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From 83 for 5, West Indies recovered to set Ireland a target of 258, and proceeded to win by 52 runs with Kemar Roach picking up four vital wickets

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Mar-2018Getty Images

West Indies, looking to finish top of their World Cup Qualifier group and carry maximum points into the Super six stage, ran into some trouble against Ireland, falling to 83 for 5 after being sent in to bat. Enter Rovman Powell. After a cautious and at times edgy beginning – he was 9 off 34 balls at one stage and enjoyed some luck – he exploded to compile a run-a-ball hundred and lift his side to 257 for 8.That proved beyond Ireland’s reach, despite a controlled half-century from Ed Joyce, who put on useful stands with the O’Brien brothers and kept them in the game for a significant period.There was a sense of Ireland building up a proper head of steam too. The stand of 64 between Joyce and Niall O’Brien came at a run rate of 4.46, as the fourth-wicket pair rebuilt after their team had slipped to 32 for 3; Joyce and Kevin O’Brien then added 70 off 69 balls. At one stage, Ireland needed 92 off 83 balls with six wickets in hand.Kemar Roach, however, dismissed both Joyce and the younger O’Brien in the same over, dealing a body blow to Ireland’s hopes. They were eventually bowled out for 205 in the 47th over of their innings. Roach, who also took the key wickets of Paul Stirling and Andy Balbirnie early on, finished with figures of 4 for 27. There were four wickets for Kesrick Williams as well, and two for the captain Jason Holder.Powell’s was the first instance of a century coming from No. 7 or lower for West Indies in ODIs. He was ably assisted by his captain Jason Holder, who made his second-successive 50-plus score of the tournament.Ireland made excellent use of bowling first in conditions that suited their fast bowlers early on. There had been overnight rain in Harare and the pitch retained a tinge of green when the West Indian openers walked out to bat. Chris Gayle was repeatedly beaten on the outside edge before it was eventually taken. Evin Lewis was surprised by extra bounce, spooning a catch to point. Marlon Samuels got a jaffa that angled into him and straightened to flick his glove through to the keeper.The man doing much of the damage was Tim Murtagh, the 36-year-old seamer whose control more than made up for his lack of pace. And, in any case, it was Boyd Rankin’s job to hustle the batsmen, his 6’7″ frame coming in more than handy as he banged the ball into the pitch.The spinners Andy McBrine and George Dockrell took over in the middle overs, assisted by a pitch that revealed itself to be a slow turner once the early moisture dissipated. Holder and Powell battled hard to keep West Indies afloat; their 86-run partnership almost exclusively comprised of singles between the 18th and 26th overs before the West Indies captain began dictating terms.Holder finished with 54 off 71 balls, the landmark achieved with a monstrous six over wide long-on. He could, however, have been dismissed for 17 if Paul Stirling had held on to a return catch generated by his part-time offbreaks. Eleven runs later, he survived a run-out chance with his partner indulging in a last-minute change of mind about a single to square leg.Powell enjoyed a couple of lives as well: he was on 18 when a leading edge off the bowling of Dockrell was shelled by Gary Wilson running back and to his left from mid-off. On 39, he top-edged a pull that went straight up but the keeper was unable to catch up with the ball, which landed harmlessly near the middle of the pitch.Powell needed to take such risks, though, with time running out. He pulled Rankin down the ground with stinging disdain and later hit him over the top. West Indies lost a lot of firepower when Carlos Brathwaite ran himself out in the 45th over but Powell persisted until the end, doing exactly what his team needed off him.

Heath Streak robustly defended himself against allegations of racism as the fallout from the World Cup Qualifier continues

Danyal Rasool08-Apr-2018The fallout from Zimbabwe Cricket’s decision to sack Heath Streak, along with the entire coaching staff, in response to the side’s failure to qualify for next year’s World Cup escalated with Streak hitting back against accusations that he was racist. Days after removing the coaching staff – a decision that provoked strong opinion in Zimbabwe – the chairman of ZC Tavengwa Mukuhlani had implied that some of Streak’s decisions were based on racism.”Streak was the coach and selector, he was entitled to change the team as he found fit but the question is: why did he change the team in the manner that he did?” Mukuhlani told . “The white players knew PJ Moor was going to play [against UAE] but none of the black players knew about it. Cephas Zhuwao was only informed [that he wouldn’t play] in the warm-up. Why didn’t Streak inform the entire team?”Streak had dismissed those allegations in the immediate aftermath of them being made, accusing the ZC chairman of “clutching at straws”. He also said “anyone close to me knows I’m the least racist person ever.”On Sunday, as the divisions over the sackings and accusations continued to brew, Streak took to social media to once again reject allegations of racism, as well as accusing ZC of being unethical, treating people badly and lacking any cricketing experience.”I’ve been accused by the chairman of ZC of being a racist, I find this preposterous and laughable and even to respond to them for people who know me, is lowering my standards,” Streak said, speaking in Ndebele, an indigenous Zimbabwean language. “But I just want to make a few things notable. Our selection panel consisted of myself, Tatenda Taibu and Douglas Hondo. They are always consulted, and we always reached consensus on our teams.”Graeme Cremer was not a selector, but he gave advice, and we also spoke to other guys outside, including the franchise coaches at times, to give us some of their thoughts. The allegations that during the WCQ, I dropped black players for white players is also ludicrous. When I dropped people like Kyle Jarvis for Tendai Chisoro nothing was said, but when I dropped Cephas Zhwao for PJ Moor, then I’m a racist.”Those who are around me and who know me and are most important to me as in the players can vouch for that [I’m not a racist]. Why do all these people that the chairman claims are accusing me of racism, why do they not come out in public and say that themselves? Let’s see that. This is not about Heath Streak and Tatenda Taibu being fired, this is a bigger thing. If you look at the collective time all the coaches who were fired have put into playing for Zimbabwe and the time we’ve spent coaching, it amounts to decades.”I think the way we’ve been treated, the way we were fired, it just isn’t right, and it’s not ethical that you can treat people like that. Am I’m just really sad that five of eight Level 3 coaches have been fired like Zimbabwe Cricket. We have people like physiotherapists and trainers who have nothing to do with how the team performs. They are not technical staff, they are there to get people fit and on the park, and they can’t be fired. I think that’s ludicrous and just wrong.”Streak also highlighted the beleaguered financial state Zimbabwean cricket found itself in, saying most of the staff had only been paid 40% of their salaries, including himself and batting coach Lance Klusener. He said they still hadn’t been paid their salaries for the month of February, and that salary delays and non-payment of match fees were part of the “huge debt” ZC had to service. The cash crunch has meant Zimbabwe did not complete the current season of the Logan Cup, their premier domestic competition, as Zimbabwe looked to upgrade facilities at several venues ahead of the World Cup Qualifiers last month.Graeme Cremer and Sikandar Raza discuss in the middle•IDI via Getty Images

“These are things the ICC, as a Full Member country require us to complete as part of our membership and as part of getting our disbursements from ICC,” Streak said. “So by not doing this we risk some of these things, and I think the ZC need to have a long hard look at themselves.”Streak concluded by pointing out the lack of cricketing experience on the board of ZC. “How many cricketers are there on the ZC board, I ask? Every other board in the world has a number of cricketers, ex-cricketers and people who’ve played at a decent level. We don’t even have one cap of domestic cricket on the current board. So how do they make decisions, cricket-based decisions, affect people whose livelihoods and finances are dependent on that?”Former Zimbabwean spinner Ray Price, who played under Streak’s captaincy, told ESPNcricinfo that Streak “didn’t have a racist bone in his body”, and accused ZC of deflecting attention from the real issues the country’s cricket faced.Price, who promoted a protest on his Facebook page against the sacking of Streak and his staff at the ZC headquarters on April 3, told ESPNcricinfo: “The statement that Heath is a racist is just laughable. Also, if he was racist all his staff would have been white, when instead it consists of three white members and four black members. Why can’t ZC just stick to the cricket issues with Heath and his support staff? Calling Heath a racist is just a way for them to get away from talking about the real cricket issues in our beloved country.”We need a new board. The board needs to be made up of people who have played cricket for our country, black or white. Racism is not the problem in Zimbabwean cricket. Bad cricket management is the problem. The people in Zimbabwe have seen enough of ZC making excuses, we want to see cricket moving forward.”Zimbabwe’s next international assignment comes at home against Australia in July, followed by Pakistan visiting in August.

If Jos Buttler can turn IPL brilliance into a Test place, perhaps Tom Kohler-Cadmore can make enough white-ball runs to make Yorkshire think again in the Championship

ECB Reporters Network and ESPNcricinfo staff18-May-2018
ScorecardYorkshire were in a ruthless mood on the day when Durham unveiled the Paul Collingwood Pavilion at Emirates Riverside, crushing them by 142 runs in their opening match in the Royal London One-Day Cup.Tom Kohler-Cadmore made his first start for Yorkshire in the 50-over format one to remember as he scored a career-best 164, dominating the Durham bowlers with a number of impressive shots to the boundary.Yorkshire’s total of 328 put Durham under pressure and their batting line-up was not able to rise to the occasion. Adil Rashid ripped through the lower order claiming figures of 4 for 47 to guide his team to a comfortable victoryKohler-Cadmore, who averages 31 in first-class cricket, has rarely seemed in Yorkshire;s plane for the longer format but if Jos Buttler can use IPL to force his way back into England’s Test side, anything is possible.He made his intentions known from the off, dispatching early boundaries off Natham Rimmington and James Weighell beginning the innings with momentum. Adam Lyth offered support in the early stages, with the opening duo reaching their fifty partnership in the eighth over. Yorkshire pressed forward, but Lyth was out going for on big strike too many for 30 when he was caught by Stuart Poynter off the bowling of Matthew Potts.His opener partner continued his assault as he reached his fifty from 50 balls, while the visitors brought the 100 up in the 17th over. Cheteshwar Pujara provided a solid foil for Kohler-Cadmore at the other end of the crease. Kohler-Cadmore took centre stage continuing his brilliant knock by reaching his third one-day century off 114 deliveries, which included 10 fours and two sixes.He stepped on the accelerator after notching his hundred. dominating his partnership with Pujara, which passed the 100-run mark when the opener smashed a huge six off the bowling of Weighell.However, he was then dismissed for a career-best 164 when he was caught on the boundary by Smith off George Harding. Pujara passed fifty to guide Yorkshire beyond 300, with Yorkshire posting 328 for 4 in their 50 overs, although he and Harry Brook were dismissed in back-to-back balls by Potts.Collingwood opted to open the batting for the first time in his Durham career since 2000 with Graham Clark. However, both were dismissed cheaply as Ben Coad and Tim Bresnan made early inroads into the home side’s line-up. Tom Latham failed to fire on his first appearance of the campaign loosely driving a Stephen Patterson delivery to Brook.A suicidal run-out saw the end of Will Smith before Rashid snagged the wicket of Ryan Pringle. Michael Richardson offered resistance in the middle order until he fell lbw to Rashid for 43, while the leg-spinner then removed James Weighell. Potts and Poynter made late runs, but Yorkshire were able to wrap the win with ease.

Logistical and financial issues have been cited as reasons, although the parallel men’s tour of Ireland will go ahead as planned

Liam Brickhill30-Jun-2019The Zimbabwe women team have pulled out of their tour of Ireland, citing funding and logistical issues. They were due to arrive in Ireland on Sunday ahead of a one-day and T20 series double-header with the men’s side, who are already in Ireland, but did
not travel. The ongoing impasse between Zimbabwe’s Sports and Recreation Commission (ZSRC) and the suspended Zimbabwe Cricket board appears to be the cause of the cancellation.”We received correspondence late this afternoon from Zimbabwe Cricket in which we were informed that due to a funding issue, Zimbabwe Cricket will not be sending their women’s team to Ireland,” Cricket Ireland (CI) chief executive Warren Deutrom said in a statement.”With the team due to arrive on Sunday, there is clearly no time to find an alternative and, after urgent consultation with the ICC to seek clarification, we regret to confirm the women’s tour has been cancelled. This will not, however, impact upon the men’s tour
which will proceed as scheduled,” Deutrom added.The T20 part of the series was supposed to have provided vital preparation for the upcoming ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier, for both Ireland and Zimbabwe, and CI have been left scrambling for an alternative. “We will look into alternative arrangements so our senior women’s team will not be completely disadvantaged by these disappointing circumstances,” Deutrom said.The cancellation of the women’s tour is yet another chapter of the turmoil that has engulfed Zimbabwean cricket since the SRC, who are the governing body of all sporting associations in Zimbabwe, suspended the Tavengwa Mukuhlani-led ZC board and installed an interim
committee in their place.The SRC has alleged that the suspended officials have sought to intimidate the remaining ZC staff into vacating their roles, and ZC’s offices have been virtually empty over the past week.While the SRC claim to be acting in the best interests of cricket in the country, the suspension and subsequent power struggle are threatening to completely disrupt the sport and Zimbabwe are in danger of losing their ICC membership. Both the former and current ZC
leadership are understood to be in contact with the ICC, who are yet to comment on the matter.”It is not without coincidence that staff continue not to return to work despite clear messages from both the SRC and the interim committee that they should do so,” SRC board chairman Gerald Mlotshwa said earlier this week. “The absence from work on Monday has
severely compromised the ladies (team) preparations for their tour of Ireland.”There continues to be a clear and deliberate effort to sabotage Zimbabwe Cricket by some of the suspended ZC officials. A formal police report has now been made regarding these shenanigans. It appears that every effort is being made to frustrate an inquiry into the financial affairs of Zimbabwe Cricket, key amongst these issues being the assessment of a debit of some US$2.8 million on ZC’s account with a local banking institution with historical ties to it.”The police have been alerted to this issue as well, as it is clear that no co-operation will be forthcoming from those with knowledge of the details and reasons for this historical debit,” said Mlotshwa.

“Obviously we are down right now but it has to change at some point, and the change can start from now,” Roston Chase says

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Oct-20253:31

Sammy: ‘Our problems are rooted deep into our system’

Away in the Caribbean, Cricket West Indies has got the best minds in the game in the region to chalk out a way out of the abyss – call it 27 all out if you will – the national team has fallen in, at a time when there is talk of the World Test Championship being split into two tiers. Roston Chase, the Test captain, is aware of all this and is hoping for ” that start and to then kick on from there” when they face India for the second and last time in the ongoing series in Delhi.”Obviously we are down right now but it has to change at some point, and the change can start from now,” Chase said a day away from the start of the second Test, where West Indies would be hoping to bounce back after an innings defeat in the first Test. “But it starts with the belief and the mindset of each and every player, and just keep motivating the guys that we can still play some positive cricket.”In Ahmedabad, in the first Test of the series, West Indies put up 162 and 146. They had two individual scores in the 30s – Justin Greaves in the first innings and Alick Athanaze in the second. Their best partnership was worth 46, in 87 balls, in the second innings between Greaves and Athanaze. Not good enough, especially when the opposition has three century-makers in their only innings and have declared on 448 for 5.Related

• West Indies' Test-match batting a symptom of far deeper issues

• Brian Lara asks West Indies players to 'find a way'

• Sammy: 'We did not reap financial rewards' of our legacy

• Cricket West Indies announces short- and long-term reforms

“I don’t think the guys are lacking confidence. But it’s just to get that one score, to get that start and to then kick on from there,” Chase said. “It just takes one… get that good innings or that hundred or that big fifty, that then gives you the confidence to actually think ‘I can do it’.”I think everyone is confident, but when we get out there, we didn’t start well as a batting unit and the pressure is on, and it’s for us to soak up that pressure as batters, and still find a way to score, put pressure back on to the Indian bowlers. That is the biggest challenge for us. We just need to get that start and kick on. And we’ll be fine.”Chase’s own Test career has been an intriguing one. He has now played 53 Tests, but has an average of 25.57. To go with a bowling average of 46.25. He scored a century in just his second Test, against India in Kingston in July 2016, and then had two more centuries by his tenth Test. In the 43 since, he has scored just two more, and none at all in his last 24, where he has crossed 50 only four times.”I can’t really speak for anyone [else], but for myself, I just think it’s a matter of confidence and continuously playing quality first-class cricket and so on. Just that knowhow and facing good attacks for longer periods, and obviously, trying to improve on faults you may have picked up early on in your career,” Chase said. “Obviously, when you first start, no one really knows you, and then, obviously, [you] play a couple of games and people see your weaknesses and try to exploit them. So it’s for the players to just improve on those weaknesses from as early as possible. That’s it.Roston Chase hasn’t scored a century in his last 24 Tests•Associated Press

“It’s just digging deep for those four sessions and trying to stay in the now and not what has happened before in terms of the ball before or the over before. Just staying in the present is the biggest challenge for me right now. That’s something I have to go with.”Chase has played franchise T20 leagues in the past, in the ILT20, the Bangladesh Premier League, the Global T20 Canada, apart from the CPL, of course. While he is still a CPL player for St Lucia Kings, he wants to commit his future to West Indies, and to Test cricket.”It was always my dream to play for West Indies. I had a chance to play franchise cricket and I still have opportunities to play franchise cricket. But I have given that up,” he said. “So I cannot say that I am not hungry or not hungry, because this is what I wanted to do. I gave up my chance to play franchise cricket and I have taken up the captaincy role [in Tests], which is a big step.”So that just goes to show that I want to be here. I want to play for the Maroon. And I have always given my all for the Maroon.”

Rahane’s lean patch over the last two years could happen to anyone, says Indian captain as he backs his deputy

Vishal Dikshit in Mumbai30-Jul-2019Despite an up-and-down 2018 in Test cricket and a difficult county stint this year, India’s Test vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane has received the backing of captain Virat Kohli, who reaffirmed that he thought of his colleague as a “solid player”. Speaking before the tours of the USA and the West Indies, where India will play their maiden World Test Championship series, Kohli expected Rahane to “come around” as he has “done the job under pressure”.Once a mainstay in India’s batting line-up, especially on away tours, Rahane was left out of the first two Tests on the South Africa tour last year before returning to the XI for the entire England and Australia series, as well as the West Indies series at home. But, in this period, Rahane didn’t look like the confident batsman of the past, especially in 2014. Since his last Test century – 28 innings ago and spanning nearly two years – Rahane has made only five 50-plus scores. He averages 24.85 during this period.Kohli, however, believes there is no need to “jump the gun” on a player like Rahane because of the composure and the reliability he brings.”Jinks [Rahane] has been a solid player for us through and through and that’s always been our communication,” Kohli said. “He is one of the most sorted guys. Really, really composed, reads the game well also, priceless fielder, we have all seen the impact he can make in Test cricket with his slip catching and everything. I think under pressure he has performed really well. The guy averages 43 (40.55) in Test cricket, it’s not like he is in the early 30s. I don’t think we should jump the gun on someone like Jinks because he has done the job for you under pressure.”Rahane had been the vice-captain for the 2018 South Africa tour too, but his Mumbai team-mate Rohit Sharma was preferred in the XI for the first two Tests because of “the way he (Rohit) was batting against Sri Lanka and in the ODI format,” Kohli explained. On returning to the XI, Rahane scored a fighting 48 at No. 6 in the third innings of the Test, helping India secure their only win by 63 runs.He then went on to score two half-centuries each in England and Australia but his average in those series were 25.70 and 31 respectively, much below the standards he had set for himself at the beginning of his career. Since his 132 against Sri Lanka in August 2017, he has averaged below nine other Indian batsmen who have played at least ten innings in that period.Rahane has turned to first-class cricket several times in this phase: against England Lions before the England Tests last year, versus New Zealand A prior to the Australia Tests, and a county stint this summer with Hampshire. In the county circuit, he began with a century against Nottinghamshire, his first in 39 first-class innings, but couldn’t keep up the tempo. He was unable to score a half-century in the remaining 11 innings and even bagged a pair against Essex, playing all of three balls in the match.What lies ahead of him is a two-Test series in the West Indies, where the hosts’ fast bowlers have troubled many a team recently. Not to forget, Rohit, fresh from hitting five centuries at the World Cup, is breathing down his neck for a spot in the XI.”It’s a patch that anyone can go through but I think he will come around because he is that good a player and when he does, we know he can be very consistent,” Kohli said. “He is one of the pillars of our batting order that we can bank on. Him and [Cheteshwar] Pujara, as I’ve said, have been our most solid Test players. I am sure along with Puji playing so well, myself at No. 4, Jinks will also come into the groove and once he starts scoring, he can spring in scores on a consistent basis.”We are not at all worried about where he’s placed. It’s about giving him confidence and he really wants to turn it around. That’s the most important thing and that’s all that matters.”

Test cricket’s newest entrants will almost exclusively play only one-off Tests, while Zimbabwe will face India after 14 years

Sreshth Shah21-Jun-20181:33

The new ICC FTP: an explainer

England v Ireland in July 2019, Australia v Afghanistan in November 2021 and an India v Zimbabwe Test after 14 years – these are just some of the fascinating contests lined up in the next five-year cycle for Test cricket’s three bottom-ranked teams, two of whom are just one Test old. In all, Afghanistan and Ireland have been allotted 13 Tests each according to the new FTP while Zimbabwe have 21.Afghanistan and Ireland have been assigned only one-off Tests for the next five years, barring a two-match series between Afghanistan and Zimbabwe in 2021. Zimbabwe, on the other hand, have a wide range of Test series scheduled: eight one-off Tests, five two-Test contests and one three-Test series.Afghanistan’s biggest Test encounter will be against Australia, who they face both at home (September 2022) and away (November 2021). Their next Test is at home against Ireland in February 2019, after which they travel to Zimbabwe and Bangladesh. Afghanistan then host West Indies for a Test in December 2019 before playing Ireland again in March 2020. For the rest of the cycle, Afghanistan play more Tests against Zimbabwe and Ireland.Ireland have not been scheduled a Test against Australia, but play a lot more teams than Afghanistan – even though they’re all solitary games. They play Tests against England (July 2019), Sri Lanka (February 2020) and New Zealand (June 2022) apart from fixtures against West Indies, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.Graphic: Afghanistan and Ireland will play 13 Tests each over the next FTP cycle•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Zimbabwe’s Test fixtures include multiple encounters against Afghanistan and Ireland, but they will also travel for a three-Test tour of Bangladesh (January 2019), an away Test against India (March 2019) and home Tests against West Indies, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh. But Zimbabwe have no Tests scheduled against Australia and South Africa, and no bilateral series against New Zealand and England.The way the FTP has been scheduled, it’s also likely that the teams’ Tests against Ireland and Afghanistan could be used as preparatory matches ahead of tours of England and India.On the limited-overs front, Ireland will play 64 ODIs and 65 T20Is, Zimbabwe will play 59 ODIs and 50 T20Is, and Afghanistan will play 51 ODIs and 45 T20Is. These include Afghanistan’s three ODIs against India (March 2021), Ireland’s six-match tour of New Zealand (June 2020) and South Africa (June 2021), and Zimbabwe’s three-match ODI series against Australia, India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan from June-November 2020. Each of these teams also have multiple white-ball contests against West Indies and Bangladesh.While results from these Tests will not affect the ICC Test Championship, all three teams will keep a keen eye on the 13-team ODI Championship that begins from 2022. Only the top seven teams (plus hosts India) qualify directly from that tournament into the 2023 World Cup. For the rest, it’s a much tougher route.

Ireland spinner was suspended from bowling earlier this year after her action was found to be illegal

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Aug-2025Ireland left-arm spinner Aimee Maguire has been cleared to resume bowling in international cricket with immediate effect.Maguire, 18, was suspended from bowling earlier this year after being reported during the first ODI against India in Rajkot on January 10. Her action was deemed suspect under the ICC’s Illegal Bowling Regulations.Maguire has since remodelled her action and subsequently underwent an independent re-assessment at an ICC-accredited testing centre where she was cleared.”An independent assessment of Maguire’s remodelled bowling action at an ICC accredited testing centre concluded that the amount of elbow extension was within the 15-degree level of tolerance permitted under the ICC Illegal Bowling Regulations,” an ICC release said.Maguire made her ODI and T20I debut against West Indies in July 2023. She has so far played 11 ODIs, where she has picked 16 wickets, with best bowling figures of 5 for 19 against England last year. Maguire has also played nine T20Is, where she has nine wickets at an economy rate of 7.20.The 18-year-old is not part of the Ireland squad that faces Pakistan in a three-match T20I series, which begins in Dublin on Wednesday.

Kerr wasn’t given run-out because the ball was deemed dead, but questions around the incident remain

Shashank Kishore04-Oct-2024There was confusion, and no little anger, as India were at the centre of an umpiring controversy during their women’s T20 World Cup match against New Zealand in Dubai on Friday, which India lost by 58 runs.They felt they had a legitimate wicket – a run-out of Amelia Kerr – but it wasn’t to be, with the umpires deciding the ball was dead when the dismissal was effected.The appeal for the run-out came after Kerr was caught short of her ground while attempting a second run at the end of the 14th over of New Zealand’s innings. Having hit the ball towards long-off off the last ball of Deepti Sharma’s over, Kerr and Sophie Devine took a single, and didn’t seem to have any plans to push for the second. Deepti asked the umpire to hand her cap back to her and was been given it.However, with Harmanpreet Kaur, the fielder, collecting the ball and ambling in with it in her hands, Kerr and Devine tried pinching a second. Harmanpreet fired the ball in, Richa Ghosh collected it, and broke the stumps with Kerr short of her crease.The umpires – Anna Harris and Jacqueline Williams – decided the ball was dead, and anything that came after, the dismissal in this case, would not count as having occurred with the ball “in play”. Section 20.1.2 of the dead-ball law says: “The ball shall be considered to be dead when it is clear to the bowler’s end umpire that the fielding side and both batters at the wicket have ceased to regard it as in play.”For that moment when the bowler collected her cap and the batters seemed happy with just the single, it is reasonable for the umpire to deem the ball dead. However, the umpires omitted to send the batters back to their respective ends. Kerr should have been back on strike for the start of the next over, but it was Devine who took strike against Renuka Singh and nudged a single. Kerr was out off the following delivery when she hit the ball to Pooja Vastrakar at extra cover, to be dismissed for 13 off 22 balls.Related

• New Zealand grateful for Devine intervention as plans come together in crucial contest

• Rodrigues challenges India to bounce back from shock New Zealand loss

Before that, though, play was held up for over seven minutes, with India head coach Amol Muzumdar visibly upset at the ruling, engaging in an animated chat with the fourth umpire, while Kerr was near the boundary before being called back.Speaking after the game, Jemimah Rodrigues said, “I was not there when the umpire gave the cap to Deepti, but, I mean, New Zealand were pretty sure that it was a double run and Amelia went for it, which showed that the over was not called out yet. And we all thought that, okay, we got that run-out.”What if that run-out wouldn’t happen? Would they give us a two for that. So I think, honestly, that’s not in our control at the end. We respect the decision of the umpire and we were okay with that. But yeah, it’s a bit harsh when Amelia herself walked out because she knew she was out.”Devine, who was batting alongside Kerr, explained she hadn’t heard the umpire call the over and they were trying to pinch a second run. “My understanding is that the ball is dead when the umpire calls ‘over’ and I didn’t hear the umpire call ‘over’,” she said. It was an interesting one, and I guess it broke a little bit of momentum and maybe stalled them [India] a bit.”That’s part of cricket. Interpretation is going to be slightly different. We were always trying to pinch runs here and there because you never know when one run is going to change things. The umpires have a job to do and we respect that, and I sometimes push the boundaries a little bit.””We know how important Amelia’s wicket was, at that moment it felt a little [like] why didn’t it go in our favour,” Rodrigues said. “But, at the same time, I think we did what we can.”We spoke to the umpire. Then we had to accept the decision of the umpire and move on. So I think that’s what we did really well, that we just moved on from that. And we got her out pretty soon. So that works for us.”

Pant will join the Delhi squad in Rajkot ahead of their match against Saurashtra, DDCA secretary Ashok Sharma said

PTI15-Jan-2025 • Updated on 16-Jan-2025Rishabh Pant has made himself available for Delhi’s next Ranji Trophy match, against Saurashtra, beginning in Rajkot on January 23, DDCA secretary Ashok Sharma said on Tuesday. Pant last played a Ranji Trophy match back in the 2017-2018 season.Ravindra Jadeja will also make his first-class return. He last played represented Saurashtra in a first-class game in January 2023.However, there is no clarity over the participation of Virat Kohli, who last featured in the Ranji Trophy for Delhi back in 2012.Related

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• Rohit joins Mumbai training camp in bid to rediscover form

• Gill makes himself available for Punjab's next Ranji Trophy match

Both the India players have been named in Delhi’s list of probables for the remainder of the season.”Yes, Pant has confirmed his availability for next Ranji game and will join the squad in Rajkot directly,” Sharma told PTI. “About Virat Kohli, we want him to play but we haven’t heard from him, while Harshit Rana is selected in the T20 squad [for the England games] and hence is unavailable.”Former India players Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri are among many who want the current crop of India Test players, especially the struggling Rohit Sharma and Kohli, to play red-ball cricket following the series loss in Australia.Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal are also expected to play for their respective state teams, Punjab and Mumbai.Will Virat Kohli return to the Ranji Trophy?•Getty Images

Rohit’s training with the Mumbai team on Tuesday led to plenty of interest but it remains to be seen if he makes himself available for the next round of Ranji Trophy matches.There has also been speculation around Kohli returning to the Ranji Trophy to regain red-ball form. The DDCA naming its star players in the list of probables is the norm, but their inclusion in the final squad is subject to their availability.While Rohit had stood down from the final Test in Australia due to poor form, Kohli’s struggles outside the off stump worsened as his tally of being caught behind swelled to eight over the course of the five Tests.Besides Kohli, Pant and Harshit, Delhi have named 38 probables for the remaining two games. In Group D, Delhi are fourth in the standings with 14 points from five games.