment after Iyer led Punjab Kings (PBKS) to victory over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Chepauk in their IPL 2025 contest on Wednesday.Iyer could always take down spin. Recently, he has upped his game against pace, too. With PBKS chasing 191 on Wednesday, he scored 72 off 41 balls with five fours and four sixes. It was his back-to-back sixes against Matheesha Pathirana that shut the door down on CSK. In ten matches so far this season, Iyer has hit 25 sixes, second only to Nicholas Pooran’s 34.”I am really impressed with the way Shreyas Iyer has been hitting sixes,” Jaffer said on ESPNcricinfo’s Time Out show. “We have seen since the 50-over World Cup [in 2023]. [He is] probably the best six-hitter across spin bowling as well as fast bowling.Related

• Shreyas, Prabhsimran and Chahal eliminate CSK

• Ponting: Iyer 'understands the game better than before'

• Hat-trickster Chahal is still making batters look silly

“How easily he dispatches the ball into the crowds – it’s absolutely amazing. He is never in two minds. You hardly see him mistime it. It doesn’t just carry over the boundary, it goes really long. Looks like he has worked really hard at that. Across all the Indian batters, he is somebody who you feel can hit sixes with ease.”Iyer came out to bat in the fifth over of the chase and added 72 off 50 balls with Prabhsimran Singh for the second wicket. When Iyer got out, PBKS needed just three from eight balls.”For me, his mentality when chasing a total stood out,” Daren Ganga, Jaffer’s co-panellist on the show, said. “He has dispelled that notion of taking the game deep. He is someone who will not leave a lot of runs for other batters, which is a critical thing in the modern T20 game.”He really put his team into a commanding position. When it’s two required in the last over, he’s done the heavy lifting that makes it very, very easy for the other batters. Once he’s at the crease, he’s sort of committed to walk the hard yards.”The other thing I’d like to say is when you look at Prabhsimran batting in the powerplay, going deep into the middle phase. And then you have Shreyas Iyer batting all the way into the third phase. You look at the teams that have been successful this season, like a Gujarat Titans (GT), batters are transcending the different phases of the innings. That to me is an essential goal to set internally.”

Captain Hardik Pandya said he expected dew later in the evening

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Apr-20252:43

‘Kishan needs to overcome psychological battle’

Mumbai Indians (MI) chose to bowl in their IPL 2025 home game against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), with the possibility of dew setting in later in the evening prompting their captain Hardik Pandya to take that decision.This was the 13th straight IPL game at the Wankhede Stadium where the captain winning the toss had chosen to bowl. The results in the last 12 games, however, have been even: six wins and six losses for the chasing team.With MI bowling first, Rohit Sharma dropped onto the subs bench, and will likely come on as their Impact Player when they bat.SRH, meanwhile, named a bowler-heavy line-up even though they were batting first, with captain Pat Cummins slated to bat at No. 7. They do, however, have the option of either Abhinav Manohar or Sachin Baby replacing a dismissed top-order batter during the first innings itself, should the need arise to arrest a collapse.Sunrisers Hyderabad: 1 Travis Head, 2 Abhishek Sharma, 3 Ishan Kishan, 4 Nitish Reddy, 5 Heinrich Klaasen (wk), 6 Aniket Verma, 7 Pat Cummins (capt), 8 Harshal Patel, 9 Mohammed Shami, 10 Zeeshan Ansari, 11 Eshan Malinga.
Impact Player options: Abhinav Manohar, Sachin Baby, Jaydev Unadkat, Rahul Chahar, Wiaan Mulder.Mumbai Indians: 1 Ryan Rickelton (wk), 2 Will Jacks, 3 Suryakumar Yadav, 4 Tilak Varma, 5 Hardik Pandya (capt), 6 Naman Dhir, 7 Mitchell Santner, 8 Deepak Chahar, 9 Karn Sharma, 10 Trent Boult, 11 Jasprit Bumrah.
Impact Player options: Rohit Sharma, Corbin Bosch, Ashwani Kumar, Raj Bawa, Robin Minz.

England captain “absolutely delighted” after defending 163 against Sri Lanka

Matt Roller02-Nov-20212:49

Steve Harmison: England held their nerve at crunch times very well

Eoin Morgan was nowhere near his fluent best in Sharjah on Monday night. On a slow pitch with low bounce – at least until the dew had its say – he eked out nine runs off the first 20 balls he faced, and his eventual 40 off 36 was his slowest innings above 30 in an England shirt.But it was also his third-highest score in 37 T20 hits this year, and his partnership of 112 with Jos Buttler dragged England to 163, a total they managed to defend in spite of a wet ball and an injury to Tymal Mills. Bearing in mind the demands of conditions during the first innings, England will hope that it signals a long-awaited run to batting form from their captain ahead of the T20 World Cup’s knockout stages.Related

• Group 1 scenarios – England close on top spot

• England show adaptability to all but seal semi-finals berth

• Buttler lays claim to England's best T20 World Cup innings

“You sort of always have to believe because if you don’t believe, nobody else will,” Morgan said of his first score above 20 in two-and-a-half months. “I always do. Today was a bit of a tougher test. It was nice to be out there with one of my best mates enjoying ourselves – although it was quite tough – but just to get a partnership going and put something on the board to try and defend.”The guys in the powerplay seemed to hit [the ball] lower on their bat a lot. Even Jos, who’s in unbelievable form, really did find it unbelievably tough and when I got to the wicket he talked about just getting something going. And even he struggled to rotate the strike. So [it was about] taking in all that information and realising how tough it is and believing it will get better or you will get a bad ball, even if you don’t you’re still doing the right thing and trusting the process.”We talked about it being as hard as we’d faced just to get the ball away, never mind looking for boundaries. A normal risk-taking shot would have been sweeps, but we didn’t feel sweeps were on with the guys they were bowling and the way the wicket didn’t really bounce at that time, and we’re thankful that we just hung in and trusted in our experience, even in really quiet overs. You know, [it was] shocking really, but we just had nowhere to go, literally nothing to do, and it was better than just slogging it up in the air.”But it was nice being at the other end when he started getting going: he really is unbelievable. [It was] Jos being Jos. From the far end just watching him battle – not as hard as I did – but just battle, and then find rhythm after he took a couple of risks [which] made Sri Lanka bowl differently and then that worked in our favour. But without that absolutely unbelievable knock we’d have been nowhere.”

Watch cricket live on ESPN+

Sign up for ESPN+ and catch all the action from the Men’s T20 World Cup live in the US. Match highlights of England vs Sri Lanka is available here in English, and here in Hindi (US only).

Buttler suggested in his post-match press conference that Morgan’s lean run with the bat had been in part due to the volatility of his role as a finisher. “I think the position he bats in, in T20 cricket, forms a bit of a myth,” he said. But Morgan played down any suggestions that he had looked like his old self towards the end of his innings, after carving Lahiru Kumara and Wanindu Hasaranga for six over wide long-off and hooking Dushmantha Chameera onto the roof.”Me? No, no,” he said. “This ground is very challenging. Maybe if I’d have batted second I might have hit the middle of the bat a bit more but we’ve played games here the last month where coming in, because the ball’s older, a bit darker and the bounce is really low, it’s hard to get going and be free-flowing. Even the guys who came in at the end there felt the same. So the value in that partnership to try and take it longer is obviously worth it as well.”[My acceleration] was after facing a lot of balls and they were due to bowl a bad one. But it’s good, it’s runs on the board, it’s a contribution to winning the game and batting with one of my best mates as well.””I think today he showed an immense amount of character,” Buttler said. “He was very patient. He soaked up balls and gave himself enough time to get us to conditions, and we managed to put together a great partnership. It’s never easy coming in when you’ve lost wickets early on and there’s plenty of the game to go, but I think he certainly enjoyed getting a few out of the middle today and we’re all delighted when we see him play that way.”Myself and Morgs, we’ve played quite a few games now. We just tried to soak up the pressure and build a partnership. We were finding it tricky, and generally if you’re finding it hard work, the guys behind you would probably find it hard work as well, so we didn’t panic; we allowed ourselves time and tried to take the options against the bowlers we felt more comfortable against, and at the nets we felt more comfortable against, with one shorter side on the ground.”England’s win was Morgan’s 43rd as a captain in T20 internationals (including Super Overs), taking him clear of Asghar Afghan’s record, and some rare signs of emotion in the field demonstrated his relief at managing to defend a score in a tournament where that has been a challenge. “I’m absolutely delighted,” he said. “We’re having fun. I might not look like it, but yeah, we are.”

Jones fifty, Wyatt fireworks help England to sixth-highest ODI total

Valkerie Baynes26-Sep-2021If you had asked England to script their own season finale, their Canterbury tale would have been it to the letter.Proud Kent batter Tammy Beaumont scored a fine century in front of her home crowd and Amy Jones stamped her return to form with a quick-fire 60, freeing Danni Wyatt to pepper the flats on the Spitfire Ground’s edge with sixes to take England to their sixth-highest ODI total.They were helped by some lacklustre bowling and wretched fielding by New Zealand, whose batters subsequently had no reply in pursuit of a 348-run target as England bowled them out inside 36 overs to win by 203 runs and seal the series 4-1.An England batting line-up that had failed to fire collectively and too often relied on a saviour or lower-order partnerships – sometimes both – finally managed to hunt in a pack again with brutal effect.Since her dominant 97 in the first T20I at Chelmsford to open New Zealand’s tour, Beaumont’s only other score of note was 44 in the first ODI in Bristol. In between she had scored 13 and 3 in the other two T20s and 12, 1 and 16 in the ODIs.But she was in her element on Sunday, striking back-to-back fours off Molly Penfold as she and Lauren Winfield-Hill guided England to 55 without loss at the end of the Powerplay.Later, Beaumont smashed three fours off one Lea Tahuhu over as she and Jones put on 97 runs for the fourth wicket.Opener Winfield-Hill, who has struggled to covert starts this summer, was dropped four times en route to 43 before Hayley Jensen had her held at midwicket by Amy Satterthwaite, who a short time earlier had parried a chance over her head off the same batter and bowler.Winfield-Hill had produced some fine shots, pulling Tahuhu for six, smashing Penfold for four over long-on and powering Hayley Jensen through wide long-off for another four and when she fell, England were 95 for 1.When Heather Knight, centurion in England’s series-clinching win in Derby on Thursday and Player of the Series following that innings and her 89 in Bristol, was strangled down the leg side by Tahuhu, they were 96 for 2 but Beaumont continued to anchor the innings with finesse.Nat Sciver, who came into the match having scored 34 runs from three T20 and three ODI innings of New Zealand’s tour, struck a handy 39 off 38 balls, including seven fours, before she was trapped lbw by Hannah Rowe.That brought Jones to the crease, another middle-order batter in search of a significant contribution against the Kiwis. She showed signs with 40 in Derby but her 46-ball 60 was another step up.Dropped on 32 when Jensen failed to take a return catch, Jones skipped down the pitch to heave Satterthwaite over deep extra cover for six and brought up her fifty off just 36 balls with a cut through deep point for four.When Jones was out tamely spooning Sophie Devine to Tahuhu at extra cover and Beaumont followed nine balls later, caught by Suzie Bates at mid-on off Rowe, England were 268 for 5 and they weren’t done by a long way.Sophia Dunkley and Danni Wyatt put on another 79 runs, Wyatt positively scintillating with 43 not out off just 20 balls, including three powerful sixes over the leg side and another pummelled beyond deep extra cover. Their stand knocked all the air out of an already deflated New Zealand attack.The White Ferns started a mammoth run-chase sedately, taking 36 balls to score their first boundary.Having lost Bates to Anya Shrubsole and Lauren Down and Maddy Green to Sophie Ecclestone, Kate Cross then cut a swathe through the New Zealand middle order.Cross had Satterthwaite caught on 6 by Sciver, making up for an earlier mistake that let the same batter off on 2. She then trapped Devine lbw and ripped out Katey Martin’s off-stump as she swung across the line and missed to put New Zealand at 90 for 6.Knight brought herself into the attack and claimed three wickets – including two in three balls to remove Brooke Halliday and Rowe. Charlie Dean then had Tahuhu caught by Winfield-Hill to seal the result with a thumping win that belied the competitive nature of the series.

It came down to 20 off the final over and six off the last ball but Mustafizur held his nerve

Vishal Dikshit03-Sep-2021A fighting New Zealand side lifted themselves from the pits of 60 all out a couple of days ago to nearly stun Bangladesh. They needed six off the last ball but managed just a single as Bangladesh continued their wonderful run of wins – their sixth in seven games.In pursuit of a stiff 142 on another slow and turning pitch, captain Tom Latham tried seeing his side home with an unbeaten 65 off 49, but with lack of experience at the other end combined with the lack of pace offered by the Bangladesh quicks meant they fell short.New Zealand needed 36 from 18, 20 off the last over and 13 off two balls when Mustafizur Rahman delivered a beamer that Latham edged for four. This brought the equation to eight off two with a free hit to come. Rahman then sent down two deliveries that didn’t have any length or room to work with, and all Latham could manage was three runs off them.An unchanged Bangladesh batted first on a track that turned from ball one again. They were set up first by an opening stand of 59 between Mohammad Naim and Liton Das and later by an unbeaten 37 off 32 from captain Mahmudullah. The New Zealand spinners couldn’t quite apply the pressure early on like they did two days ago, but Rachin Ravindra’s 3 for 22, which accounted for the top three, meant the hosts didn’t run away to a 150-plus total.Latham nearly takes them through
Captain Latham promoted himself to No. 3 and dropped anchor once they were 18 for 2. He knew attacking was no good on a turning pitch, so the best chance was to take the game deep and try and hit out in the end. And he did exactly that. He first stitched a steady 43-run stand for the third wicket with Will Young. He looked content by going just over run a ball until the 14th over to take them to 85 for 3.When he slog-swept a slower delivery from Mohammad Saifuddin for six to bring the equation to 57 from 36, Bangladesh were still on top. New Zealand lost two more wickets in the next two overs to spinners, but Latham found boundaries in each of the last four overs to make sure the equation didn’t go completely out of hand.He lofted Shakib Al Hasan over the covers, heaved Mustafizur wide of long-on, ramped Saifuddin over the keeper, and expertly edged a beamer from Mustafizur in the last over. But when it came to the last two balls of the match against the wily Mustafizur, Latham couldn’t get the deliveries away that were right on the money.Hardly any partners for Latham
New Zealand’s most experienced batter in the squad gave them an unlikely chance of winning and the result might have been different had he found some support at the other end. Apart from Young’s 22 off 28, they all crumbled against spin again.A nervy Ravindra struck Shakib for a straight six but was bowled next ball for 10, Tom Blundell was stumped for 6 when he charged down against a straighter one from Mahedi Hasan, and Young sliced one to short third man off Shakib. Colin de Grandhomme scored eight off his first nine balls but fell as soon as he took the aerial route, handing a catch to deep backward square leg and Henry Nicholls top-edged his fifth ball.New Zealand will still take a lot from this game, having taken a full-strength Bangladesh to the last ball, and not looking as clueless as they did in the first game, or like Australia last month.Mohammad Naim and Liton Das gave Bangladesh a solid start•AFP

Bangladesh’s solid opening stand
After 13 wickets fell in under 27 overs in the opening game, Liton and Naim gave the hosts a wicketless powerplay after eight T20I innings. New Zealand started with spinners again, but a circumspect Naim and a risk-taking Liton set a strong base with 36 in the powerplay. Liton was even given a life on 0 in the second over when de Grandhomme put down a sitter at square leg and Liton continued to find leading edges, also collecting two fours off Ajaz Patel in the next over to kickstart the innings.Ravindra, Ajaz apply the brakes before Mahmudullah accelerates
Ravindra was brought into the attack late compared to the other spinners and he was smoked over midwicket for a six in the 10th over by Liton. But the left-arm spinner struck two balls later when Liton chopped on in strange fashion by going across to turn a delivery from well outside off to leg, only to deflect it onto his stumps.Ravindra handed the hosts another blow as he deceived the promoted Mushfiqur Rahim in flight as Latham effected a smart stumping. Rahim was out for a golden duck. On a hat-trick by then, he nearly had Shakib first ball when he almost chipped a return catch. Shakib then counterattacked for two quick fours but went after one too many and holed out to long-off to leave the hosts on 72 for 3.Mahmudullah and Naim steered them to the death overs in which Ravindra got his third and Ajaz his first when both Naim and Afif Hossain found long-on in a bid to accelerate. The captain came to the rescue to post a competitive total by using Doug Bracewell’s pace. Mahmudullah struck two fours in an over twice against Bracewell, in the 15th and 19th overs, and collected another 11 in the last over with Nurul Hasan off Hamish Bennett.

Anisa Mohammed to lead the team again in the absence of regular captain Stafanie Taylor

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Sep-2021Qiana Joseph, the 20-year-old left-arm seamer, returned to West Indies Women’s ODI squad that will face South Africa in a five-match series starting September 7. Joseph had broken into the side as a teenager back in 2017. She played two ODIs against England and was never seen in maroon again until just a few days ago, when she was brought back into the fold for the T20Is against South Africa.The West Indies selectors have confirmed a squad of 13 for the first two ODIs against South Africa, which also features the return of seam bowler Aaliyah Alleyne. She hasn’t played a one-dayer since the Covid-19 pandemic struck but was part of the T20I team that took on Dane van Niekerk’s side last week, picking up two wickets from three matches at an economy rate of 7.12.Offspinner Anisa Mohammed will lead West Indies once again with Stafanie Taylor still unavailable after it emerged that she was a close contact of a person with Covid-19. Caneisha Isaac, who was part of West Indies’ last ODI assignment, against Pakistan, has lost her place in the squad but her compatriots Shakera Selman and Rashada Williams are part of a provisional squad that CWI has named for this five-match series against South Africa.Lead selector for women’s cricket, Ann Browne-John said: “The T20I series [against South Africa] had some creditable performances and some of the young players have started to come through. Now that the CG Insurance ODI series is at hand, the players have to change their mindset and adjust to the longer format.”The captain, Stafanie Taylor, will also miss this series but it gives an opportunity for players to put up their hand and start to build on their performances as the team continues to prepare for the ICC Cricket World Cup qualifiers [which kicks off from November 21].”Squad for the first two ODIs: Anisa Mohammed (capt), Deandra Dottin (vice-capt), Aaliyah Alleyne, Britney Cooper, Shamilia Connell, Shabika Gajnabi, Chinelle Henry, Qiana Joseph, Kycia Knight, Kyshona Knight, Hayley Matthews, Chedean Nation, Karishma RamharackProvisional squad: Anisa Mohammed (capt), Deandra Dottin (vice-capt), Aaliyah Alleyne, Reniece Boyce, Shamilia Connell, Britney Cooper, Cherry Ann Fraser, Shabika Gajnabi, Sheneta Grimmond, Chinelle Henry, Qiana Joseph, Kycia Knight, Kyshona Knight, Hayley Matthews, Chedean Nation, Karishma Ramharack, Shakera Selman, Rashada Williams

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Lots of QPR fans have taken to Twitter to hit back after former defender Joel Lynch subtly labelled the club a ‘mediocre’ side.

Speaking to The Chronicle about his decision to join Sunderland this summer, the 31-year-old said: “I’ve always been at that sort of mediocre level – I’ve never been in the playoffs or been in a successful team so the challenge of coming here and being successful really appeals to me.”

While his words may well have been said in an innocent fashion, it has caused a great deal of offence to a number of QPR supporters.

His comments seem to have sparked even more of a fierce reaction given how poorly the Wales international performed whilst with the R’s.

Two fans below labelled Lynch as one of the worst defenders they have ever seen play for their club.

Back in August, meanwhile, another referenced his terrible ability when criticising centre-back Yoann Barbet this season – he was so bad, it seems as though his awful performances are being used as a benchmark in which to compare other below-par performers.

Let’s take a look at some more of the Twitter reaction…

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