Category Uncategorized

Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders are the first teams to meet for the second time this IPL, and Mumbai are the only team to have defeated Knight Riders so far this season

The Preview by Sirish Raghavan27-Apr-2016

Match facts

Thursday, April 28, 2016
Start time 2000 local (1430 GMT)

Big Picture

Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders have shared the last four IPL titles between them, and their previous matches have served as reminders of why that has been the case. Though Knight Riders had won three of their first four matches, the away win against Rising Pune Supergiants in their fifth match would have been particularly pleasing as it demonstrated that their batting depth can get them out of trouble when Gautam Gambhir and Robin Uthappa fail. Similarly, Mumbai’s win over Kings XI Punjab in Mohali came on the back of a solid top-order showing despite Rohit Sharma’s duck. A strong bowling effort from their pacers made them just the third team – after Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Daredevils – to successfully defend a total this season. As these two star-studded teams begin to harness the depth of their resources, a clash between them is a mouth-watering prospect.They also become the first teams to meet for the second time this season. In their first meeting, at Eden Gardens, Mumbai convincingly gunned down a target of 188. They are the only team to have defeated Knight Riders so far this season. While Knight Riders will be itching to exact revenge, Mumbai will be desperate to win their last match at the Wankhede stadium this season.There is an interesting contrast between Mumbai’s pace-heavy bowling attack – led by Tim Southee, Mitchell McClenaghan and Jasprit Bumrah – and Knight Riders’ spin riches, featuring Sunil Narine, Piyush Chawla and Shakib Al Hasan (with Brad Hogg in the wings). How these markedly different attacks shape up against each other will make for a fascinating sub-plot, with potentially significant implications on the result.

Form guide

Mumbai Indians: WLWLL (most recent matches first)
Kolkata Knight Riders: WWWLW

In the spotlight

Mumbai’s bowling has been driven by Tim Southee’s pace and swing, Mitchell McClenaghan’s aggression and Jasprit Bumrah’s excellent yorkers and variations. To the extent that spin has played a role, Krunal Pandya has shone, combining an economy rate of 6.57 with an average of 30.66. Harbhajan Singh, who is meant to be the lead spinner, has been largely ineffective, with an average of 62.66 and going at 8.54 runs an over. He has played all of Mumbai’s matches so far, but unless he can improve that record, there may be a temptation to look at other spin options.Andre Russell has had a fairly low-key start to the season. He has been expensive with the ball and has had only one innings of substance – a 17-ball 36 against Mumbai – with the bat. Knight Riders already have a wide base of players that are performing but if Russell can hit form as well, that would be a massive boost to the side’s balance and destructive potential.

Team news

Jerome Taylor has been drafted into Mumbai’s squad in place of the injured Lasith Malinga, but is unlikely to break into the XI just yet, considering the fine performances of Mumbai’s pacers. Mumbai might consider giving Corey Anderson a game, perhaps at the expense of the out-of-form Kieron Pollard. Pollard has scored just 71 runs at 17.75 in six innings and leaked 36 runs in three overs on the two occasions he has bowled.Mumbai Indians (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Parthiv Patel (wk), 3 Ambati Rayudu, 4 Jos Buttler, 5 Kieron Pollard/Corey Anderson, 6 Hardik Pandya, 7 Krunal Pandya, 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Tim Southee, 10 Mitchell McClenaghan, 11 Jasprit BumrahHaving shown their batting depth, Knight Riders might be inclined to stick with the same XI.Kolkata Knight Riders (probable): 1 Gautam Gambhir (capt), 2 Robin Uthappa (wk), 3 Suryakumar Yadav, 4 Shakib Al Hasan, 5 Yusuf Pathan, 6 Andre Russell, 7 R Sathish, 8 Piyush Chawla, 9 Umesh Yadav, 10 Sunil Narine, 11 Morne Morkel

Pitch and conditions

The Wankhede Stadium is generally full of runs. The three matches played here so far have yielded progressively higher first-innings totals, with 170 scored in the last match, on April 20. On all three occasions, the totals have been successfully chased down. The forecast is for a hot day, with temperatures expected to hit 36C, and no rain. Given the success teams chasing have enjoyed, and dew potentially being a factor later in the evening, bowling first would presumably be the way to go.

Stats and trivia

• Mumbai’s average opening stand of 12.14 is the lowest among all teams in this IPL
• Of the eight batsmen with 200-plus runs so far this year, Gambhir has hit the fewest sixes (2). He also has the second-lowest strike rate (123.43) among those batsmen, after Ambati Rayudu (121.91)

West Indies legspinner Samuel Badree will mentor Australia’s young spinners as part of Cricket Australia’s spin camp this year

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Apr-2015West Indies legspinner Samuel Badree will mentor Australia’s young spinners as part of Cricket Australia’s spin camp this year. Badree, currently, ranked the No.1 Twenty20 international bowler in the world, will work alongside Cricket Australia’s head spin coach John Davison at the training camp in Brisbane in May.”The knowledge and experience that Sammy Badree can share with our young spinners will be a quality extension to previous programs,” Pat Howard, Cricket Australia’s team performance manager, said. “The spin camp looks to extend the work being done in states and to challenge players on different ways to assess the game and grow personally.”We’re delighted to have Sammy join John Davison and some of the country’s best young spinners for the week, and to build on the expertise Shane Warne and Muthiah Muralidaran have brought to our spin program in the last two seasons.”Badree said: “I am looking forward to being involved in this program to share my experiences and philosophies with the young spinners of Australia and hopefully impart something to them that would make them better players. It’s my first visit to Australia as well and I look forward to the experience.”My greatest success has been in the shorter versions of the game so I hope to impart knowledge based on that, the importance of control when bowling, adapting to different conditions and taking wickets through guile is crucial.”I look forward to being part of the spin week and sharing reasons for success, the pressures of the international game, various T20 leagues and being the No.1 T20 bowler in the world.”A group of 24 spinners will take part in the program, most of whom are yet to play state cricket. However, legspinner Cameron Boyce, who made his T20 international debut last year, is part of the squad, along with Clive Rose, Will Bosisto, Jason Floros and Beau Webster.

Jonathan Trott has said that he would prefer to stay at No.3 during England’s Test series in India after the late inclusion of Kevin Pietersen

David Hopps21-Oct-2012Jonathan Trott has said that he would prefer to stay at No.3 during England’s Test series in India after the late inclusion of Kevin Pietersen had encouraged debate about whether he should be asked to open the innings.Andrew Strauss’ retirement from Test cricket had left England contemplating a choice between two uncapped openers – Yorkshire’s Joe Root and Nick Compton of Somerset – alongside Alastair Cook at the top of the order.But the addition of Pietersen to the squad after his long-standing dispute with the England hierarchy was settled has given England the option of opening with Trott, tried and trusted, and giving Pietersen the No.3 spot that he has made his own in averaging more than 50 over 34 Tests, but whose form has faltered in the past year.”I’ve enjoyed batting No.3 in my career, since my second Test match when I was put in that position, and I feel like I’ve done a pretty good job there,” Trott told . “But, if asked to open I’d have to – or I’d like to – do what the team wants me to. No.3 is my preference but we’ll just have to wait and see. I don’t think it will come to that.”With Pietersen then likely to bat at No.4 and Ian Bell regarded as a certainty in the top six, retaining Trott at three would leave Eoin Morgan, Jonny Bairstow and Samit Patel vying for the final batting spot.Trott became the latest player to voice support for Pietersen’s return after a 73-day exile following his outburst after the end of the Headingley Test against South Africa that he might have played his last Test for England.”Kevin is a world-class player and if you want to be a successful team you need your best players playing,” Trott said. “As long as everything has been straightened out between Kevin, the ECB and the management squad then hopefully everything can be laid to bed – and I think everything has been.”We had our meetings with him – I think that’s been widely reported – and everything went pretty smoothly. I’ve never really had any problem with Kev, I’ve always enjoyed playing with him and it’s time to get back playing some good cricket.”

Cecil Marshall, the former Canada allrounder, who represented the side in the 1979 World Cup died on Saturday aged 71

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Sep-2011Cecil Marshall, the former Canada allrounder, who represented the side in the 1979 World Cup died on Saturday aged 71. His performances in the 1979 ICC Trophy helped Canada qualify for the World Cup. His personal highlight in the qualification campaign was against Malaysia, when he top scored with 77 in a match where no one else made a half-century, before taking 3 for 16. After his Canada career, he played cricket and umpired in Ottawa.

A middle-order collapse, during which Canada lost four wickets for two runs, allowed Ireland to dismiss the hosts cheaply and take a sizeable first-innings lead

Cricinfo staff01-Sep-2010
ScorecardA middle-order collapse, during which Canada lost four wickets for two runs, allowed Ireland to dismiss the hosts cheaply and take a sizeable first-innings lead on the opening day of their Intercontinental Cup match in Toronto. Trent Johnston’s third five-wicket haul was instrumental in limiting Canada to 120, after which Kevin O’Brien’s half-century put Ireland ahead by 70 at stumps.Canada’s decision to bat backfired immediately as both their openers, Ruvindu Gunasekera and Nitish Kumar, were dismissed for 1 each by fast bowler Allan Eastwood. Zubin Surkari and Ashish Bagai began to stage a recovery by adding 53 for the third wicket, but their efforts were unravelled by the collapse, by the end of which Canada were 60 for 6. Johnston took three of those wickets and later dismissed Khurram Chohan and Abzal Dean to finish with 5 for 23. Ireland’s wicketkeeper Rory McCann played an important part in the performance as well, catching five Canada batsmen.Ireland’s innings had a pacy start because of Paul Stirling, who scored 45 off 42 balls. The first-wicket partnership was worth 42, out of which McCann contributed only 4 before he was caught off Chohan. Stirling went shortly after, and Ireland were 58 for 2, but the middle-order batsmen weighed in with useful contributions to cruise past Canada’s total. Andre Botha made 39, O’Brien struck 11 fours in his 57, and Andrew White remained unbeaten on 30 as Ireland ended the day on 190 for 4.

The ground-staff used electric fans and even tried a grass transplant but the outfield remained unfit for play

Ekanth10-Sep-2024The second day of the only Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand in Greater Noida suffered the same miserable fate as the first due to rain, albeit not during hours of play, and the quality of the outfield.The toss was scheduled half an hour earlier at 9am, to make up for day one being abandoned, but at 8.55 am came the announcement that conditions were unfit for play and that there would be an inspection at 12pm.The message on the broadcast at 9.10am was that “a thunderous overnight downpour last evening from 6pm, for 90 minutes, at one stage left the outfield completely and utterly flooded.” The moisture underfoot remained a major concern and there was little hope the ground would be fit for play by noon.Related

• Slushy patches, wet weather prevent Test from starting in Greater Noida

• Greater Noida under the weather ahead of Test debut

• Opening day of Afghanistan-New Zealand Test called off due to wet outfield

• A gloomy debut for Test cricket's newest venue in Greater Noida

The ground staff used electric fans to try and dry a few wet patches on the outfield. They cut out blocks of dry grass the practice nets and transplanted them on a damp region in the 30-yard circle. Despite the sun baking down, the ground wasn’t ready at noon and another inspection was planned for 3pm.New Zealand’s players arrived at the ground around 12:25pm, and a practice net was installed next to the main pitch so that they could practice. The spinners Ajaz Patel and Mitchell Santer began to bowl first and were soon joined by the fast bowlers, while Kane Williamson and Daryl Mitchell had a hit. The Afghanistan players, on the other hand, did not arrive at the venue.Play was called off on the second day at 2.55 pm, with the toss yet to take place.

A seventh win for the Outlaws puts them in a strong position to claim a quarter-final place

ECB Reporters Network20-Jun-2023Joe Clarke hit three sixes in a 41-ball 72 and Colin Munro 28 off 17 as a blistering start by the Outlaws proved to be enough to set up a 22-run North Group victory over Leicestershire Foxes in the Vitality Blast.The Outlaws were 78 for 1 after eight overs having opted to bat first, and though the Foxes came back strongly with the ball to restrict the visitors to 165 for 8, their efforts with the bat proved woefully inadequate.Nick Welsh (32 from 30) and Peter Handscomb (28 from 30) put on 63 for the first wicket but despite Wiaan Mulder striking 38 from 26 balls late in the innings, the Foxes fell 23 runs short of their target, Steven Mullaney taking 3 for 18 from his four overs, leg spinner Calvin Harrison 2 for 14 and Shaheen Shah Afridi 2 for 28.Pace-bowling all-rounder Tom Scriven took a career-best 4 for 21 for the Foxes in only his fifth Blast appearance, backed up by 3 for 22 from canny left-arm spinner Callum Parkinson, while Mike Finan equalled the county record for the format with four outfield catches.Yet they ended on the losing side again as their side suffered their ninth defeat from 11 matches to remain rooted to the bottom of the group.A seventh win for the Outlaws puts them in a strong position to claim a quarter-final place, although they suffered a double blow on the night with overseas star Munro unable to field after suffering what looked like a hamstring injury while batting, and veteran all-rounder Samit Patel leaving the field with an apparent ankle injury after the fourth ball of his third over.The Outlaws were 60 for 1 after an eventful powerplay which saw Parkinson dismiss Alex Hales for the fourth time in five seasons but then drop one of two catching chances the Foxes failed to hold.Munro was put down at short fine leg on five off left-armer Finan before Parkinson spilled an easier one at short third man as Clarke, on 26, went for the ramp against Matt Salisbury, Munro finishing the over with four and six. The Foxes were generally sloppy in the field in the powerplay.Munro needed lengthy treatment in the seventh over, was able to continue as Colin Ackermann’s first over went for 15 but fell in the ninth as he mistimed a lofted drive against Rehan Ahmed to be caught at long on, two tidy overs from the leg-spinner checking the Outlaws’ progress a little as they reached the halfway point at 91 for 2.Clarke stepped on the accelerator, adding sixes off Finan and Scriven to an earlier maximum off Ackermann as the next 22 balls saw the Foxes leak 41 runs but the shape of the Outlaws innings then changed dramatically with the loss of three wickets in seven balls.Scriven, hammered down the ground for six by Clarke the previous delivery, took revenge when the Outlaws’ leading run-scorer miscued high in the air to backward point, before Parkinson struck twice in five balls, having Matt Montomery caught at long off before trapping Tom Moores leg before on the back foot.Notts had slipped from 133 for 2 to 136 for 5, a triple blow that cost them all their momentum with only 29 added in the final five overs as Scriven rounded off a fine performance with three wickets and just eight runs conceded in his two death overs.Samit Patel holed out to long off and Finan became the third Foxes player – along with Arron Lilley and Wiaan Mulder – to take four outfield catches in a single Blast innings by safely pouching Shaheen Afridi and then Mullaney in the deep on the leg side.Foxes openers Welch and Handscomb were not able to match the Outlaws’ explosive start but did not lose a wicket in posting 42 runs from the powerplay, although the Australian would have been run out on seven had a Hales’ throw hit.Yet they struggled to find any acceleration and were already lagging behind the required rate at 74 for 1 after 10, having by then lost Handscomb, stumped going down the pitch to Mullaney, as Moores made amends for missing him off Samit Patel the over before.Rishi Patel announced himself with a pulled six off Calvin Harrison but perished in the next over, well caught on the extra cover boundary as a reverse-sweep went wrong and Mullaney claimed a second wicket.Next over, Welch holed out to Hales at deep midwicket before Ackermann departed in the most bizarre fashion, handing Mullaney a caught-and-bowled chance which he dropped but claimed at a juggling second attempt as the ball bounced back to him off the chest of Mulder, who was standing a yard from him at the non-striker’s end.By now, the run-rate was beginning to look beyond the Foxes, who lost Ahmed caught behind as Harrison completed the stricken Samit Patel’s unfinished over before Scriven found Hales on the long-on boundary, with 70 needed from 27 balls.Mulder launched back-to-back sixes off Jake Ball but they were no more than a consolation with 29 needed off a final over in which Shaheen bowled him and Finan in the space of four balls.

Dhoni also hails the performance of seamers despite CSK suffering an early exit

ESPNcricinfo staff12-May-20222:54

Manjrekar: There’s more to Mukesh Choudhary than just swing

Coming into Thursday night’s game against Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, in all their seasons of the IPL, had never been bowled out for below 100 while batting first. All good runs have to come to an end, however, and Super Kings crumbled to 97 all out in conditions at the Wankhede Stadium where the ball swung right through the first 10 overs of their innings.Super Kings lost the match, as expected, with 31 balls remaining, but they still had positives to take out of it, with their new-ball combination of Mukesh Choudhary and Simarjeet Singh bowling their eight overs in one go and reducing Mumbai to 33 for 4 at one stage.Choudhary picked up 3 for 23, all his wickets the product of the left-armer’s traditional mode of inswing to the right-hander and outswing to the left-hander. Simarjeet finished with 1 for 22, finding Rohit Sharma’s outside edge with a good-length ball that left him late.Related

• Sams, Meredith lead rout of Chennai Super Kings

• 'I couldn't take my eyes off Rohit Sharma' – Kumar Kartikeya Singh lives the IPL dream

• Ian Bishop: Kieron Pollard has to reinvent his game

MS Dhoni, the Super Kings captain, was full of praise for his new-ball pairing during his post-match interview with .”Irrespective of how the wicket is, anything below 130 is very difficult to defend, but still, what I asked the bowlers was to show a lot of character, put the opposition under pressure, forget about the result, and I feel both the youngsters, both the fast bowlers, they bowled really well,” he said. “So as far as their contribution is concerned, I feel a game like this really helps them. They start believing in themselves by saying, okay, irrespective of the conditions, whenever we start, we need to have the same kind of attitude, and that’s what is needed in the shortest format.”Super Kings’ hopes for IPL 2022 were dealt a major blow even before the season began, with Deepak Chahar – whom they spent INR 14 crore (USD 1.84 million approx) to reacquire at the auction – picking up a back injury that eventually ruled him out of the competition. The prospect of calling on all three of Chahar, Choudhary and Simarjeet next season is one that enthuses Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming.”I thought the new-ball bowling of Simarjeet and Mukesh was outstanding,” he said at his post-match press conference. “They’ve been developing – Mukesh all the way through the season, so for him to now feel confident enough to bowl a spell like that, and Simarjeet’s only three games in, four games in, so they’ve made real gains, so that’s a positive. So with Deepak Chahar to come back into the side, there’s some good options with the new ball.”9:41

Mute Me: Is Umran Malik ready to play for India?

Fleming was heartened that Choudhary and Simarjeet had delivered their new-ball performances in a difficult situation for Super Kings.”Yeah, I thought it was really impressive,” he said. “We could have folded, but they really gave us an opportunity, and both of them bowled well. Mukesh in particular had the ball really swinging well, and Simarjeet’s got some deceptive pace.”So we’re really positive about that pairing going forward. It was just disappointing that we didn’t have more runs to play with, but out of that, out of the ashes, came those two. So it was a good way to look at it.”Choudhary and Simarjeet are among a line of young Indian fast bowlers who have impressed during this IPL season; Umran Malik, Mohsin Khan, Yash Dayal, Kuldeep Sen and Arshdeep Singh are five other uncapped seamers who have caught the eye.”It’s good to have them,” Dhoni said. “We have gone through periods when we never had real extraordinary bench strength of fast bowlers, and also what happens is, with fast bowlers, they take their time to mature. If you are lucky you get somebody who in six months’ time can feature in all the different formats, whether it’s Test cricket, one-day or T20, and I feel that’s what IPL is doing.”It’s an opportunity for them, and a lot of them, they have become slightly more bold, a bit more courageous which I feel is important in a format like this. They want to take the opposition head-on, and that has been the difference. Yet, you see a few who are not those types, who shy away a bit initially, but as they play more games, they get more and more confident and they are able to execute their plans better.”

The Renegades remain stuck at the bottom despite Shaun Marsh’s 87

Andrew McGlashan01-Jan-2021The Melbourne Renegades remained at the bottom of the BBL table as a strong performance from the Sydney Thunder top order took them to a rain-curtailed seven-run victory on the Gold Coast, their fifth in a row to put them at the top of the ladder, on an evening interrupted and ultimately ended by rain.A power-packed start by Alex Hales put the Thunder well ahead of the rate in what looked a demanding chase of 173 after Shaun Marsh’s 87 had anchored the Renegades’ innings either side of the first rain interruption. He fell to one of the catches of the tournament – and certainly the catch of the year so far – from MacKenzie Harvey, but the innings was then kept on course by the cool head of Usman Khawaja.Alex Hales and Usman Khawaja’s attacking knocks secured a win for the Sydney Thunder•Getty Images

Both sides were hampered by a wet ball at stages, but the Renegades needed the game to go the distance having fallen behind on the DLS due to Hales’ onslaught. Despite narrowing the gap somewhat, they were unable to take the wicket that could have made the difference. Captain Aaron Finch gambled by holding his senior seamer Kane Richardson back, as the rain fell with a view to using him in the Power Surge over and the death.Khawaja guiding hand
Khawaja was impressive both on the field and during the rain break. Having been content to watch Hales do his stuff at the other end – he made 5 off 7 balls in their 52-run opening stand that came in four overs – he was then taking charge of the latter part of the chase when the asking rate had nudged back above ten an over following some good work by the spinners. He took consecutive boundaries off Imad Wasim in the tenth over to give the Thunder even more breathing space on the DLS and dispatched Will Sutherland over mid-on moments before the rain got too heavy.Meanwhile, during the first break for rain, Khawaja had given an illuminating interview to the host broadcaster about dealing with the pressures of professional cricket and lessons he has learnt during his lengthy career. There is a long future for him around the game when he does finally put the bat away,Perry’s debut over, Harvey’s worldie
It was a daunting prospect for 20-year-old Mitchell Perry to start his BBL career bowling to an already-set Hales. Sending down a length perfectly in Hales’ arc, he was treated with disdain for five deliveries including two sixes over long-on. Aiming for a wide yorker with the last delivery, he sent down a big full toss outside off stump which again flew off Hales’ bat, but a split second later it was intercepted by a flying Harvey – nephew of former Australia allrounder Ian Harvey – another of the Renegades’ youngsters who is lauded as one of the best fielders in the game.There was a look of giddy astonishment on everyone’s face, not least Perry. On the first day of 2021, it certainly set a high bar in the catch-of-the-year race. However, there were suggestions the delivery should have been checked for a front-foot no-ball.Marsh’s efforts in vain again
For the second game running, a well-constructed innings from Marsh ended on the losing side. His 87 off 48 balls included five sixes – his half-century coming from 29 deliveries – and he was able to find his stride again after the rain break as the Renegades added 67 off the final five overs of the innings. Finch said the team’s plan was to come out very aggressively and he set that tone himself, but at 3 for 58 in the seventh over, it could have gone wrong.Marsh and Mohammad Nabi added 90 in nine overs to propel the innings forward, Nabi overcoming a sluggish start where he was 4 off 14 balls to finish on 33 off 24, but the Renegades’ season is still threatening to go the same way as the last one.

Next year’s edition will be the fourth time Bangladesh women will participate in the T20 World Cup after 2014, 2016 and 2018

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Sep-2019Thailand women made history on Thursday by qualifying for their maiden Women’s T20 World Cup, to be played in Australia next year. They did so with an emphatic eight-wicket win by chasing 68 against Papua New Guinea in Dundee, where Thailand dominated the game with an all-round display that saw a frugal bowling performance, two run-outs and a convincing batting show.Thailand’s feat was achieved in the 18th over with 15 balls to spare when left-handed Nattaya Boochatham flicked a full toss from medium-pacer Ravina Oa to midwicket where a fumble helped the batsmen complete a quick single. As soon as Boochatham and her partner Nannapat Koncharoenkai completed the winning run, their team-mates burst on to the ground, some with arms raised, some running joyously towards the pitch, and eventually all of them huddled around the two unbeaten batsmen. After the necessary handshakes with their opponents and match officials, the entire team came together once again to form a line and thank the crowd with their hands pressed together and a slight bow, before breaking out into wilder celebrations.Thailand’s journey to the 2020 T20 World Cup first saw them winning the seven-team T20 World Cup Asia Region Qualifier at home in February this year, which was part of a 17-match winning streak in T20Is from July 2018 to August 2019 that saw them qualify for the main qualifiers in Scotland. In this tournament, they topped Group B with three wins out of as many matches to set up semi-final clash with PNG. The winners of the two semi-finals were to qualify for the T20 World Cup and Thailand did so along with Bangladesh, who beat Ireland earlier in the day.Thailand’s chase was led by No. 3 Naruemol Chaiwai, who scored 32 runs out of their total of 68. She scored briskly in the two substantial partnerships for Thailand, of 31 and 33. Thailand were only four runs away from the historic moment when Chaiwai lobbed a simple catch to mid-off in the 16th over, before Boochatham scored the winning runs nine balls later. Chaiwai struck two fours whereas her opening partner Nattakan Chantam scored three during her 31-ball 18. PNG used as many as seven bowlers but their total wasn’t big enough to provide a fight.PNG had opted to bat but their battling line-up stuttered to 27 for 4 in the tenth over and then 46 for 6 in the 16th. Only three batsmen, including opener Sibona Jimmy, were able to score in double-digits as their biggest partnership could put together only 16 runs, for the seventh wicket. Kaia Arua’s unbeaten 16 stretched the score past 50 with Chanida Sutthiruang’s medium-pace fetching her two wickets, and two run-outs denting PNG further. Sutthiruang is the tournament’s leading wicket-taker so far with an impressive tally of 12 from four innings, averaging only 3.91 and conceding 3.52 runs per over.In the end, Thailand won their fourth straight match and made history by chasing down a total for the first time in the tournament.ACC

Bangladesh sealed their berth for the T20 World Cup, with a four-wicket win against Ireland in the first semi-final of the Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifiers in Dundee. Next year’s edition will be the fourth time Bangladesh women will participate in the T20 World Cup after 2014, 2016 and 2018.Bangladesh chased down their target of 86 with nine balls to spare after bowling out Ireland for 85 in 20 overs. Ireland couldn’t build much on their decision to bat as their top three batsmen scored only eight runs in all. Jahanara Alam, Nahida Akter and Salma Khatun made the early strikes. Captain Laura Delany steered the innings after they were reduced to 44 for 5. Delany’s innings of 25 and her partnership of 30 for the sixth wicket with the experienced Eimear Richardson, who struck a quick 25 off 17, helped Ireland along but legspinner Fahima Khatun dismissed both of them within the space of three balls in the 18th over. From 75 for 7, Ireland managed another ten runs in the last two overs as Fahima struck again to finish with 3 for 18.Bangladesh were also led by their No. 4, Sanjida Islam, whose unbeaten 32 off 37 balls saw them home. They were given a scare when they were 30 for 4 in the ninth over before Sanjida and Ritu Moni stitched together a stand of 38 runs for the fifth wicket. Bangladesh lost two wickets to run-outs from there but Sanjida sealed their win.