Mithali Raj’s unbeaten 97 powered India to a score that was far too much for Malaysia, who were shot out for 27 in the tournament’s opening match

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Jun-2018
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMithali Raj’s unbeaten 97 powered India women to 169 for 3 before the bowlers shot Malaysia out for 27 in a resounding 142-run victory to open the Women’s T20 Asia Cup in Kuala Lumpur. Not a single Malaysia batsman managed to make a score in double-figures as India ran through their line-up with six bowlers who bowled a combined five maiden overs. Medium-pacer Pooja Vastrakar was the most successful bowler, taking 3 for 6, while Poonam Yadav chipped in with two wickets without conceding a run in her two overs.India captain Harmanpreet Kaur had elected to bat and was needed in the middle overs to add impetus, after her team had fallen to 35 for 2 just after the Powerplay was done. Her 23-ball 32 did exactly that, but the innings was dictated by Raj, who batted through the 20 overs with a strike rate of 140.57.Raj hit 13 fours and a six in her knock, but couldn’t find the boundary in the last two overs when she was eight away from a century. Her 86-run stand with Kaur came off just 53 balls and she closed the innings off with Deepti Sharma, who did manage to find boundaries at the end to lift India to 169.In response, Malaysia lost half their side within five overs, falling to 12 for 5. Captain Winifred Duraisingam, Sasha Azmi, and Zumika Azmi were the only batsmen to display resistance, but their comparatively long stays at the crease yielded no substantial scores as India completed a massive victory.

A court of appeal found that SLC had failed to hold a mandatory 14-day nomination period following the announcement of the election date

Madushka Balasuriya30-May-2018Sri Lanka Cricket’s elections have been postponed by at least a month after a court of appeal found that the board had flouted election protocol. The move brings into sharp focus the extent of government interference in SLC affairs, with elections having once already been postponed on similar grounds.This latest postponement is the result of a petition filed by SLC presidential candidate Nishantha Ranatunga against the legitimacy of incumbent president Thilanga Sumathipala, on the basis of the latter’s familial ties to the gaming industry. While the court refused to grant the petitioner’s request to hold the elections without Sumathipala, it did not dismiss the petition out of hand. In the deliberation, it found that SLC had failed to hold a mandatory 14-day nomination period following the announcement of the election date – something which SLC had seemingly been granted permission for by the country’s sports ministry less than two weeks prior – and as such ordered elections be stayed, with the matter set to be taken up by the court again on June 14.Elections had initially been announced for May 19 and a nomination deadline set for April 27, but were postponed after Sri Lanka’s sports ministry declared that SLC had violated the country’s sports law in the appointing of an election committee. Sports law dictates that the committee should be appointed on the floor of an Extraordinary General Meeting in front of SLC general membership, whereas SLC had made the appointment at an Executive Committee (ExCo) meeting.SLC however contested that then Sports Minister Dayasiri Jayasekera had granted special permission in this regard, but after Jayasekera resigned from his post on April 11 his replacement, Faiszer Mustapha, called on SLC to follow protocol.As such SLC appointed a new election committee at an EGM on May 19, but with the board constitutionally bound to wait 40 days from the announcement of an election to hold elections, SLC petitioned the sports ministry to waive the waiting period as the nomination period had already taken place. The sports ministry, following consultation with the country’s Attorney General, concurred and allowed elections to be held on May 31.However, in the latest twist, Sri Lanka’s court of appeal has effectively nullified the sports ministry’s and the AG’s decision.While a new election date is being decided, the state of SLC leadership is up in the air. The present board’s term ends on May 31; for them to continue the sports minister will either have to grant an extension to the board’s term limit or appoint an interim committee.

Bangladesh will aim to build on their Asia Cup success as they square off against Ireland in Saturday’s final

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jul-2018Billed favourites to book the final two spots for the forthcoming Women’s World T20 in the Caribbean, Bangladesh and Ireland lived up to the tag in the eight-team qualifying tournament with convincing semi-final wins over Scotland and Papua New Guinea. A victory in the final on Saturday will be as much a contest for bragging rights as it will to validate or reverse the result of the 2015 edition, where Bangladesh finished second behind Ireland.Either Bangladesh or Ireland will face West Indies (in Group A) or Australia (in Group B) in the World T20 opener on November 9 and 11 respectively, pending the result in the final.Ranked ninth and tenth on the ICC multi-format women’s team rankings, Bangladesh finished atop Group A with a 49-run victory at the VRA Ground in Amstelveen hours within Ireland topped Group B by defeating PNG by 27 runs at the venue.Ireland Women players celebrate a wicket•Getty Images/ICC

Bangladesh’s entry into the World T20 comes on the back of a maiden Asia-Cup title-winning campaign in June, where they stunned heavyweights India twice. Ireland, meanwhile, recovered from big-margin, limited-overs series defeats against New Zealand and a 2-1 T20I series defeat against Bangladesh – both at home – less two weeks ago.An unbeaten, three-match-winning streak heading into the semi-final meant the crucial tie against Scotland was only for Ireland’s to lose. Having being put in at the toss by PNG, a wicket off the second ball of the game inspired hopes of a potential upset, but only momentarily. A top-score of 36 from the in-form Gaby Lewis anchored a 47-run second-wicket stand for Ireland, before Lucy O’Reilly’s career-best 3 for 13 rolled over PNG for 86 in 19.2 overs.For Bangladesh, their in-form opening pair of Shamima Sultana and Ayasha Rahman – who had laid the platform for the victors in the low-scoring Asia Cup final – added 51 in 6.5 overs, before middle-order batsman Nigar Sultana’s 31 lifted them to 125 for 6.Scotland wobbled early in the chase, losing opener Rachael Scholes to Bangladesh captain Salma Khatun in the fourth over. But the Bryce sisters – Sarah and captain Kathryn – kept Scotland’s hopes alive, with Sarah collecting a dogged 31 that took Scotland past 50 – in the 13th over.It was, however, a timely strike from legspinner Fahima Khatun, who, on Tuesday became the first Bangladesh bowler – male or female to take a T20I hat-trick, that sent back Sarah and triggered a collapse. Scotland lost 7 for 14 over the following three overs, and the four combined wickets from Nahida Akter and vice-captain Rumana Ahmed strangled them to 76 for 7 snuffed out their hopes of qualification.

The Guyana Amazon Warriors pacer had sent off Australian Ben Cutting by giving him the middle finger with both hands after dismissing him during their clash against the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Aug-2018Guyana Amazon Warriors fast bowler Sohail Tanvir has been fined 15% of his match fee for making an obscene gesture during his team’s home game against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots on Thursday. Tanvir accepted the sanction handed to him by match referee Denavon Hayles.The incident occurred during the 17th over of the Patriots innings, when Tanvir dismissed Australian Ben Cutting with a yorker that crashed into the middle stump. As Cutting began walking back, Tanvir showed him a double-middle finger, with Cutting’s back turned to him. One ball before the dismissal, Tanvir had been dispatched for a six over long-on by Cutting.Tanvir finished his spell with 1 for 24 in four overs, which was instrumental in restricting the Patriots to 146 for 5, before the Warriors ran down the target in 16.3 overs, with six wickets in hand. Tanvir was the highest wicket-taker in the previous season, and was subsequently retained by the Warriors, for the maximum price of US$160,000.

A woman sacked by Cricket Australia after she criticised a Tasmanian politician’s policy on abortion access in the state has reached an out of court settlement with the board

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Sep-2018Cricket Australia has avoided the potential of an extensive court battle by settling their case with former employee Angela Williamson who was sacked follow tweets about abortion.Last month, Williamson was heavily critical of Tasmania’s Health Minister Michael Ferguson for his comments on the state’s abortion policy, calling his comments “irresponsible, gutless and reckless”, which led to Cricket Australia claiming she had breached their social media policy.The decision generated significant international headlines and raised questions about the extent of freedom employees had to express political opinions without endangering their employment.Williamson, who had initially rejected an alternate job offer from Cricket Australia to pursue her case in Federal Court, had made strong allegations about the role Tasmanian Premier Will Hodgman played in her sacking. Hodgman maintained he had not played any role in Williamson’s dismissal.In confirming the case had been settled out of court, Cricket Australia did not give any other details.”Following ongoing discussions, Cricket Australia, Cricket Tasmania and Angela Williamson have been able to reach a mutually satisfactory resolution of the matter,” a spokesman said.Williamson had been compelled to fly to Melbourne from Hobart to have a surgical abortion earlier this year due to not being able to access the service in Tasmania. She had been employed by Cricket Tasmania for 18 months at the time of her dismissal, and had, prior to working for Cricket Australia, held a job as a government relations manager in Tasmania.Williamson had sought compensation for loss of income, humiliation, damage to her reputation, anxiety and distress.”I spoke my mind on a political issue because I believe strongly in the reproductive health rights of Tasmanian women,” Williamson had said around the time of her dismissal. “I am disappointed the case wasn’t resolved today but I am prepared to continue my fight in the Federal Court.”

CA’s team performance manager has been arguably the most debated figure in Australian cricket over the past seven years

Daniel Brettig24-Oct-2018Pat Howard, Cricket Australia’s team performance chief, will not seek an extension to his current contract, meaning he will finish a tenure that began in the wake of the 2011 Argus review at the end of next year’s Ashes tour of England at the latest.Installed as a “single point of accountability for team performance” as one of the Argus review’s recommendations, Howard has been arguably the most debated figure in Australian cricket over the past seven years. He signed a contract extension in May last year to take his time at CA through to 2019, mirroring those of the former coach Darren Lehmann and his support staff. However, all faced a hailstorm of criticism in the wake of the Newlands ball-tampering scandal, forcing Lehmann to resign immediately.While Howard’s team performance wing of CA is expected to face plenty of criticism in the independent cultural review of the governing body, commissioned in the wake of Newlands, he retorted to its facilitator Simon Longstaff that the performance of the men’s national team represented only “25%” of his job.”It’ll be interesting where that goes and I don’t know where that’s going. I haven’t had anything to do with it,” Howard told last month. “I’m in charge of men’s and women’s teams and underage teams so I guess if the environment had been the same everywhere … then I would have a different view, but I don’t think [problems] have been consistent across all the teams.”The cultural review did ask about that [win-at-all-costs culture] and I said I’m happy to give you my KPIs as a starting point. About 25 per cent is on outcomes, ie winning, and then there’s a lot of stuff in line with strategy and which is available freely. Don’t get me wrong, I want people to be the best they can be, me included, players, managers, all of us. But I don’t believe I have a win-at-all-costs culture. My proudest ever tour was the 2017 Indian tour, which we lost.”A CA spokesperson said Howard’s decision not to renew his contract, of which he has recently been informing CA and national team staff and players, was unrelated to the review’s imminent release. “Pat had previously indicated that he would not be seeking contract renewal beyond the end of the 2019 Ashes series, when his contract was due to conclude,” the spokesperson said. “The decision is his own and is no way connected to the reviews to be released on Monday. A recruitment process will be decided and announced in due course, but there is plenty of time for this to be considered.”Since joining CA from a rugby background in late 2011, Howard has been in almost perpetual motion in the job, trying many things while also developing a long list of critics. His innovations have included the return of bonus points to the Sheffield Shield and the trial of Dukes balls in the second half of recent seasons, the use of wellness apps to monitor the health of CA-contracted players, encouragement of increased management for fast bowlers to reduce their injury rate, moving the domestic limited-overs tournament to the front end of the season, and the use of the ICC academy in Dubai to prepare for a competitive showing on the 2017 India tour.Howard was also an advocate of introducing performance bonus pay to the national teams, as per the recommendations of the Argus review, during the 2012 MoU negotiation. The scheme remained in place for the current MoU, during which Howard and Sutherland completed compromise talks with the Australian Cricketers Association after the game was brought to a standstill by the players’ dispute with CA’s lead negotiator Kevin Roberts, who has since been named as the new chief executive.However he has faced criticism from numerous quarters of the game in Australia for the perceived marginalisation of the Sheffield Shield and limited-overs tournaments, and the perpetuation of a system geared towards finding great players at the expense of the merely very good. A famously combative character, he was recently revealed to have sent a scathing email to performance staff in the wake of a Test-match loss to Bangladesh in Dhaka in 2017.

Raack holds an Irish passport and recently committed to Ireland having recently played domestic cricket

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Oct-2018Ireland have called up Australian-born legspinner Celeste Raack for the Women’s World T20 in the Caribbean.Raack, 24, holds an Irish passport and recently committed to Ireland having played in this season’s domestic Super 3 tournament.She will be part of an experienced squad captained by Laura Delany which also features Clare Shillington and Ciara Metcalfe who will retire after the tournament.

Ireland squad

Laura Delany (capt), Kim Garth, Cecelia Joyce, Isobel Joyce, Shauna Kavanagh, Amy Kenealy, Gaby Lewis, Lara Maritz, Ciara Metcalfe, Lucy O’Reilly, Celeste Raack, Eimear Richardson, Clare Shillington, Rebecca Stokell, Mary Waldron

“It’s a great squad, one which is both a reward for performance and an acknowledgement at how important big game experience is at international tournaments,” Aaron Hamilton, the head coach, said. “When you’re at a world cup with the TV cameras, big crowds and big venues, it is important to ensure the younger players are surrounded by experienced heads.””I’m also delighted that selectors have looked beyond and taken the chance of bringing leg-spinner Celeste Raack into the squad. Celeste impressed many of us playing for the Typhoons in the Toyota Super 3’s Series this year, and has previously played for the Tasmanian Tigers women’s team in the Australian women’s domestic league, and the Hobart Hurricanes in the Women’s Big Bash League.”Raack said: “I am flying in on Friday to join the squad in their preparation for the tournament and am very much looking forward to it. I am hoping that this will be the start of a long career as an Irish cricketer and intend on relocating for the start of the 2019 cricket season. Playing with and against Irish international players in this series really improved my cricket and bowling on Irish wickets was a different challenge to those I’ve played on in Australia.”Ireland will face Australia, Pakistan, India and New Zealand in the group stages of the World T20.

Wasim Khan was understood to have made a favourable impression during interviews and there is a likelihood he could be confirmed as the board’s managing director soon

George Dobell02-Dec-2018Wasim Khan has emerged as a strong candidate for the new role of Managing Director of the PCB.Wasim, currently chief executive at Leicestershire County Cricket Club, was invited to consider the position by PCB chairman, Ehsan Mani. He is understood to have made a very favourable impression during interviews in recent days with a possibility that he could be confirmed in the role by the end of the week.Wasim had also been asked to apply for the role of Managing Director – England Cricket by the ECB management, but it is understood he has expressed a preference for the Pakistan job.Although Wasim is British-born – he is believed to have been the first British-born Muslim player of Pakistan origin to play county cricket – he has long held a Pakistan passport. If his appointment is confirmed – and parties are in the final stages of discussing terms – he is expected to move, with his wife and children, to Lahore.While his current county role is relatively low profile, Wasim has long been seen as a key figure in the future of England cricket. A former player – he was part of the Warwickshire squad that won the double in 1995 – he went on to become CEO of the Cricket Foundation where he played a huge role in the expansion of Chance to Shine. He has also sat on the Equality & Human Rights Commission Sports Group, The Prince’s Trust Cricket Group, the board of Sport England and was recently named in the Parliamentary Review Muslim 100 Power List. In an English system desperate to find a way to connect with its Asian communities, he has long been seen as a future CEO of the ECB.A Pakistan role will bring a vastly different set of challenges. Among the high-priority items on his to-do list are likely to be a reorganisation of the domestic system, and this will be an especially thorny issue. Imran Khan, former captain and now the country’s prime minister – and by default, the cricket board’s patron – has long been a strong advocate of a domestic structure based on regional sides alone.That stance is likely to be taken up in some form at board level – Mani is known to believe that a purely regional model might not work in Pakistan, where the population is far bigger than countries such as Australia (whose small domestic Shield structure Imran is a fan of).Early indications suggest a structure with eight regional teams, either city-based or province-based. That could have implications for the departmental sides – such as HBL, WAPDA, PIA and SSGC – who have, for over 40 years, been the backbone of the domestic circuit. It is these banks and airlines and gas companies that employ cricketers on monthly salaries, and these organisations – and not the regional sides – who have long been at the forefront of the game’s professionalisation.Repeated moves to remove or sideline them have been strongly resisted by players, and administrators and will face similar obstacles if it happens again, but the idea presently under consideration is to make departments sponsor regional teams and to reduce teams in the domestic circuit by up to 30% in the name of quality. One of the board’s aims will be to make regions financially self sufficient and run without PCB funding. Presently, the PCB spends over PKR 600 million per year on domestic cricket. There are currently 16 teams on the domestic circuit playing in the Quaid e Azam trophy, with eight regional and eight department teams.Wasim is also expected to work on an exchange or initiative system to help Pakistan players develop their game by representing county and state teams as overseas players. He may also be expected to reduce the headcount at the PCB – some estimates suggest they currently employ in the region of 900 people across the country (albeit, the vast majority of these will be contract-based jobs in stadiums the PCB owns across the country, with a much smaller list of permanent staff employed at headquarters in Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore).Inevitably, he will also be charged with bringing regular international cricket back to Pakistan. While that will not be easy he will hope his excellent relationship with ECB officials will help to that end. As a long-time supporter of the PCA (the Professional Cricketer’s’ Association; the players’ union in England and Wales) he may also look to introduce a players’ union for Pakistan cricketers. Given how often that has been attempted – without success – and the often disputatious nature of players with the board, this will be no mean feat either.Ultimately, whoever gets the role – and Wasim is a clear favourite at this stage – it seems it may be changed to a CEO position once the PCB Board pass constitutional changes to Mani’s role, which has him currently as chairman and CEO.

Coach’s focus on the ‘soft dismissals’ of Sarfraz Ahmed, Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq, with talk emerging of ‘big changes’ in the next Test

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Dec-2018Pakistan’s latest batting disaster led to a heated team meeting post-play in Centurion and it could yet lead to some big changes ahead of the second Test in Cape Town next week.Pakistan were well-placed at tea on the second day of the first Test, 100 for 1 at the break with a lead of 58 and two set batsmen in Imam-ul-Haq and Shan Masood. Imam, however, chopped on in the first over after tea and, as has happened so often over the last couple of years, Pakistan’s batting fell apart, failing even to see out the session.The collapses have been a regular feature through the tenure of Mickey Arthur but the problem has become acute since the departures of Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan in April 2017. But perhaps because Pakistan were in such a promising position this time, the anger and frustration in the dressing room post-play tipped over.Arthur is understood to have had, what several sources described variously as a “strong” and “honest” discussion with his batsmen. A few of the batsmen “were reminded of their responsibilities”, according to a team source, though particular focus fell on the dismissals of the senior-most trio in the side: captain Sarfraz Ahmed, Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq.Sarfraz fell for a duck – a pair for the Test – chasing a wide ball and edging to slip; Shafiq edged a lazy waft behind, the ball after having he was reprieved by DRS which over-ruled an lbw decision; Azhar got into a terrible tangle off a short ball, unsure whether to defend or pull. They were told, in clear terms, that their dismissals were “soft”.It was the latest in a series of cheap dismissals for the trio in crunch situations. Twice in the recent home series against New Zealand, the three failed or fell at inopportune moments in chasing a low total or trying to bat out less than a day to save a Test.But it is a trend since Sarfraz took over the Test captaincy last year. It began with all three failing in a low chase against Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi. Sarfraz and Shafiq briefly raised hopes of a successful 300-plus chase in the very next Test in Dubai, before the captain fell sweeping early on the fifth day. Azhar and Shafiq were part of a mini-collapse in a chase of 160 against Ireland in Malahide, which left Pakistan tottering at 14 for 3 before Babar Azam and Imam saw them home (Sarfraz failed in that chase too, though the win was all but sealed by then).And then, against New Zealand, having taken Pakistan all but home at 130 for 3 in a chase of 176, Shafiq fell on the stroke of lunch, precipitating a collapse in which Sarfraz fell for 3. Azhar was last man out for 65, unable to find ways to score the five runs that would’ve won the Test.In the final Test, again in Abu Dhabi, Azhar and Shafiq both made first-innings hundreds, but careless dismissals led to a collapse which let the advantage slip. And when tasked to bat out an hour less than a full day on the final day, the trio once again failed, contributing 33 runs between them (Shafiq fell for a first-ball duck).There were even suggestions in the meeting of “big changes” ahead of the next Test. The nature of those is as yet unclear, however, and would depend on the result of this Test – South Africa need 149 runs to go one-up in the series.Though Sarfraz has been under pressure for some time now, and acknowledged as much before this tour, it is difficult to see Pakistan doing anything drastic with their captain mid-tour. Azhar’s experience at the top of the order with an inexperienced opening pair insulates him to a degree for now, and he does average 40.36 since the start of Pakistan’s home season.That leaves Shafiq in greatest danger. He holds the Pakistan record for the most number of consecutive Tests played (62 and counting), but not only have his returns been poor this year, the manner and timing of his dismissals have started attracting attention. It will not be easy convincing Sarfraz to drop him but, especially if Pakistan lose in Centurion, that might become an easier option.Reports in Pakistan suggest the meeting was more than just heated, with words exchanged between Sarfraz and Arthur. There are even suggestions that equipment was thrown around but that has been denied by players and staff, some of whom are unhappy that news of the dressing-room meeting leaked out.The PCB issued a statement, reiterating that nothing untoward had happened: “As per the norm, Mickey held a debriefing meeting at the end of the day’s play which was held in a cordial atmosphere with inputs from team members and management as is the usual practice.”Any speculation about coach’s angry behaviour towards the players is grossly exaggerated.”

Pakistan and India are No. 1 and No. 2 respectively in the T20I rankings, and have been placed in different groups for the next T20 World Cup as a result

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Jan-2019For the first time since the 2011 World Cup, India will not meet Pakistan in the group stage of an ICC event. The two teams have faced each other in five ICC tournaments since 2011 – and will meet again in the 2019 World Cup in England and Wales – but cricket’s traditional rivalry will not be on show in the group stages of 2020 T20 World Cup in Australia.This is a result of the present T20I rankings, where Pakistan and India occupy the No. 1 and No. 2 spots respectively, necessitating the two teams to be placed in different groups for the tournament.

The Groups

Group A: Pakistan, Australia, West Indies, New Zealand, Qualifier 1, Qualifier 2
Group B: India, England, South Africa, Afghanistan, Qualifier 3, Qualifier 4

England and Australia aren’t guaranteed to meet each other either. While England are placed in Group B alongside India, Australia are in Group A alongside Pakistan.ALSO READ: Champions Australia to start women’s T20 World Cup against India
The top-eight teams have automatically qualified for the tournament, while Sri Lanka and Bangladesh – ninth and tenth in the rankings respectively – will contest six other sides in the qualifying tournament in Geelong and Hobart for the remaining four spots in the Super 12s stage.Pakistan will open the Super 12s against hosts Australia at the SCG on a double-header Saturday on October 24. India will take on South Africa at the new Perth Stadium in the second match of the day. Defending champions West Indies will open their campaign against New Zealand at the MCG the next day.The SCG and the Adelaide Oval will host the semi-finals on November 11 and 12 respectively, while the final will be held at the MCG on November 15. The women’s final, which will also take place at the MCG earlier in the year, is hoping for a record crowd for a women’s sporting event at the venue.