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Stuart Broad said he hoped that a packed Oval ground had enjoyed a “celebration of the Queen’s life” on an emotional and extraordinary opening day of the delayed third Test against South Africa, but defended England’s batting on a pitch that he claimed had proven “too bowler-friendly” after two extra days under the covers.England reached the close on 151 for 7 in their first innings, with a lead of 36, having earlier shot out South Africa for 118 inside two sessions. The advantage could still be handy in a wicket-laden contest, but it might not be as decisive as it could have been with a bit of circumspection, with Joe Root and Ben Stokes particularly culpable for giving their wickets away with a surfeit of aggression.Broad, however, was unapologetic about carrying on with the methods that have taken England to five wins out of six this summer, all of them while batting second and reacting to a score already on the board from their opponents.Stuart Broad removed Khaya Zondo as South Africa struggled at The Oval•Getty Images

“We’re very comfortable chasing a score, to be honest,” Broad told Sky Sports. “Our mindset is we need to play in a way that gives us the chance to take 20 wickets, and if bowling first we get 20 wickets, we’ll win the game.”If we bowl again tomorrow and put South Africa under pressure, we could be could be batting on a day-three Oval pitch, which you’d argue could be the best time to bat,” he added. “Our mindset was we want a result either way in this game. We need to play in a style that is going to create a result and, after day one, we’re looking at either a win or a loss, and in our mind, that’s a win.”They certainly could not have done much more to accelerate a contest that had already been delayed by two days, through a combination of rain on Thursday, and Friday’s day of respect following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.After little more than an hour’s play, South Africa were reeling on 36 for 6, with Ollie Robinson four wickets into the third five-for of his career, and by the time they had been bowled out for 118, Broad had picked up 4 for 41, to move alongside his childhood hero Glenn McGrath, on 563 career Test wickets.”Earlier this morning it was too bowler-friendly, but you know I’d never really say that!” he said. “But it seamed a lot when I first came on as a first-change bowler. I was surprised, it was nipping three or four balls an over. We were happy to bowl South Africa out for a cheap score, but we also knew that we had some work to do.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“It’s not our mentality to prod and poke around, we knew that runs were going to be at a premium, so we had that mindset that we had to go out and put the South African bowlers under pressure. Because there’s a good ball in that pitch, and if it continues to nip like it did today, we’ll see a few more wickets.”Broad was coy about the achievement of matching McGrath, a player he sought to emulate as a kid, and the only other seamer besides James Anderson to have taken as many wickets.”He’s a hero of mine,” he said. “I feel like I don’t really deserve to be in that sort of category, to be honest, and obviously he’s played a lot less games [124 Tests to 159]. He was great, one of the greatest bowlers of all time in my opinion, but it feels very special to hopefully get one more and join my mate Jimmy as a one-two in that list of seamers.”Long after the clatter of wickets have been forgotten, however, the day will be remembered for the spine-tingling ceremony before the start of play, as the players lined up for a minute’s silence in memory of the Queen, followed by two unforgettable renditions of the national anthems, including the first airing of “God Save The King” at a sporting event since 1952.After the uncertainty surrounding the future of the game, which had been up in the air until an announcement from the ECB on Friday afternoon, Broad said he had been honoured to take part in such a moving occasion.Related

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• South Africa suffer a Bazboozling as defeat comes in fast-forward

• Ben Stokes 'blessed' as England show collective buy-in to seal memorable summer

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• Test suspended in mark of respect following death of Queen

“It was incredible to be a part of,” he said. “Walking down the stairs you could hear a pin drop. The respect shown by everyone in the stadium was incredible and to be able to sing the national anthem, with a full house, was brilliant. It felt like a celebration of the Queen’s life today and it felt good to be out there representing the badge like we did today.”Asked if he had wanted or expected to play on after the death of the Queen, at the age of 96, Broad said: “You have to give it some thought, though ultimately it was never in the players’ hands.”I must admit, when I saw the Premier League were postponing their fixtures for the weekend. I thought, oh, that might play a role in in our game. But I was really pleased when I heard the news that we were continuing, and then you get your mind on making sure you put in the performance to entertain the public.”We knew it was only going to be a three-day game. So we had to play some entertaining stuff. And I think everyone will leave pretty happy tonight.”

Big Picture

Post the 2021 T20 World Cup, India have played a total of 29 T20Is heading into this series. Australia, meanwhile, have played just nine. Irrespective of their prep, Australia might turn up in their usual confident manner at the T20 World Cup – but this time they’ll have to defend the title in their backyard. And they have quite a bit to figure out compared to their better-prepped opponents.In the age of packed cricket calendars and schedules, it does seem quite surprising that these two teams haven’t played each other in a T20I since December 2020. India won that away series 2-1, while Australia won the last T20I series they played in India, in February 2019. Also, how can we forget match in Mohali, when Virat Kohli left Australia speechless? Irrespective of the format, the meetings between these two countries have always been high-octane and largely competitive, and this series should be no different, provided Australia can overcome a few selection questions.Related

• Tim David's long-awaited Australia debut is finally on

• Fit-again Harshal adds more strings to T20 bow

• Smith to bat at No. 3 in India T20Is in Mitch Marsh's absence

• Rahul: 'No one is perfect; strike rate is something I am working at'

Their captain Aaron Finch’s recent form seems to be among the biggest of concerns. Steven Smith’s middling strike rate has also raised questions around his place in the XI. And, Australia are without the injured trio of Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Marsh and Marcus Stoinis for this series, while David Warner has been rested. The team playing this series looks quite different from Australia’s first-choice World Cup side. But it does give Australia the space to experiment with the back-ups but they will also want to build a winning momentum. They have five more matches after this series – a two-match series against West Indies and three T20Is against England at home – before the T20 World Cup.It’ll be interesting to see how Tim David, who will be in Australia colours for the first time, fits into the international set-up. Australia are also likely to experiment with Josh Inglis, making him open alongside Finch. Finch said there will be a lot of “mixing and matching” ahead of the World Cup.India, meanwhile, have had some time to figure out what has worked for them and, more importantly, what hasn’t. They’re back home after some travelling, having won bilateral T20I series in Ireland, England and the Caribbean. But it was their most recent prep – at the Asia Cup – that left them with key takeaways.After the Asia Cup Super 4s exit, captain Rohit Sharma said India were “90-95% settled” ahead of the T20 World Cup. Their aggressive approach has largely worked out well. Kohli finally hit form, so his place in the XI is – at least for now – no longer a debate. They are entering the series with the strongest available squad and will be looking to mainly focus on making roles clearer.4:48

Hodge: Australia shouldn’t look back from this point when it comes to Tim David

The return of Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel means Hardik Pandya no longer has to be the third seamer in the side. India will also want to see how they can use the likes of allrounders Axar Patel and Deepak Hooda better. Rohit was clear KL Rahul has his backing as the opener. As for Pant, India will be hoping he comes good in the series. India still have a home series against South Africa to go before the T20 World Cup to further firm up their plans.

Form guide

India WLLWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Australia LWWWL

In the spotlight

All eyes will be on Tim David, who will be looking to showcase his power-hitting skills, this time in Australia colours. The Singapore-born batter has impressed in various T20 competitions, most recently in the IPL as well, and he’ll be looking to replicate his success on the international stage. His big-hitting skills aside, his ability to take on spinners and quicks alike makes him a must-have in a T20 side. He averages 32.48 with a strike rate of 164.12 in T20s. He is likely to take up the middle-order spot in Stoinis’ absence in this series. But Australia will not be able to accommodate him if both Stoinis and Marsh are fit when the World Cup begins. It’s Smith’s position that appears a bit vulnerable as of now – but he too has the reputation of being the anchor in the XI – so it remains to be seen how Australia fit David into their XI at the World Cup.Rishabh Pant is yet to find his mojo in T20Is•Associated Press

Rishabh Pant has not quite been able to live up to the expectations in the T20 format. In T20Is since 2020, he has averaged just 27.63 and has struck at 129.95 in 32 innings. At the Asia Cup, Pant had to be brought into the XI in place of Dinesh Karthik following an injury to Ravindra Jadeja as India wanted a left-hand batter in the middle. But he could only make scores of 17 and 14 against Sri Lanka and Pakistan respectively in the Super 4s. While having Pant and Karthik in the squad offers them flexibility, it looks like India can currently accommodate only one of the two in the XI. Pant will have to make use of his time in the middle in the upcoming T20Is to get back into form before the T20 World Cup.

Team news

Umesh Yadav, who was originally meant to undergo rehab for a quad injury in Bengaluru, has been called into the squad after Mohammed Shami tested positive for Covid-19. But with the return of Bumrah and Harshal, India are unlikely to play Umesh in the XI.India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 KL Rahul, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Suryakumar Yadav, 5 Hardik Pandya, 6 Rishabh Pant/ Dinesh Karthik (wk), 7 Axar Patel, 8 Bhuvneshwar Kumar/ Deepak Chahar, 9 Harshal Patel, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal, 11 Jasprit BumrahWith Marsh absent, Smith will bat at No. 3 against India. David looks set to make his Australia debut in the middle order. Australia are also likely to play Inglis – who has so far played at No. 3 and in the middle order in T20Is – as an opener and push Matthew Wade down the order. Cameron Green, who has been impressive with the ball and the bat, has been brought back into the T20I squad – having played a solitary match in April this year – and is also likely to find a place in the XI.Australia (probable): 1 Aaron Finch (capt), 2 Josh Inglis, 3 Steven Smith, 4 Glenn Maxwell, 5 Matthew Wade (wk), 6 Tim David, 7 Cameron Green, 8 Adam Zampa, 9 Pat Cummins, 10 Josh Hazlewood, 11 Sean Abbott/ Daniel Sams

Pitch and conditions

It is expected to be partly cloudy and humid in Mohali tomorrow, with a 25% chance of precipitation in the evening. In T20s since 2018, the chasing team has won seven out of 11 matches at the ground. On the eve of the match, Finch said the wicket had “a bit of grass on it”.

Stats and trivia

• Kohli’s 718 runs against Australia are the most by any player against an opposition in men’s T20Is
• Australia have won each of their last three T20Is in India
• Jasprit Bumrah has dismissed Glenn Maxwell seven times in 15 meetings in T20s

Quotes

“… Only we know what role is expected of each person. Everyone is trying to give their best, and not every time will a player succeed. And that is the kind of environment we have created, that players are not afraid to play, or players are not afraid to make mistakes.”
“The last thing you want to do is have an injury derail your whole campaign because you’re pigeon-holed into playing one style of cricket or one structure of team.”

Spinner Molly Strano returned to the top of the all-time WBBL wicket-taking list as her Hobart Hurricanes stayed in semi-final contention with an eight-wicket win over the Melbourne Renegades.Renegades were dismissed for 80, the lowest complete innings score of this season’s competition. Hurricanes cruised to their small target at Blundstone Arena with 56 balls to spare, taking 10.4 overs.The win lifted fifth-placed Hurricanes to within two points of Perth Scorchers in fourth and they having a game in hand. Hurricanes have the best net run rate of any of the eight teams.Spinner Strano spearheaded the Hurricanes bowling efforts as they dismissed the Renegades in 17.2 overs. Her haul lifted her WBBL career tally to 131, one ahead of Brisbane Heat spinner Jess Jonassen.”It does not drive me, it actually sits better with me when JJ is at the top of the table because she is more skilful than I am,” Strano told .Strano hinted she may have been a trifle fortunate to get one wicket as Josie Dooley was given out lbw after appearing to hit the ball with the bottom edge of her bat.”You can probably call it a half-hearted appeal, just a very polite inquiry,” Strano said.The heavy loss dropped Renegades back to last spot on net run rate below Sydney Thunder, who they beat on Sunday.Only Courtney Webb and Hayley Matthews provided any resistance against Hurricanes’ battery of spinners and medium pacers. Captain Sophie Molineux was the only other double-digit scorer for Renegades but her dismissal from a catch off a miscued shot triggered a collapse.Their last seven wickets fell for 34 and they had a disastrous powerplay, losing 3 for 3.When Hurricanes batted, Molineux dismissed their two South African stars, with Coyte taking a fine one-handed catch at backward square leg to remove Lizelle Lee and Mignon du Preez falling lbw.Elyse Villani, who had scored just 56 runs from her six previous WBBL innings, returned to form in making a season-high unbeaten 41 off 34 balls.

Graeme Smith and Mark Boucher are hopeful that the SA20, South Africa’s new franchise T20 league, will help the national team finally win a World Cup.”I actually thought we had a strong team in this World Cup in Australia, I thought we had a good chance,” Smith, the SA20 commissioner, said at an event in Mumbai. “But obviously disappointed with the way we finished. I think what we want to create in this league is that there’s so much talent – hope we can develop that talent to play under pressure on a global stage.”I know I keep talking about the IPL but you look at the amount of strong cricketers that have come through in the IPL,” Smith said. “Looking at trying to find 15 players, hopefully there’s 25-35 players in the next couple of years at a level where it makes the selectors jobs very, very difficult. Those that are used to playing big games, exposed to big games. Unfortunately South Africa has to deal with these questions all the time until they actually win a tournament.”Related

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South Africa have not won a men’s World Cup in 16 attempts – eight ODI World Cups and eight T20 World Cups. While they have come close in knockout games a number of times, they failed to make the semi-finals in five of the last six ICC white-ball events. In the 2022 T20 World Cup, South Africa lost their last group match to Netherlands and did not progress to the knockouts.Boucher, whose tenure as South Africa head coach ended after the T20 World Cup, said the IPL – where he will now be coaching Mumbai Indians – was one of the reasons for India’s success in world tournaments. India, however, have won just one World Cup – in 2011 – since the IPL began in 2008.”There’s reasons why you’ve got World Cups in your cabinets,” Boucher said, talking about India. “The reason is big stages, guys playing in finals and semi-finals. The more you play those games the better you get. This [SA20] is going to be on the big stage as well. You’re going to see youngsters. Guys are going to be put in situations they’re not used to and that’s going to be exciting to see who comes through. Then once that happens, our coaches and selectors can check and select the guys who are needed for the big moments and the big events.”South Africa’s direct qualification for the 2023 ODI World Cup, however, hangs in the balance. They are currently at No. 11 in the Super League with only five matches to go, and need to win at least three to try and finish among the top eight teams that get direct qualification for next year’s World Cup.South Africa have won only five of their 16 Super League matches so far, having forfeited three ODIs in Australia to have all their top players available for the start of the SA20 in January.Graeme Smith, pictured here with Mark Boucher, Yuvraj Singh and Anil Kumble at the SA20 event in Mumbai, stressed on the importance of the league for South African cricket as a whole•PTI

Smith said South Africa had brought this situation upon themselves by playing “bad” cricket, and that CSA had no choice but to prioritise the SA20 at that point. CSA’s chief executive Pholetsi Moseki had also said previously that the board had taken a risk of withdrawing from the series against Australia with an eye on “securing the long-term sustainability of the game” in South Africa.”I think South Africa’s World Cup qualification was bad because they played bad. I mean, they had a lot of time to control that,” Smith said. “I think that this three-ODI cancellation, I actually feel for Cricket South Africa in many ways, because I know the effort that went in to move those three ODIs to open up a window for the league. The league will have a window free of international cricket in South Africa, like the IPL, for a period every year.”Australia never travel on Boxing Day or New Year’s. England are never away from home in their summer. It’s incredible that South African cricket still has decided that they’ll earn zero revenues this year because they’re going to Australia for three Test matches. So, I know that they went out of their way with Cricket Australia to find a way to make those three ODIs work, but it just wasn’t practical, and eventually South African cricket had to make a choice … it was going to start its own league and it needed to give it a chance and make a proper statement that it was going to make a success of it.”South Africa have not played a festive series in Australia since 2008, for the reasons Smith mentioned. Former CSA CEO Gerald Majola negotiated in previous FTPs that South Africa would only tour Australia outside of the Christmas-New Year period to maximise revenue at home. This series was decided in the 2019-2023 FTP, which was drafted in the post-Majola era. Cricket South Africa host only one incoming tour this season, against West Indies, but will launch the SA20 this summer.

Karachi Kings have won only three out of their last 19 PSL matches, they won just one game in 10 last season, and they’ve begun PSL 2023 with three defeats. That’s not a great position to be in while preparing to take on their biggest rival, Lahore Qalandars, but captain Imad Wasim refuses to write his team off yet.”We are presently coming with a losing streak from last season until now, but once we get winning momentum then you become a force,” Imad had said after narrowly failing to chase down 169 against Quetta Gladiators last night. “But it’s not happening right now and it’s our mistake. We will sit and talk about it. Someone needs to play that finishing role and be that one person so that we can have our belief back. Faith is very important in any sport and any career and I still have faith in Karachi.”They will not have too much time to do this introspection, with the Qalandars clash lined up later today, but Imad did try to make sense of the rut. “I won’t say we are playing very bad cricket overall but we are only playing good cricket in phases. Sometimes it happens in a team when you aren’t able to click all together – once we do, we will start winning.”We made a lot of mistakes but they are done. No team goes out and tries to lose, it’s just a lean patch that hasn’t come to an end since last season and we are trying to get out of it. As a professional, when you see the chips are down, everything is against you, that is when you turn up to win your team a game.”Imad is one of the most experienced PSL captains, second only to Sarfaraz Ahmed, but his record is patchy: 44 captained, 20 won, 20 lost (Super Overs aside). This season, all three losses have come at home, even as they’ve fiddled with their combination and strategy. Among the changes dished out was Matthew Wade, the Australian wicketkeeper-batter, who played as opener in the first game scoring 23 off 15, but was pushed down to the middle order for the next two games and has scored 18 off 18 and 15 off 19 from there. Imad did say finding the right person to finish innings was on his mind.”We aren’t able to finish well, it is one of the factors [in our slump]. Secondly, our death overs are a factor…”Then there is the matter of making it count once in, and Imad said that too had been discussed with the team. “Sometimes if you don’t show enough intent, you give away your wickets very easily in such conditions. It was talked about, not letting it go so easily because with one set batsman in, anything is possible, especially on Karachi pitches. But it’s not happening, everyone who is getting set is getting out other than Shoaib Malik.”Imad had advocated an aggressive brand of cricket coming into this tournament, and he said the rocky start has not changed his mind. “It’s a way of playing cricket, you play shots and express yourself. Unfortunately, we’ve lost wickets in the powerplay and so have not been able to express ourselves, but once we settle in everything will click. We are still going to play the same brand of aggressive cricket with the ball and bat.”

Delhi Capitals are set to sign Bengal’s Abishek Porel as a replacement for the injured Rishabh Pant ahead of IPL 2023. Porel’s signing, which is yet to be announced officially, comes following a series of practice games at a week-long preparatory camp in New Delhi.Porel and three other uncapped wicketkeepers – Sheldon Jackson, Luvnith Sisodia and Vivek Singh – had been put through a series of match simulation exercises, apart from being monitored by the Capitals coaching group, headed by director of cricket Sourav Ganguly and head coach Ricky Ponting, over the past week.Capitals’ punt on Porel comes on the back of his first full season with Bengal in domestic cricket, where he impressed with his glove work but failed to make big scores across formats.Related

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• Delhi Capitals have firepower despite Pant's absence, but who will keep wicket?

His three outings in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy brought him 22 runs, with one of those knocks being an unbeaten 20. He has slightly better returns in first-class cricket, having managed six half-centuries across 26 innings with a best of 73.

Sarfaraz Khan still Delhi Capitals’ front-runner?

Porel could yet be a back-up wicketkeeping option with the franchise keen on trialling Sarfaraz Khan in the role. Sarfaraz has been in prime form with the bat over the past three domestic seasons. In fact, he’s one of only two players to have scored over 900 runs in two consecutive Ranji Trophy seasons (2019-20 and 2021-22). This time around, he managed 556 runs in six innings.Sarfaraz, who played a clutch knock to deliver Mumbai the title in the Syed Mushtaq Ali final last November, was picked up for his base price of INR 20 lakh last year. He featured in six games in IPL 2022, batting in the lower middle order for 91 runs with a best of 36 not out.With Pant unavailable – he’s recovering from injuries sustained in a serious car crash in December – the team management had sounded out Sarfaraz as early as January to be ready for the wicketkeeper’s role. It’s a role he’d carried out for Mumbai at the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20s.

Phil Salt also in the running

The only other wicketkeeping option Capitals had was England’s Phil Salt, who was signed for his base price of INR 2 crore at this year’s auction. Salt is coming off a “frustrating time” in Bangladesh during the white-ball series. However, he comes with the experience of having played 180 T20s that have brought him 4118 runs at a strike rate of 149.79, much of it in the top order.With Capitals’ top-three set to be David Warner, Prithvi Shaw and Mitchell Marsh, it’s likely they may find it hard to fit Salt in in his preferred position (11 of his 15 T20I innings have come at Nos. 1-3), and this could play to Sarfaraz’s advantage.Capitals begin their campaign on April 1 in an away fixture against Lucknow Super Giants.

A day before the BBL started, Mitch Owen said he wasn’t sure where he’d be batting – or at all – for Hobart Hurricanes this season.After a record-breaking knock to win the competition for his home-town side, Owen, also the top run-scorer for the league, can start to lift his sights higher. The 23-year-old is set to earn life-changing amounts of money in franchise cricket, potentially starting with a replacement deal at the Indian Premier League.Related

• Six to watch for Australia on the road to 2027

• Owen's record-equalling 39-ball hundred seals Hurricanes' maiden BBL title

• Stats – Owen's record ton and Hurricanes' unbeaten home run

• 'It's super special, it's a childhood dream' – Owen on Hurricanes' 'surreal' night

Owen’s manager confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that he is available as a replacement player for the IPL, having registered for the auction longlist late last year before failing to make the shortlist. The Pakistan Super League, which virtually runs concurrently with the IPL in April and May, could be another option for him.Owen’s mighty knock of 108 off just 42 balls – the equal-fastest ton in competition history off 39 deliveries – had the sellout crowd chanting his name and won Hobart their first BBL title.”I feel a bit awkward in these situations. I don’t really know how to take it,” Owen said of the adoration. “It’s super special… the most special thing is hearing everyone in the crowd enjoying it. And I’m so grateful, I’m so proud that we could bring this trophy to Tassie.”Owen had played just six matches in the previous two seasons for Hurricanes, for a total of 42 runs. Previously a middle-order hitter, Owen said a decision that he would be batting in the top order came “probably one day, to be honest” out from their tournament opener.Ricky Ponting, Hurricanes’ head of strategy, said he was “amongst that” decision. Declining to elaborate on his role in that move, the Test great happily talked up Owen’s future, saying discussion of him representing Australia in next year’s World Cup was “inevitable”.Mitchell Owen made the equal fastest century in BBL history off 39 balls•Getty Images

“There’s not many players in the world that can do that,” he told AAP of Owen’s heroics in the final. “He’s done it pretty consistently through the tournament… some of his 30s and 40s that he’s got have actually won and set up games for the Hurricanes. And then he ended up getting a hundred in 30-odd balls and the game’s over.”Hurricanes team-mate and 2021 T20 World Cup winner Matthew Wade agreed Owen “would be there or thereabouts” when it came to squad selection for the 2026 tournament.”He can be anything… no stage really worries him too much. It was phenomenal,” Wade told AAP.Owen said he “absolutely” wanted to work towards the squad for the India-Sri Lanka-hosted tournament, which begins in February 2026.However, David Warner suggested such talk was premature. The losing Thunder captain said the Australian team didn’t need a shake-up.”No, no. You’ve got the guys that are there at the moment,” he said. “You can earn your stripes… we can’t be just picking blokes and chopping and changing when the guys that are there have won World Cups.”It will be difficult top order to break into, with Travis Head, Matt Short, Jake Fraser-McGurk and T20 captain Mitch Marsh having claims on those spots.Steven Smith, left out of last year’s underwhelming T20 World Cup campaign, also has to be considered after starring for the Sydney Sixers in the past two seasons when he has played as an opener in between international duties.But Warner was certainly happy to credit Owen with a “phenomenal knock” that meant his side came up short after posting 97 without loss after 10 overs.”We got beat by one player tonight, plain and simple,” he said.0815 GMT – This story was updated to reflect Owen’s availability as an IPL replacement player.

That Australia would conclude a domineering home series against New Zealand with their second highest ever ODI total on home shores, on the way to a record-setting 21st consecutive ODI victory, was startling enough. That they would achieve those feats with a 232-run win, without their captain Meg Lanning as well as their famed allrounder Ellyse Perry in the XI, was downright unnerving for the rest of the world.Lanning’s absence, due to a right hamstring strain sustained during her unbeaten century in the second of three ODIs on Monday, was the talk of Allan Border Field on Wednesday morning, giving New Zealand a chance to pressure a batting order shorn of its most vaunted name. Certainly it was enough to encourage Sophie Devine to send the hosts in upon winning the toss despite a slowing and ageing surface.But the response was that of a team far more enthused than overawed by such challenges. The acting captain Rachael Haynes and Alyssa Healy combined for a commanding opening stand worth 144 in a little more than half the available overs, before Haynes and the middle order accelerated fearfully to take the Australians to 325 – only a gargantuan 397 against Pakistan in the amateur days of 1997 surpassed it among matches at home.ALSO READ: How Australia made it 21 wins in a rowIn the midst of the punishment, including 104 from the final 10 overs as Ashleigh Gardner, Beth Mooney and Lanning’s replacement Tahlia McGrath made merry, there was also room for development: an occasionally halting but equally promising stay at No. 3 from the 18-year-old allrounder Annabel Sutherland, as she added 78 in 87 balls with Haynes. Asked to chase a distant 326, the touring side were in trouble virtually from the start, as Devine was cramped into pulling Megan Schutt into the trap of two midwickets placed for her, departing the scene for a disconsolate first-ball duck. There onwards, the Australian bowlers did not relent, as Jess Jonassen and Georgia Wareham particularly enjoyed the expansive spin occasionally on offer.There had been far more optimism for New Zealand early on, as an overcast morning offered the chance for swing, and the knowledge that Healy and Haynes were to be followed by the callow Sutherland rather than the hamstrung Lanning.ALSO READ: Meg Lanning interview – On leading superstars, legacyBut they were unable to find a way through, allowing Healy and Haynes to punish any errors in line and length, and build with something approaching impunity as both passed 50 and Healy reached the outskirts of a century. Thirteen short of a century, she skied wristspinner Amelia Kerr, clearing the way for Sutherland’s entry.The next period saw New Zealand regain some control of the scoreboard as Sutherland struggled to rotate strike with her correct and upright technique, only for Haynes to intervene with some aggressive blows to get the run rate going again. With time, Sutherland began to join in, but was bowled behind her pads attempting to sweep Kerr just as the final 10 overs began.Haynes’ steadfast display merited a century, but was ended on 96 by a marginal lbw call when she, too, knelt to sweep Kerr. Mooney might also easily have followed lbw, saved only by a little doubt over whether the ball had pitched outside leg stump before looking likely to crash into middle. Kerr’s wristspin skills had again been very evident, but upon the conclusion of her spell, having seen Gardner wretchedly dropped by Natalie Dodd, the Australians freed their arms. Eight sixes for the innings were the joint-most for Australia in a women’s ODI.New Zealand’s pursuit was never more than a cursory one, save for Amy Satterthwaite’s 41. On a slow and spinning surface, against bowling options ideally suited to the conditions, they were completely overwhelmed. The evenness of Australia’s display was underlined by the fact that wickets were shared among every member of the attack, rounding off a massive victory without their two biggest names.Twenty-one ODI wins in a row equalled the record set by the Australian men’s team in the 2000s; seldom if ever were Ricky Ponting’s side quite as dominant as this.

MS Dhoni might be 43 but he’s still at his best, especially behind the stumps. That’s what Matthew Hayden felt after watching him complete a lightning-quick stumping of Suryakumar Yadav when Noor Ahmad beat his outside edge during the IPL 2025 match against Mumbai Indians at Chepauk.”He [Dhoni] was on fire,” Hayden, the former Australia batter and Dhoni’s team-mate at Chennai Super Kings (CSK) till 2010, said on ESPNcricinfo’s T20 Time Out. “I mean Noor Ahmad was firing down the leg side and it was just a movement across the ball. You know, they’re difficult when you when you’re sitting there sort of partially obscured by the batsman. Then the stumping was just superb, just such quick timing, great hands, good vision. He’s still got it.”Suryakumar was dismissed for 29, and with his wicket, CSK got back into the game, breaking a 51-run stand and restricting MI to 155 for 9.Related

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While CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad said at the post-match presentation that he hardly sees Dhoni doing keeping practice, Piyush Chawla, who has bowled for India and CSK several times with Dhoni behind the stumps, said he would have probably trained to keep for Noor during pre-season camp.”It does happen, it is a challenge if you have not kept against somebody,” he said. “But I’m sure in the camp, he must have kept a lot of balls because if he’s keeping for somebody new, he especially takes that person to the stumps and says, you bowl a few balls.MS Dhoni stumps Suryakumar Yadav•BCCI

“[It has] not [happened] with me because I have bowled against him so many times and bowled to him in the nets also. But whenever somebody new comes, especially a wristspinner, he just makes sure he’s keeping 10-12 balls so that he gets used to the wrist position.”Former India fast bowler Varun Aaron believes Dhoni has changed the way wicketkeepers react to stumping chances.”Traditionally keepers tend to receive the ball,” Aaron said. “He’s just removed that receive completely. It’s just that stumps are here, [he gathers it close to the stumps] and it’s just from there to there [takes his hands forward to finish the stumping].”Hayden gave the example of Sunrisers Hyderabad wicketkeeper Heinrich Klaasen missing a stumping of Rajasthan Royals’ Sanju Samson in the afternoon game on Sunday.”Klaasen sort of missed, right? I think everyone commented on it at the time that if that was Dhoni, it would have been gone.”

The ICC announced on Thursday that the next women’s T20 World Cup, originally scheduled to be held in South Africa in November 2022, has been postponed to February 2023. Therefore only two multi-team major women’s events will be played in 2022 – the ODI World Cup in New Zealand followed by the Commonwealth Games in July, with the multi-format Ashes scheduled for the latter half of the year.According to an ICC release, the decision was made taking into consideration that there are “currently no major women’s events scheduled to take place in 2023, [so] the board confirmed the switch for the T20 World Cup to better support player preparation and to continue to build the momentum around the women’s game beyond 2022.ALSO READ: Six teams to qualify via ICC rankings for 2022 Commonwealth Games Speaking on the development, ICC CEO Manu Sawhney said: “Moving the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup to 2023 makes perfect sense on a number of levels. Firstly, it will provide a better workload balance for players giving them the best possible opportunity to perform to the highest levels on a global stage. Secondly, we can continue to build the momentum around the women’s game through 2022 and into 2023. We are committed to fueling the growth of the women’s game and today’s decision enables us to do that over the longer term.”In August, the ICC had announced that the 2021 women’s ODI World Cup, originally scheduled for February-March 2021 in New Zealand, was deferred by a year, with an eye on maintaining the “integrity of the tournament” in the wake of the disparity in the level of preparedness of the teams caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.The governing body, however, is yet to make an announcement on the fate of the inaugural Under-19 women’s World Cup, which Bangladesh are due to host in January 2021.